NVIDIA Graphics Driver Broken - Unable to open Control-Panel

Note that a few months back i did already create a similar thread..
And the title might be missleading, the issue is probably not with the graphics driver but with windows.

The Problem:
I cannot open the Nvidia-Controlpanel, when i klick on the shortcut it does absolutely nothing.

What i tried:
Boot in savemode and use the latest DDU to uninstall the current nvidiadriver. (472.12)
The 472.12 driver was released back in september 20, 2021 and is the last published standard driver version.
All newer drivers are DCH versions, and this is exactly where the problem kicks in.. with all DCH drivers the controlpanel does not work.
Before you ask, os version is windows 10 21H2 build 19044 released on November 16, 2021.
I am thankful for any input that helps me get to the bottom of this issue but be aware that i will not update my os so don't even ask.
And yes i can see two the nvidia container processes running in the taskmanager, the driver is installed and semi functional i just can't open the controlpanel, which prevents me from changing some settings so the whole driver is useless and i'll had to downgrade once again.

I thought after waiting a few months maybe the newer drivers will fix my issue, well turns out that's not the case.
I've always hated these DCH drivers from the microsoft-store, but i guess there's no point in whining about it.

You don't need to acquire the control panel from the M$ store. I echo your sentiments - M$ have injected themselves into every process turning simple driver installs into a more complex multi step nightmare.

Not sure if this will solve your problem, as from reading your post it seems the cpl might be installed but broken. The following is an alternative way of installing the cpl. Hope it helps solve your problem.

In current DCH drivers the control panel app is stored within the archive in the display.driver\nvcpl folder.

When I converted from standard drivers to DCH it was an issue as it would complain the control panel was not installed. So had to use DDU, then reboot and do a clean install and all was well after that. So I don't know why you are having problems. Note however, that I do not use the store at all nor do I allow Windows to download and install drivers.

There is a way you can side load the control panel. This involves extracting the control panel files from the driver archive (eg with 7-Zip). If you have concerns about side loading I understand, and this will be of no use to you.

Uninstall the drivers using DDU in safe mode
Do not let Windows download drivers
Extract the files to a folder.
From an elevated command prompt in that folder run the following DISM command

Code:

Dism /online /Add-ProvisionedAppxPackage /PackagePath:1b860afc09e945aea8b23a02423446e6.appx /LicensePath:1b860afc09e945aea8b23a02423446e6_License1.xml

Note: Change the package name and license file name to match what your driver archive contains.
Also, the AppxSvc must be running for this to work.
Reboot. Your control panel should be installed and an icon in the notification area. Run it, it will ask you to agree to the terms and conditions.

hth



Question: What is the screen print of the ncsi app for? This is the Network Connection Status Indicator app - the one that tells you if you have an internet connection.