HT201456: Boot Camp 5.1: Frequently asked questions

Learn about Boot Camp 5.1: Frequently asked questions
wwong-seattle

Q: Are there Windows driver improvements in Boot Camp 5 to warrant upgrading on an existing Win 7 instance?

I have an existing Boot Camp 4 installation hosting Win7 Ultimate.  Are there any improvements to the Boot Camp 5 Windows drivers that I should upgrade the drivers?  In other words, beside Win8 support, are there any Win7 driver fixes or upgrades or should I just let a perfectly good instance stay as is?

MacBook Air (13-INCH, MID 2011), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)

Posted on Mar 15, 2013 9:54 AM

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Q: Are there Windows driver improvements in Boot Camp 5 to warrant upgrading on an existing Win 7 instance?

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  • by wwong-seattle,

    wwong-seattle wwong-seattle Mar 15, 2013 12:22 PM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 15, 2013 12:22 PM in response to Kappy

    Thanks for the response but those links are where I started from as soon as the upgrade was announced and they do not answer my question which is why I'm posting here... Are there improvements in the BC5 Win drivers that fix any Win 7 issues or is the driver upgrade solely adding support for Win8?  For instance, the BC4 Win7 driver for Thunderbolt doesn't play well with the Apple GigaBit Thunderbolt adapter -doesn't support sleep mode and often requires rebooting after it suddenly stops working.  The Thunderbolt ethernet adapter device works well under OSX so I'm assuming its a Win7 driver issue.

     

    If noone knows, then I guess I could just upgrade the drivers and if it causes problems, downgrade back to BC4 drivers by re-installing in Win7 from the USB stick that I've kept.

  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Mar 15, 2013 12:24 PM in response to wwong-seattle
    Level 10 (271,691 points)
    Desktops
    Mar 15, 2013 12:24 PM in response to wwong-seattle

    Those drivers were just released today, so we don't know more than you do. Try them and find out, then you can be the BC 5 expert.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Mar 15, 2013 12:33 PM in response to wwong-seattle
    Level 9 (51,151 points)
    Desktops
    Mar 15, 2013 12:33 PM in response to wwong-seattle

    wwong-seattle wrote:

     

    I have an existing Boot Camp 4 installation hosting Win7 Ultimate.  Are there any improvements to the Boot Camp 5 Windows drivers that I should upgrade the drivers?  In other words, beside Win8 support, are there any Win7 driver fixes or upgrades or should I just let a perfectly good instance stay as is?

    If it ain't broke ..... don't change it.