Which drivers for Intel Dual-Band Wireless-AC 7260?

[DDary]

I'm trying to update the drivers for the Intel Dual-Band Wireless-AC 7260. I ran the Intel Driver Update Utility to see what it recommended. I also looked manually using the Intel Driver download website, since it seems to give more comprehensive information. The driver update utility showed updates required for the Intel PROSet/Wireless Software and Drivers (windows 7/64) and also for the Intel PROSet/Wireless Software for Bluetooth technology for Windows. They were both at the same version but the recommended versions were different. For the wireless software and drivers, the recommended version was a higher version, 18.12.1.2. For the Bluetooth, the recommended version was 17.1.1529.1613. There was a newer version on the driver download website, 18.20.0.9, so I installed it first. After the installation, the driver update utility says the version of both the wireless and the Bluetooth are 18.20.0.9, but it's still recommending earlier and different versions .I tried to install the recommended Bluetooth driver, but it failed with the error source file not found.

I would appreciate if someone would answer a few questions for me:

Why there are different drivers for the wireless and Bluetooth, if they are both part of the AC7260?

Why does the driver update utility not show the latest drivers that are on the driver download website?

Why after I install the wireless driver, does the driver update utility show the same installed driver version for Bluetooth, as for wireless, if the driver is the same? Is this a bug in the driver update utility?

Why is the installation of the Bluetooth driver failing with source file not found?

Thanks for the help.

[ASouz7]

Hello darylm,

It is important that for any important update, be done via your computer manufacturer support page if this wireless adapter is the one that came installed in your computer.

However, on our best effort to assist you with this issue, you may try this procedure:

1 - Download and save https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25278/Intel-PROSet-Wireless-Software-and-Drivers-for-Windows-7- Intel® PROSet/Wireless Software and Drivers for Windows 7* https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25278/Intel-PROSet-Wireless-Software-and-Drivers-for-Windows-7- File name: Wireless_18.20.0_s64.exe

2 - Download and save https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25130/Intel-PROSet-Wireless-Software-for-Bluetooth-technology-for-Windows-7-64-bit Intel® PROSet/Wireless Software for Bluetooth® technology for Windows 7* 64-bit file nameL Stp-BT-17.1.1506.520_s64.exe4

3 - Go to Control Panel, Programs and Features and Uninstall "Intel® PROSet/Wireless Software", if it is installed. When prompted, choose the option to "Discard settings".

4 - In Control Panel, Device Manager, Network Adapters, right click on the Intel® Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260 and uninstall it. Make sure you mark the option to "Delete the driver software for this device".

5 - Reboot the PC or scan for hardware changes, check device manager and if an older driver is detected and installed, repeat the actions to uninstall and delete it as well. Repeat this process until the OS does not allow deleting the driver, or until the controller shows as Unknown Device.

6 - Install the Intel® Wireless driver. During the first steps of PROSet/Wireless installation, make sure to customize the installation and install all the 3 driver components.

Why there are different drivers for the wireless and Bluetooth, if they are both part of the AC7260?

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth* are not the same. The Intel® Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260 is both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth* devices rolled in one single card. They use different protocols and sometimes different frequencies.

Why does the driver update utility not show the latest drivers that are on the driver download website?

Our Download Center displays latest driver for latest OS version. If you have, for instance Windows* 7, then IDUU will know this and suggest the best driver for Win 7, not for the latest OS supported.

Why after I install the wireless driver, does the driver update utility show the same installed driver version for Bluetooth, as for wireless, if the driver is the same? Is this a bug in the driver update utility?

We reproduce this issue and the IDUU showed distinct drivers. Could you provide more details on this issue.?

Why is the installation of the Bluetooth driver failing with source file not found?

That could be for many reasons, perhaps installation file downloaded with errors. Trying to download it again as suggest above may resolve the issue.

[DDary]

Thank you very much for the reply.

I have an HP ZBook 15 G2. The drivers on the HP website are Intel drivers, but they are always several versions old. HP support told me it's fine to use drivers from the Intel website.

Here are the latest drivers for my adapter and OS according to the Intel Download Center:

Here are the latest drivers according to the Intel Driver Update Utility, after I installed the Intel PROSet/Wireless Software and Drivers for Windows 7, V18.20.0:

For some reason, it thinks the previous version of wireless driver is the latest version, inconsistent with the website. That appears to be a bug. Also, after installing the latest wireless driver according to the website, the utility thinks the bluetooth driver is the same version as the wireless driver. That was the case before I upgraded as well. That also appears to be a bug. Is there somewhere to report problems with the utility?

When I try to install the wireless driver V17.1.1529.1613, I get this error:

I tried to install the driver by unzipping the file and running setup. I have never experienced this problem installing an Intel driver. (The previous version of the Bluetooth driver installed without any problems.)

Any advice you can provide will be appreciated.

[DDary]

Anyone from Intel here? I'd like to understand why the latest Bluetooth driver won't install properly. Is it a problem with the driver itself or with the driver not coexisting with the latest wireless driver? There are no notes in either driver about coexisting with other drivers. I selected them because they are the latest for the dual band wireless-ac 7260 adapter and the operating system, which is windows 7 64. Also, it's strange that the driver update utility recommends the Bluetooth driver but is recommending a previous version of the wireless driver. Is that possibly because the driver update utility is not aware of the latest version of the wireless driver?

[ASouz7]

darylm,

We do understand your concern but our recommendation is for you to contact your OEM and check what drivers they have that will work in order. The reason we recommended this is because since the wireless card is an OEM's, it has been customized to work with the type of system you have and in this particular they create the drivers that are right for the system. Our drivers may be newer but may not be compatible.

[DDary]

Thanks for the reply. The OEM told me to get the latest drivers from Intel. I'm not clear what the point of Intel putting them on the driver download website if not for people to install. There is pretty clearly some sort of problem. Who is to say I'm not the only one having this problem?

[DDary]

I thought I would report that Intel released a newer Bluetooth driver that installs correctly. The driver update utility is still confused about the versions of drivers that are installed, but I do have the most recent drivers installed.

[ASouz7]

darylm,

We understand that the original drivers provided by the OEM worked well before you tried to update them, correct? The OEM's may be several versions older but they are the right drivers for your adapter. Is this adapter the one installed by factory? Please understand that the drivers in our support page are generic and may not be compatible to that of the OEM's adapter since they customize the adapter in order to be fully compatible to their system.