If you are an NVIDIA graphic card user, then you might have experienced the NVIDIA control panel missing issue.
According to the Google search results, many users have reported that they have faced NVIDIA control panel not available problem.
What is NVIDIA Control Panel
It is a place where users allow to change the properties of the NVIDIA graphic card. Also, the users can unlock the award-winning features of NVIDIA drivers via the control panel.
Where is My Control Panel
Usually, you can access the NVIDIA control panel via the desktop right-click context menu. Also, you can access it from the start menu, control panel, and double click on the NVIDIA control panel.
Why Nvidia Control Panel Missing in Windows
Sometimes you will not be able to start the NVIDIA control panel from the above methods. You will not able to find it on your system.
This can happen due to corrupted driver installation, missing registry keys, and values, or some random faults here and there. Sometimes the windows updates make the NVIDIA drivers incompatible with the new update.
But don’t worry. You are not the only one face this issue. You are not alone. This error can be fixed with some tweaks.
In this guide, we will give you some best methods to fix your NVIDIA control panel missing issue.
Note: Before doing anything, don’t forget to create a restore point just in case something goes wrong
Method to Regain Access to the Graphic Card Control Panel
You will find some basic and advanced guides here. Try the basic steps first, and then you may need to follow the advanced steps if the basic steps didn’t work for you.
Method 01: Unhide the NVIDIA Control Panel
The control panel May be hidden by windows for some reason. If that is the case, you can open it by going to the windows control panel. To do so,
01. Go to the windows control panel. Type control in the search box, and you will see the control panel link at the top of the search results. Just open it.
02. In control panel change the view by option to Large icons
03. Select the NVIDIA control panel and open it.
04. Go to the Desktop tab and then check Add Desktop Context Menu
05. Right-click on your desktop to see if the control panel appears in the desktop context menu
Method 02: Update Graphics Drivers
If the above option didn’t work or you couldn’t find the NVIDIA control panel icon even in the windows control panel, you need to update your graphics drivers again.
Also, by updating the NVIDIA graphics driver software, you may find some solution to other graphic driver related issues in Windows.
There are two options that you can try. Manual method and automatic method.
Manual method 01: Download and install official drivers from the site
NVIDIA keeps its drivers updating regularly. To download the drivers for your graphic card, you need to go to their official site and find the drivers related to your card and your windows version.
https://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx
After downloading the correct driver, double click it to start the installation procedure and follow the onscreen options.
Manual method 02: Update NVIDIA drivers from Device Manager
01. Go to Device Manager. To do that right-click on This PC and click Manage
02. Find the NVIDIA card under the Display adapters.
03. Right-click on it and select Update Driver Software. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the update process. You need an active internet connection to complete this step.
Automatic method: Use a third-party driver detecting software
You can use any third-party drivers detecting software to identify and download the drivers for your card automatically. For example, 3DP Chip, Driver Easy, and Driverpack Solution.
But the most suitable method is to find it by yourself by going to the official website of the graphic card manufacturer.
Method 03: Restart NVIDIA Services
01. Go to Windows services. To do that, open the Run dialogue box and type services.msc in the text box and hit Enter or click OK.
02. Locate the NVIDIA services and start or restart then one by one
Restart your PC to see the results.
Method 04: Uninstall and Re-install Nvidia Graphic Drivers
There are two options that you can follow to uninstall the NVIDIA drivers.
Method 01: Using device Manager
01. Go to the device manager and find the NVIDIA graphic card.
02. Right-click on it and select Uninstall device
03. Check the option Delete the driver software for this device and click Uninstall
04. Restart your system to see the effect.
Method 02: From the control panel
01. Go to Windows Control panel
02. Go to Uninstall a program under the programs
03 Select the NVIDIA program and right-click on it. From the menu select Uninstall/ Change or select Uninstall/ Change at the top of the program list.
04. Restart your system
05. Install the drivers again to see the result.
Method 05: Perform a Clean Installation
Sometimes a clean installation may help you to overcome the issue.
01. Open the task manager
02. Perform an End task to all NVIDIA related processes.
03. Go to C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\
04. Find and delete the following files.
nvdsp.inf
nv_lh
nvoclock
05. Go to the following directories and delete all the files there. Restart your PC
C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\
C:\Program Files (x86)\NVIDIA Corporation\
06. Run the downloaded NVIDIA driver file and perform a clean installation by selecting the Custom installation option
Method 06: Open NVIDIA Control Panel Manually
01. Go to C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\Control Panel Client folder
02. Right-click on nvcplui.exe and select Run as administrator
03. See if the error is gone. If not continue with the next method
Method 07: Solution Provided by NVIDIA
01. Go to C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation. Right-click on NVDisplay.Container.exe and select Copy
02. Open the Run dialogue box by pressing Windows key + R and type shell:startup. Hit Enter
03. It will open the location
C:\Users\usEr\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
04. Right-click on an empty area and paste the copied NVDisplay.Container.exe file
05. Again right-click on the file, Go to properties, then go to the compatibility tab and check Run this program as an administrator. Click OK
Then restart your PC and check if you can see the NVIDIA control panel back on your desktop content menu
Method 08: Reinstall the NVIDIA Control Panel App From Microsoft Store
01. Go to Windows settings and click on Apps
02. From the Apps and features search for NVIDIA control panel. If you have installed it on your system, uninstall it
03. Download and install the app by following this link
Hopefully one of the above methods should fix your NVIDIA control panel missing error. If you were unable to find a solution with the above methods, then it is better to ask your question on NVIDIA Forum.
