Use Windows 10 Game ModeIt's already built into Windows 10 and dedicates system resources to gaming.Manage active hoursWindows 10 installs updates based on these settings. Set them up, so your computer doesn't update while gaming.Tweak the visual effects settingsWindows runs background graphics constantly. Upgrade your laptop GPU and RAMLet a technician do the installation if you don't have laptop experience.Disable background Windows servicesTurn off background services to speed up your Windows laptop. Extended support until January 13, 2032The original release of Windows 10 receives mainstream support for five years after its original release, followed by five years of extended support, but this is subject to conditions.
Microsoft stated that these devices would no longer receive feature updates, but would still receive security updates through January 2023. Microsoft will continue to support at least one standard Windows 10 release until October 14, 2025. The upgrade offer was marketed and initiated using the "Get Windows 10" application, which was first downloaded and installed via Windows Update in March 2015.
Third-party programs were also created to assist users in applying measures to disable GWX. Windows 10 received generally positive reviews upon its original release. DirectX 12 is a real must-have for anyone serious about playing games on Windows 10. Put simply, DirectX is the application the game uses to communicate with your computer and tell it what to do. Tests have shown an % difference in gaming performance between version 11 and version 12. One of the best ways to upgrade your gaming experience is to upgrade your graphics card.
While they can be expensive, having faster GPUs can improve your FPS count significantly, resulting in much smoother gameplay. If your power supply permits, you can also add a second unit of your existing GPU to create a multi-GPU setup for enhanced gaming performance. Device Guard is designed to protect against zero-day exploits, and runs inside a hypervisor so that its operation remains separated from the operating system itself. A new iteration of the Start menu is used on the Windows 10 desktop, with a list of places and other options on the left side, and tiles representing applications on the right. The menu can be resized, and expanded into a full-screen display, which is the default option in Tablet mode. A new virtual desktop system was added by a feature known as Task View, which displays all open windows and allows users to switch between them, or switch between multiple workspaces.
Universal apps, which previously could be used only in full screen mode, can now be used in self-contained windows similarly to other programs. Program windows can now be snapped to quadrants of the screen by dragging them to the corner. When a window is snapped to one side of the screen, Task View appears and the user is prompted to choose a second window to fill the unused side of the screen (called "Snap Assist"). There are plenty of fancy visual effects in Windows 10 graphical user interfaces . Nevertheless, those pretty background graphics, most of which are turned on by default, can affect the available processing power of your PC when a game is running in the foreground. So, one way to optimize Windows 10 for gaming performance is to sacrifice some, or even all, of those settings.
Here's a quick and easy way to optimize Windows 10 for gaming using a tool that's built into the system. Game Mode appeared in the most recent releases of the OS and is designed to improve the gaming experience by dedicating more system resources to games. It also prevents other programs, such as Windows Update, from hogging system resources while you're playing. The graphics card works to render still images, or frames, while you're playing a game. The card does it so fast that it's measured by the second, and it works in conjunction with other hardware parts like the RAM, CPU, and GPU to create the full gaming experience. If there's any sort of stoppage within any of these components, your FPS will start to go down.
Most gamers prefer a 60 FPS rate while playing, but most games are actually fine at 30 FPS. The importance of this specific addition that Windows 10 brings to gamers simply can't be stressed enough. DirectX is the application programming interface that games use to communicate with your computer – it's the platform a game uses to get your computer to do what the game wants it to do.
Up until Windows 10, DirectX 11 was the latest and greatest in this pretty long line of toolsets. With Windows 10, Microsoft introduced DirectX 12, bringing gamers tons of amazing new features and advantages. The time of Windows 8 and 8.1, though, has long since passed – now is the time of Windows 10.
With Windows 10, Microsoft tried their best to avoid the mistakes they made with its predecessor and tried their damndest to minimize issues and problems with the Operating System upon launch. Unfortunately, Microsoft wasn't able to hold to their ambitions and Windows 10 was only a little short of a catastrophe for the gaming community upon launch. Despite increased support for macOS and Linux from game developers, Windows 10 is the go-to choice for most PC gamers worldwide. However, the OS still has a few issues that you need to iron out before it offers you optimal gaming performance.
So use this in-depth guide to optimize your Windows 10 computer for the best gaming performance. Once you have done that, check out the best tips and tricks to speed up Windows 10, the best ways to improve battery life of your Windows 10 laptop, and the best mechanical keyboards for gaming. SysMain is a built-in Windows feature that improves startup times for apps and Windows itself. Indeed, background activity often increases when it is enabled, but turning it off can improve gaming performance on your Windows 10 PC. Check out our detailed guide on reducing CPU and memory usageto learn how you can turn off SysMain on your computer.
10 heavily emphasizes freemium services, and contains various advertising facilities. Some outlets have considered these to be a hidden "cost" of the free upgrade offer. On May 2, 2017, Microsoft unveiled Windows 10 S , a feature-limited edition of Windows 10 which was designed primarily for devices in the education market , such as the Surface Laptop that Microsoft also unveiled at this time. The OS restricts software installation to applications obtained from Microsoft Store; the device may be upgraded to Windows 10 Pro for a fee to enable unrestricted software installation.
As a time-limited promotion, Microsoft stated that this upgrade would be free on the Surface Laptop until March 31, 2018. Windows 10 S also contains a faster initial setup and login process, and allows devices to be provisioned using a USB drive with the Windows Intune for Education platform. Windows 10 provides greater integration with the Xbox ecosystem. Windows 10 also allows users to control and play games from an Xbox One console over a local network.
The Xbox Live SDK allows application developers to incorporate Xbox Live functionality into their apps, and future wireless Xbox One accessories, such as controllers, are supported on Windows with an adapter. Windows 10 Home also has the Game Mode which boosts performance and lets you stream video from PC to mixer without having to download any extra software. Game Mode minimizes computational processes that interfere with gaming applications.
Most users claim Game Mode helps performance, but there is a dedicated anti-Game Mode demographic of gamers. The main reason why is that there are some games that just do not play well with Game Mode, whether it's because they are too large or if they are just built that way. The option to defer new features is another helpful feature of Windows Home 10. System updates can improve the operating system's efficiency, but they also run the risk of mucking with game-specific settings. Auto-updates could overwrite stored game parameters, forcing you to re-enter them manually. Updates may wreak havoc on the gaming routine, especially if you earn your gameplay by streaming or publishing discussion videos.
While Windows 10 in S Mode might not be the powerhouse of productivity that some heavy-handed users may be accustomed to, it certainly does shine for others. In the world of education, Windows 10 in S Mode provides students with the tools they need to work and collaborate safely without taking a security risk. For older users who might not be up to date on the latest in tech and cybersecurity, Windows 10 in S Mode provides a way for them to still stay connected on a fast device that doesn't put their data at risk.
Finally, for the basic email-checking, Facebook-scrolling, YouTube-watching internet user, Windows 10 in S Mode helps keep your device running at its peak performance without sacrificing access to your favorite apps. With Game Mode, it's our goal to provide a better and more consistent gaming experience on Windows 10, by dedicating more system resources to your game. To enable Game Mode while playing a game, pull up the Game bar (Windows key + G) and click on the Settings button to opt the running game into using Game Mode.
The Creators Update is just the first milestone in our commitment to Game Mode and Windows 10 performance improvements for PC gaming. This edition is designed for "special-purpose devices" that perform a fixed function . For this reason, it excludes Cortana, Microsoft Store, and all bundled Universal Windows Platform apps . Windows 10 is available in five main editions for personal computing devices; the Home and Pro editions of which are sold at retail in most countries, and as pre-loaded software on new computers. Home is aimed at home users, while Pro is aimed at power users and small businesses. Enterprise and Education, the other editions, contain additional features aimed towards business environments, and are only available through volume licensing.
The new Start menu takes after Windows 7's design by using only a portion of the screen and including a Windows 7-style application listing in the first column. Myerson said that these changes would occur in a future update, but did not elaborate. Windows Phone 8.1 would share nearly 90% of the common Windows Runtime APIs with Windows 8.1 on PCs. Windows 10 has a lot of power-saving functions for laptops to help keep them alive for longer durations. This will affect the gaming experience dramatically as your RAM, graphics cards, and CPU won't run at full capacity. To fix this, connect your laptop to its external power supply and be sure that your control settings allow full performance with it connected.
Windows 10 includes several cool features that gamers will appreciate, including the ability to play games across platforms, stream games, and record your gameplay in real time. The enhancements of Windows 10 over previous versions require higher hardware specifications to run as they're intended, so you can upgrade your existing system to take advantage of the gaming features in Windows 10. With SSD prices hitting all-time lows, there's no good reason not to ditch mechanical hard drives for good. That's especially true if you are a gamer, given the massive performance gains offered by solid-state drives in terms of read/ write speeds.
They not only deliver faster Windows 10 boot times and lightning-fast access to programs, but they also improve your overall gaming performance significantly. Check out the best budget gaming SSDs you can buy in 2022. In multi-GPU computers running Windows 10, you can manually specify which graphics card a Windows app/ game should use as default to enhance performance. So setting the high-end dedicated graphics card as the default for your games will optimize gaming performance on your Windows 10 PC. We have already discussed the subject in great detail, so check out our dedicated article on how to set default GPU for games and apps in Windows 10. Another easy way to improve access time for Windows apps is to defrag your hard drive.
Windows 10 offers a built-in defragment option, and you can access it by searching for 'Defrag' in the Windows Search Box. You can also download and install Piriform's Defraggler for more power-user options. Do remember that de-fragmentation is only suitable for mechanical HDDs. You should never defrag SSDs because that reduces their lifespan.
If you're a gamer, note that Windows 11 has some exclusive features catered to you. Auto HDR makes your games look more vibrant, and Direct Storage helps your graphics card and solid-state drive communicate faster. In the future, you'll also be able to enjoy some updates to gaming in windowed mode, too. Windows 10 Pro is a Windows OS more designed for professional use. Windows 10 Pro comes with most of the same base features of Windows 10 Home, such as the battery save, game bar, game mode, and graphics capabilities.
However, Windows 10 Pro has a lot more security features, more virtual machine capabilities, and can support a higher max RAM. Game Mode is now available in Windows 10 Home, which improves performance and allows you to stream video from your PC to your mixer without the need to install any additional software. Game Mode reduces the number of computing operations that obstruct gaming apps. Although most users say that Game Mode improves performance, there is a devoted anti-Game Mode gaming audience.
The major reason for this is that certain games just do not work well in Game Mode, either they're too huge or because they are designed that way. Other critics argued that Microsoft should not have triggered any downloading of Windows 10 installation files without user consent. Unveiled March 2014 at GDC, DirectX 12 aims to provide "console-level efficiency" with "closer to the metal" access to hardware resources, and reduced CPU and graphics driver overhead.
DirectX 12 will also feature support for vendor agnostic multi-GPU setups. WDDM 2.0 introduces a new virtual memory management and allocation system to reduce workload on the kernel-mode driver. On September 30, 2014, Microsoft officially announced that Threshold would be unveiled during a media event as Windows 10. Myerson said that Windows 10 would be Microsoft's "most comprehensive platform ever", providing a single, unified platform for desktop and laptop computers, tablets, smartphones, and all-in-one devices.
Despite these concessions, Myerson noted that the touch-optimized interface would evolve as well on 10. Unlike the Home edition, Windows 10 Pro also includes the ability to connect to a corporate or school network using Active Directory or Azure Active Directory, and there are options to manage devices over the internet. If you need to set up a kiosk device, this edition has a feature to lock the device to use it with a single application. You can also access the Group Policy Editor to manage advanced system settings. Also, if you need to access apps and files remotely, Windows 10 Pro comes with Remote Desktop to connect remotely within the network or across the internet. If you want to boost FPS over 60 with 4K resolution, you'll need a top-of-the line graphics card like the GeForce RTX 3080 — or two of them linked together in SLI, which combines their processing power into a single output.
You'll also need a 4K monitor with a high refresh rate to support 4K gameplay at a high FPS. Updating your graphics card driver is one of the most effective ways to increase FPS and optimize Windows 10 for gaming. And with Avast Driver Updater, you'll never have to worry about doing it yourself.
Enjoy automatic driver updates for all the hardware in your PC for consistently great gaming performance. It not only lets you overclock your graphics card by increasing its clock frequency and voltage but also offers a fan speed control for the right balance between performance and temperature. MSI Afterburner's OS Scanner feature helps automatically find the highest stable overclock settings for your card, giving you a smooth experience with higher FPS in even the most demanding games. For more details, check out our detailed guide on how to overclock your GPU using MSI Afterburner. As we stated earlier, Windows 10 Home is the best version of windows 10 for gaming and will be the optimal choice for the vast majority of gamers.
Windows 10 Home has some great features like the Game Bar, Game Mode, and streaming capabilities, along with the ability to run any modern game at max resolution settings. Windows 10 Pro can do anything that Home can do, but also comes with some extra security features. Windows 10 Home has the Game Bar, a neat application that lets you manage gaming functions.
Is Windows 10 Home Best For Gaming The game bar lets you stream video/audio and take recordings/screenshots. The Game Bar is also fully customizable so you can tinker with the settings to find something you like. The Game Bar features will appeal to gamers who like sharing with the larger community. For starters, by default, in the main Windows 11 settings under the Gaming tab, a new feature called Game Mode is active. Users of Windows 8 may breathe a sigh of relief since the start menu has returned in Windows 10.
