#Directx 12 install how to#
#Directx 12 install install#
#Directx 12 install drivers#
#Directx 12 install update#

But for some games and other programs, you have to download and install a new version of DirectX. If you want to dig in deep on those optimizations, make sure to read our comparison between DirectX 11 and DirectX 12.īetween AMD’s Ryzen 7 7800X3D and Ryzen 9 7950X3D, there’s no contestĪMD’s Ryzen 9 7950X3D pricing keeps the pressure on IntelĭirectX 12 vs.DirectX is the important program in windows, and now it is an internal part of Windows Operating System. More recent versions of DirectX bring better features and opportunities for developers to optimize performance. Most games only support one version, but there are a handful of titles that straddle the line between versions like Control, Civilization VI, and Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands.

Use the Check for updates button to search for new updates.ĭirectX is backward compatible, so it’s usually best to use the most recent version that the game you want to play supports.

Search for Check for updates and select it.

Use Windows Key+S to pull up the search box.

If you don’t, you can force Windows to check for new updates with the following steps:

Check for DirectX version under the System tab.Īs long as you’ve kept Windows up to date, you should have the latest version.

Type “dxdiag” into the box and select OK.

Right-click on the Windows icon in the Start bar and select Run.

Before updating DirectX, you need to figure out your DirectX version, which you can do by following these steps:

#Directx 12 install how to#

Read our full guide on how to install Windows 11 if you’re starting from scratch. Installing and updating DirectX involves performing a Windows Update. Microsoft doesn’t make any installers available. If you see an offer to install DirectX online, avoid it at all costs.

#Directx 12 install update#

It comes with Windows, and you can only update it with Windows. The most important addition is DXR, which enables ray tracing not only on PC but on the Xbox Series X, as well. They’re mainly for developers to optimize games beyond what they could do in DirectX 12 or DirectX 11. Sampler feedback feeds samples of what could happen without actually executing the instruction, allowing games to make better decisions about what assets to stream in.Īlthough DirectX 12 Ultimate has many new features, you don’t need to worry about them.

Sampler feedback: Modern games stream assets into the game world, and the game is forced to predict what to stream next based on what the player is doing.

This avoids passing between your CPU and RAM when drawing meshes, which improves performance.

Mesh shaders: Mesh shaders are a complex topic, but they essentially combine multiple shader steps into a single process.

The idea is to boost performance by focusing on the most important areas of a scene, which saves resources in less demanding areas.

Variable rate shading (VRS): Allows the GPU to allocate different amounts of power to different areas in a frame.

DirectX ray tracing (DXR): An early version of ray tracing introduced in games like Fortnite and Battlefield V. Most titles that support ray tracing do so through DXR (though Vulkan has its own ray tracing support, as well).

Here are all of the additional features in DirectX 12 Ultimate: Microsoft describes it as “additive” to DirectX 12, bringing features like ray tracing and variable rate shading to Windows and Xbox consoles. The most recent version of DirectX is DirectX 12 Ultimate, which is available on Windows 10, Windows 11, and Xbox Series X/S. It’s exclusive to Windows, however, while open-source APIs like Vulkan provide cross-platform support. Graphics APIs also enable features like hardware-accelerated ray tracing, and they can boost performance through various optimizations.ĭirectX isn’t the only graphics API, but it’s the main one you’ll encounter.

#Directx 12 install drivers#

APIs like DirectX are standardized, which allows your AMD or Nvidia drivers to do everything regardless of what graphics card you have. In years past, game developers would need to write drivers for multiple graphics cards. Turns out DirectStorage isn’t killing frame rates in Forspoken after allĪMD Ryzen 5 7600X vs.

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