Solved: “Radeon Software and Driver Do Not Match” Error

When you are attempting to launch the Radeon Software, you might encounter an error message reading ‘’Radeon software and driver versions do not match.” This error message pops up when you try to install the latest drivers or software but it does not overwrite the older version on your PC but rather overlaps.

If your software is not updated, you miss out on a lot of benefits like getting the latest updates and features for your Radeon graphics, so you must work to fix the problem. However, people who have been using AMD Radeon graphics for some time may not have a problem but the newer users can have issues.

Let’s discuss how you can fix this and prevent this from happening in the future.

Why Do I Get This Error?

There are certain pre-installed drivers and software on pre-built and OEM laptops with AMD mobile and graphics. Your PC may occasionally have trouble recognizing the most recent drivers when you attempt to download them from their website, failing to replace the outdated ones, having two at once.

How to Fix “Radeon Software and Driver Do Not Match” Error??

Since the root of the issue is driver version mismatching, we can go through a few troubleshooting methods to possibly fix it. Let us start by troubleshooting the Radeon application itself.

Updating AMD Radeon Application

One of the most common reasons triggering the problem is version incompatibility. When your driver’s version does not match with the Radeon software’s version, this most likely will cause this problem to occur. You will need to reinstall the application to the latest version to match the drivers (assuming you already have the latest ones).

1. Press Windows Key + R and type in control and hit Enter.
2. Click on Programs and Features and look for AMD Software.
3. Right-click on it and hit Uninstall.
   
4. Head over to AMD’s official site and then Products > Technologies > AMD Software. Download the application.
   
5. Install the application via the downloaded file.
6. After that restart your PC and run the client and see if the issue persists.

Updating the Drivers

If updating the Radeon software to the latest version did not help, you should try updating the Radeon drivers one more time. This will ensure that there is no version mismatch going on behind the scenes.

Here’re the steps to update the drivers:

1. Press Windows Key + R to open the run command line, there type in devmgmt.msc.
2. Expand the Display adapters tab and select your AMD Graphics.
3. Right-click it and hit the Update driver.
4. Now choose to Browse my computer for drivers. Make sure not to choose the other option, your PC can sometimes choose an older driver version if done so.
5. Choose Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer and select the latest one.
   
6. After the update process completes, open the AMD software to check if it is working or not.

Alternatively, you can try AMD’s driver tool, it is called AMD Auto-Detect and Install tool. You can find it on their official website.

1. Download and run the setup file for the tool.
2. Once the download is complete, the tool starts scanning your PC for possible driver updates.
3. Once it is done scanning, it prompts you with all the latest available drivers for your AMD components.

Reinstalling the Drivers

If updating the drivers did not work, try reinstalling them as a whole. Sometimes the files may turn out corrupted during installation. To eliminate the chances of this happening, reinstall all the drivers.

1. Head over to AMD’s official site.
2. Download and run the AMD Cleanup Utility.
   
3. It will prompt you to reboot into Safe Mode for safety measures, Click Yes.
4. Next, a message box pops up saying every AMD driver except chipset drivers will get removed. Click Yes again.
5. Now, the tool starts the cleaning process.
6. After it is completed, the tool asks you to restart your computer.
7. Restart your PC and install the latest driver and software.

Using Windows Registry to Match the Driver Version

Windows Registry holds information from your system for different use; information like – Hardware settings, user profile, and many more. You can modify the registry files of your AMD software to match the current graphics drivers you have. This has proven to work in many cases, and you should give it a try.

1. Hit Windows Key + R and type dxdiag. Click Yes from the prompt message box.
2. Now, under the Display tab, you should see a section called Drivers. Keep a note of the driver version.
   
3. Next, hit Windows Key + R and type in: regedit.
4. Navigate to the following path file: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\AMD\CN
5. Click on DriverVersion and change it with the driver version you noted previously.
   
6. Save it and restart your PC.

Prevent Windows Update From Installing New Drivers

Sometimes when Windows pushes out the latest updates, it can also modify/update the existing AMD drivers. This is especially the case with OEM systems which come with custom installed drivers and software.

Let’s see how you can stop Windows from auto-updating.

1. Hit Windows Key + R and type sysdm.cpl in the command line.
2. Now, Hardware > Device Installation Settings.
3. Next, select No (your device might not work as expected) and hit Save Changes.
   
4. Reinstall the AMD Radeon Software and see if the issue persists or not.