How to Extract INF/CAT Files from New Intel Chipset Device Software Installers

[FirstEverTech]

Starting with Intel Chipset Device Software version 10.1.20378.8757, Intel changed the installer packaging.
The traditional extraction method (SetupChipset.exe /extract) no longer provides access to the chipset INF and CAT files.

The extracted package contains only:

• SetupChipset.msi
• SetupChipsetx64.msi
• SetupChipset1.cab
• .NET Framework 4.7.2 offline installer

Additional analysis confirmed that:

• SetupChipset1.cab contains only license files and readme.txt.
• msiexec /a (administrative installation) extracts only licenses and documentation.
• The MSI package does not expose the driver payload through standard extraction methods.
• 7-Zip and Resource Hacker also do not reveal the embedded INF/CAT files.

INF+CAT Extraction Process

1. Create a clean virtual machine (e.g. VMware Workstation with Windows 11).
2. Install the Intel Chipset Device Software from which you want to obtain the INF and CAT files.
3. Download, extract and run Driver Store Explorer (RAPR).
4. Click Refresh to scan all installed driver packages.
5. Sort the list by the Provider column. All Intel packages will appear in a separate INTEL group (Install date will be the same).
6. Select all Intel entries and click Export Driver(s).
7. Choose an output folder. Driver Store Explorer will export all original INF and CAT files (along with any associated files) to the selected directory.

Conclusion

As demonstrated above, the Intel Chipset Device Software installer can be executed even on systems without Intel chipset hardware. The installation process stages the available INF packages into the Windows Driver Store, and the actual device matching and driver installation are handled later by the Windows Plug and Play subsystem when compatible hardware is detected.

This confirms that there is no real-time hardware detection performed by the Intel installer itself to decide which chipset INF files should be installed. The installer simply registers the driver packages, while Windows automatically selects and applies the appropriate INF when a matching device appears in the system.

Exporting them with Driver Store Explorer provides a reliable way to recover the original files for further analysis or integrations in my project.