Graphics cards, called video cards, in any computer system perform one of the most important roles. However, sometimes users notice that it is not possible to use the full potential based on the declared technical characteristics of the accelerator. Why the video card does not work at full power in games or even when such software products are not installed on the computer at all, it is further proposed to understand. Depending on the reasons for such behavior of the graphics chip described below, you will be able to choose for yourself some unified solution for using absolutely all the capabilities of the chip. But first, let's focus on why such situations are manifested.
Why the video card does not work at full capacity: the main reasons and the most common situations
When finding out the reasons for such behavior of accelerators, it is impossible to unequivocally answer what exactly could cause a decrease in the used potential of the video card. However, with a high degree of probability, we can assume that the root causes are as follows:
- The video card is not compatible with the processor.
- for the accelerator, unsuitable drivers are installed or the necessary drivers are not installed at all;
- Management software needs updating;
- switching of adapters is incorrectly set if there are several of them on the computer;
- Hacked games with damaged files are used on the computer.
Problems of viral exposure will not be considered, although some of these threats can also negatively affect the performance of the graphics chip, but each user must monitor the current state of protection of their own computer system.
Why doesn't the graphics card work at full capacity on a laptop with two graphics cards?
We should also dwell on computers and laptops, in which, in addition to a discrete graphics card, there is also a built-in (integrated) adapter. Why is the video card not working at full capacity in such configurations? This is only due to the fact that Windows, if at the moment you just listen to music or work with office documents, and do not play a game, it automatically switches from a discrete card to an integrated one. But after starting the game, the reverse switching for some reason does not happen or is happening, but incorrectly. How to tell the system that it currently needs to use a discrete chip?
To do this, when the game is running, you can use either the inclusion of the game mode using the system itself (in Windows 10, and only in it, this is done by Win + G combination), or you can call up a special program for managing a discrete video card (for example, for NVIDIA it can be the most common built-in control panel) and directly in the application add the game to the list of those programs whose graphics will be forcibly processed by a discrete adapter.
Getting information about the state of the graphic chip
Why a video card does not work at full power in some games or on its own is a little understandable. But we need to find out the main reason for this behavior of the graphics accelerator or operating system. What is better to use for this?
In the most general case, to find out why the video card does not work at full capacity, you can use the universal utility GPU-Z, which will show the true load on the accelerator (it should be at least 80-90%).
If you want to get more detailed information with additional settings, it is better to use not only original applications for managing discrete chips, but also some specialized utilities like FurMark, MSI Kombustor and the like. But here there are some nuances, as it is not recommended to get involved in excessive overclocking of video cards under any pretext.
The problem of hardware
Now let's see why the video card does not work at full power during the game. According to most experts, the main problem may be that it is impossible to realize all the capabilities of the accelerator due to the weak central processor.
This situation may occur, for example, if you have a GTX1050 card installed as a graphics accelerator, which is a fairly powerful adapter, and the processor in the system is an Intel Core i3-3220 or its equivalent. It is clear that the processor cannot “swing” the video card. In this case, you will have to change either the CPU, or even buy a new motherboard. And even RAM does not play a special role here.
Driver Installation and Update Issues
Finally, drivers play an important role. It is possible that they were installed by the operating system itself, and it often installs only the most suitable software, which may not be fully suitable for the accelerator. And sometimes a timely update of such software is also required. In this case, it is strongly recommended that you remove all the video card drivers, and then install the latest ones by downloading them from the manufacturer’s official resource. In some cases, it is advisable to use automated utilities like Driver Booster.
If the driver still cannot be found, try to determine the card identifiers in the “Device Manager” and search for the driver by exact match. But you will have to install it yourself.
Problems with some games
Finally, we consider why the video card does not work at full capacity in some games (namely, some, but not all). There are usually two main problems. Firstly, the player can initially use deliberately lowered graphics processing settings or the FPS level in the games themselves, which are set by default, and secondly, the game itself may not be an official distribution, but some kind of pirated assembly. Obviously, to fix the problem, you need to change the parameters of the graphics accelerator or install the official version of the game, downloading it, if not from the official site, then at least from a trustworthy resource.