• Managing and maintaining computer hardware is a task performed regularly by network admin- istrators. Windows 7 supports a wide variety of internal and external hardware components that you should be familiar with.
  
  Internal hardware components include network cards, video cards, and hard disk drives. External components are typically peripheral devices such as a mouse, printer, or USB drive.
  
  Windows 7 requires device drivers to manage and communicate with hardware components. Device drivers are written specifically for a particular type and model of component. For ex- ample, a 3C905 network card driver is different from an E1000 network card driver.
• The Windows 7 Compatibility Center is a list of software or hardware and associated device drivers that have been tested with Windows 7. If a device is certified as "Designed for Windows 7" then you are assured that Microsoft has tested the hardware component and device driver to ensure they work properly with Windows 7. Hardware components and device drivers that are not certified by Microsoft may work properly, but are not supported by Microsoft.

To manage hardware in Windows 7 you should understand:

• Device Drivers
• Device Driver Compatibility
• Device Manager
• Device Driver Signing
• Hardware Component Installation