I'm sure this has been figured out before by many people, but with the distinct lack of information I found initially on solving it - just in case, I'm putting this up in the hope that it helps another user with a similar problem. :)

The Problem

I recently hit a brick wall when attempting to repair my Windows XP installation. I couldn't install the drivers for my video card - a VisionTek Xtasy 9100 128Mb. When I visited the Device Manager, the usual "Standard VGA Graphics Adapter" that you would expect to see was not present, and when going in through the display properties, a "vgasave" service was running in it's place, which could not be removed or stopped. Strange. How was I to get the standard VGA controller back in there so I could install the Catalyst drivers? To clarify, said drivers (and quite a few others) require the video card to be listed and identified as a standard VGA graphics adapter to install from scratch.

15 minutes of annoyance later, it was time to seek some help. However, a Google Search revealed that I was not alone in experiencing this problem. I read several posts from different forums, experiencing exactly the same thing, with not a solution in sight. One suggestion said to change the voltages - I wouldn't have guessed that this particular problem would be solved that way.

The Solution

So how did I eventually fix it? All that it took was a little recall - a miracle for Mr Memory Man. During the installation procedure, I remembered XP Setup asking for chipset drivers, very likely the AGP. Was that causing it?

Upon further checking, XP didn't have all the correct drivers for the motherboard (DFI AD77 Infinity - KT400 Chipset). Considering it was made after the release of the operating system, you can hardly blame Microsoft. A quick visit to the Via Arena, a good set of Hyperion 4in1's installed, and after a reboot - "New Hardware Found: ATI Radeon 9100". Yes!

Problem solved. XP is smart enough to detect & apply the standard VGA driver to the majority of cards on the market if it's clueless as to it's actual model/type. However, if you end up with the "VGASave" service loaded for a video device, I think it's highly likely that you just need drivers for the motherboard itself.

Alternate Solution

Lets say you DO have your motherboard drivers installed properly, but it refuses to do anything other than run with vgasave enabled. A thread on winoscentral.com has some good advice - bash F8 when booting, and select "Enable VGA Mode". That should boot you up with a standard VGA adapter.

Sources

I've put together some links, which hopefully shouldn't go out of date tomorrow, and might help you find what you need a little faster. The link shown is the domain itself, clicking on them takes you deeper into the site. You may want to look for your motherboard make/model. If you're not sure of those details (original box not handy or case irreversably sealed shut), use something like wCPUID to get the chipset info.

Driver Downloads

Chipsets - generic, and possibly not the best solution for your drivers, unless the mobo manufacturer specifically states to use them - some do.

• ALi (no drivers, just info) - http://www.ali.com.tw/
• Intel (Chipset Installation Utility) - http://downloadfinder.intel.com/
• nVidia (nForce/nForce2) - http://www.nvidia.com/
• SiS - http://download.sis.com/
• VIA (Hyperion 4in1 & Other Drivers) - http://www.viaarena.com/

Motherboard Manufacturers - Just about everybody.

• ABit - http://www.abit-usa.com/
• AOpen - http://download.aopen.com.tw/
• Asus - http://www.asus.com/
• Chaintech - http://www.chaintechusa.com/
• DFI - http://www.dfi.com.tw/
• EPoX - http://web.epox.com/
• GigaByte - http://tw.giga-byte.com/
• Intel - http://downloadfinder.intel.com/
• Iwill - http://www.iwillusa.com/
• MSI - http://www.msi.com.tw/
• Shuttle - http://www.shuttle.com/
• Soltek - http://www.soltek.com.tw/

Documents - Could be useful.

• How to Troubleshoot the Video Adapter Driver in Safe Mode (Microsoft)

Comments

I hope this was helpful to you. Drop me a note if you wish to comment.