Determining What Graphics Card Your Computer Has

Reference Number: KB-03076
Last Modified: April 13, 2020

The information in this article applies to:

Chief Architect Premier or Chief Architect Interiors

Home Designer Professional or Home Designer Architectural or Home Designer Suite or Home Designer Interiors or Home Designer Essentials



QUESTION

How can I find out what Graphics Controller or Video Card is in my computer and if it will work with Chief Architect products?


ANSWER

The latest versions of Chief Architect products work with dedicated video cards such as NVIDIA or AMD that are currently supported by the manufacturer, and with Gen 8/Broadwell or newer Intel integrated graphics chipsets. To view a complete list of Intel integrated graphics chipsets that Chief Architect is compatible with, please see article "Supported Intel Graphics Chipsets" in the Related Articles section below.

The latest graphics driver is recommended for optimal performance.

Note: For more information on minimum system requirements, please see the appropriate resource for your product in the Related Articles section below. 


To find your graphics card in Windows

  1. Press the following keys on your keyboard at the same time: Windows + R.


  2. In the Run dialog that appears, type: dxdiag , then click OK.

    Type dxdiag in the Run dialog box

    Additionally, you can type dxdiag in Windows Search. For more information on accessing this utility in this manner, please see the following Microsoft resource: Open and run DxDiag.exe


  3. The DirectX Diagnostic Tool dialog will appear. On the Display tab, the video card that is in use will display under the Device section, while the driver information will appear under the Drivers section.

    The video card that is in use is located on the Display tab of the DirectX Diagnostic Tool dialog


  4. If your computer has more than one video card, the video card that is not in use may display on the Render tab.

    Render tab of the DirectX Diagnostic Tool

If you're experiencing a video card related error message or are unable to generate optimal 3D camera views, it's possible that your video card is not supported or the display driver installed is in need of an update. Please ensure that your video card meets our minimum system requirements and proceed to follow the steps in the appropriate troubleshooting article linked in the Related Articles section below.


To find your graphics card in macOS

  1. Click on the Apple  icon in the upper left-hand corner of the screen to expand the menu.


  2. Click on About This Mac.


  3. Next to Graphics, you will see the graphics card(s) listed. In some instances, a Mac may have two graphics cards as shown in the image below.

    Overview tab in the About This Mac section

If you're experiencing a video card related error message or are unable to generate optimal 3D camera views, it's possible that your video card is not supported or the display driver installed on your system is in need of an update. Please ensure that you video card meets our minimum system requirements and proceed to follow the steps in the appropriate troubleshooting article linked in the Related Articles section below.


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