Making sure an app runs on the 3D graphics card

If you have two graphics cards, you might have a powerful one, but HeavyM 1 might not be running with it. What a shame! Therefore, you should make sure it is running with your 3D graphics card and not through your computer’s chipset. 

In HeavyM 2, you shouldn't encounter this problem, the correct graphics card will be used by default. But this procedure can also be useful to check in other programs if you’re using Syphon/Spout to broadcast a feed between HeavyM and another software. Indeed, for this to work, both programs have to run on the same graphics card.

The following paragraphs detail the procedure for common graphics card brands, on Windows 10. On Mac computers, the default settings are usually already appropriate. If you really want to force them, you can use a menu bar app like gfxCardStatus or gSwitch.

NVIDIA graphics cards

a. Checking on which graphics card the program is running

1. First, right-click on an empty area on your desktop and select "NVIDIA Control Panel". In this panel, you have to tick "Display GPU Activity Icon in Notification Area" in the Desktop menu.

2. In your notification area, you can now access the GPU Activity panel. This panel allows you to track the active applications running on your NVIDIA graphics card.

3. Now, try opening HeavyM or the program you want to check: if it appears in the list, it means that it is indeed running on your 3D graphics card. If you are using HeavyM 1, both HeavyM.exe and HeavyM_Projection.exe have to be there.

If they don't appear in this list, follow the instructions in step b.

b. Forcing the app to run on your NVIDIA graphics card

If you notice that HeavyM is not running on the correct graphics card by default, you have to force it. 

1. In the NVIDIA Control Panel you’ve previously opened, go to "3D Settings → Manage 3D Settings" and select the "Program Settings" tab.

Under "Select a program to customize", click on the "Add" button to select the app you want, then validate with "Add Selected Program". If you're using HeavyM 1, you need to do the following steps for both HeavyM.exe and HeavyM_Projection.exe.

Note: if Heavym_Projection.exe doesn’t appear in the list, you have to add it from its location first. Click on the "Browse" button to do so. The location depends on where you chose to install the software, but by default it’s in C:\Program Files (x86)\HeavyM\HeavyM_Projection.

2. Now, under "2. Select the preferred graphics processor for this program", set NVIDIA as the preferred GPU and click on "Apply".

Note: if you don’t see this drop-down menu, it means no other graphics card is available, your program can only run with the NVIDIA GPU. 

3. Finally, restart your app to apply the modifications.

Note: if this hasn’t worked and you still can’t see HeavyM 1 in the GPU activity panel afterwards, you can try the universal method described further in this tutorial.  

AMD Radeon graphics cards

1. First, right-click on an empty area on your desktop and select "AMD Radeon Settings".

2. In the panel, go to "Radeon Additional Settings" and select the "Switchable Graphics Application Monitor" tab. 

3. Click on "Add Application". If you're using HeavyM 1, you have to add both HeavyM.exe and HeavyM_Projection.exe from their file location (respectively, by default in C:\Program Files (x86)\HeavyM and C:\Program Files (x86)\HeavyM\HeavyM_Projection).

4. Now, in the drop-down menu in the "Graphics Settings" column, select the "High Performance" option for your app (or HeavyM and HeavyM_Projection), and "Apply".

5. Finally, restart the app to apply the modifications.

Universal method 

If the previous methods haven’t worked, there’s still a Windows option that might do the trick:

1. Go to Settings → System → Display. Under “Multiple Displays”, click on “Graphics Settings”.

2. There, choose “Classic app” in the drop-down menu and click on “Browse” to specify the location of your program. If you are using HeavyM 1, you need to specify both HeavyM.exe (usually at C:\Program Files (x86)\HeavyM) and HeavyM_Projection.exe (usually at C:\Program Files (x86)\HeavyM_Projection).

3. Once you have added the app in the list, select it and click on “Options”. In the window that opens up, you’ll see information about your graphics hardware.

4. Set the graphics preference on the “High performance” option, then save.

5. Restart your app.