HOW TO: Install the ADB Driver On Windows

Here’s a clearer guide on how exactly to setup the ADB drivers on Windows, with screenshots for each step.

1. Follow the installation section of this post.  Ignore step 8 (“Windows: install the latest Android phone drivers using the instructions”)
2. Browse to the android-sdk-windows folder:
   
3. Run SDK Setup:
   
4. Close the Refresh Sources box (pictured above) if it opens.
5. Close the Choose Packages to Install box if that’s open too.
6. Click the Settings option on the right
7. Under Misc, check the box which says: “Force https://… sources to be fetched using http://…”
   
8. Go on Available Packages and click the + (plus) sign next to the long URL (http://dl-ssl.google.com/android…) to expand it
   
9. Select Usb Driver package and press Install Selected
10. Select Accept under the terms and then press Install
    
11. When the installation is completed, close the Installing Archives window
    
12. IMPORTANT: In your SDK folder you’ll now have a new folder called usb_driver.  This is the location to search in the rest of the tutorial when you’re required to locate the driver
    
13. Make sure you have Device Debugging enabled on your phone by going to Settings > Applications > Development > USB Debugging and ticking the checkbox.
14. Connect your phone via the USB cable.  You’ll notice the Debugging icon in the notification bar, and opening the notification bar will show “USB debugging connected”
    
15. If you’re on Windows XP, follow the steps described in the Perform A Fresh Installation section here
    If you’re on Windows Vista or Windows 7, follow the steps described in the Perform A Fresh Installation section here
    REMEMBER: Where it says “Click “Browse…” and locate the folder where you copied the installation package.” it’s the directory in Step 12 above
16. The drivers should now be fully installed.

Installing the drivers lets you connect your phone in debug mode.  This allows you to take advantage of the SDK tools, such as ddms which lets you take screenshots.  It also lets you easily install applications from your computer, browse files on your phone and if you start developing Android applications you can quickly test them out on your phone.

UPDATE: If the drivers don’t work for you then try using these drivers instead