Game isn't detecting dedicated graphics card

[stichy]

Hey guys! I play a game called NR2003 on my laptop that has a switchable graphics card (AMD Radeon HD 6630M) and the game is running on the integrated graphics instead of the dedicated graphics. I really want to run on the dedicated graphics in order to increase the FPS. I have the game executable file (nr2003.exe) set to "High Performance" in the Catalyst Control Center but it doesn't make a difference. I'm getting the same FPS with it set to "Power Saving".

Here's the game's config.exe window:

The drop down menu under "Select a Display Adapter" only has the Intel(R) HD Graphics Family. There's nothing else listed.


How can I get the game to detect the 6630M instead of just the Intel graphics? It's really a piss off playing a 10 year old game that has FPS dips down to as low as 9 FPS when I can play other games with much better graphics at a decent FPS.

 

[KingFatty]

This is all speculation, but maybe the game is old enough where the programmers assumed they would only detect one video card and not even look for a 2nd?

Maybe you can trick the software by disabling and/or uninstalling the Intel graphics, then run the game and see if the game detects the discrete graphics?

 

[SolMiester]

Do you not have to put the laptop in GPU performance mode to I initialise the dGPU, so the game sees it?

 

[Dstoop]

Laptops with 6000m series cards are notorious for this. The bottom line is that the game either plays nice with the switchable graphics and properly detects the card, or your shit out of luck. My girlfriends laptop has run into this with numerous games, even AAA titles like Final Fantasy XIV. Unless you have a laptop with a hardware switch in it to force switch between the two, there's little you can do.

Some people have made hacked BIOS roms to disable the switchable graphics and force the dedicated card into an always-on state, but they are mostly laptop specific, riddled with bugs, and as with flashing any unauthorized BIOS have a nontrivial chance of bricking the whole damn thing.

It's possible though that your power profile is the problem. The default with a lot of those laptops is to disable the switchable graphics if your laptop isn't plugged into the wall. Either switch the power management settings to "high performance" or plug it in and maybe you'll skim by with this game.

 

[stichy]

This is all speculation, but maybe the game is old enough where the programmers assumed they would only detect one video card and not even look for a 2nd?

Maybe you can trick the software by disabling and/or uninstalling the Intel graphics, then run the game and see if the game detects the discrete graphics?

I don't think the game being too old is the issue (it might be, idk) because there are a select few games that run on the Intel graphics too (most notably Minecraft). Do I disable the Intel graphics through the Device Manager by right clicking on the Intel Graphics and clicking "Disable"? I'm afraid of clicking it because I don't know if it will automatically enable the dedicated graphics (I might be left with a blank screen LOL).

Do you not have to put the laptop in GPU performance mode to I initialise the dGPU, so the game sees it?

I have the program set to "High Performance" in the Catalyst Control Center which is supposed to automatically switch to the dedicated graphics when I run the program. It works fine on other games I play such as GTA IV and Driver San Francisco, but it doesn't work with NR2003.

Laptops with 6000m series cards are notorious for this. The bottom line is that the game either plays nice with the switchable graphics and properly detects the card, or your shit out of luck. My girlfriends laptop has run into this with numerous games, even AAA titles like Final Fantasy XIV. Unless you have a laptop with a hardware switch in it to force switch between the two, there's little you can do.

Some people have made hacked BIOS roms to disable the switchable graphics and force the dedicated card into an always-on state, but they are mostly laptop specific, riddled with bugs, and as with flashing any unauthorized BIOS have a nontrivial chance of bricking the whole damn thing.

It's possible though that your power profile is the problem. The default with a lot of those laptops is to disable the switchable graphics if your laptop isn't plugged into the wall. Either switch the power management settings to "high performance" or plug it in and maybe you'll skim by with this game.

Man that really sucks :/. My laptop is already plugged in and the power plan is set to "High performance".

 

[Tweak155]

Just a shot in the dark, but that config option looks like something you see before you actually start the game. That likely has a different executable name than the game itself.

When you go to launch, can you right click the icon and pick which graphics card to use?

 

[Tweak155]

If you can try adding the EXE name to your catalyst list, that might work too. While that screen is open, check the task list to see if the EXE is the same as the one you added to the CCC.

 

[jacktesterson]

Read footnote 3 on this AMD page at the bottom regarding the 6630m switchable graphics:

http://www.amd.com/US/PRODUCTS/NOTE...00M-6600M/Pages/amd-radeon-6700m-6600m.aspx#4


"AMD Dynamic Switchable Graphics technology requires either an AMD “A” series APU or an Intel processor, plus an AMD Radeon™ discrete graphics configuration and is available on Windows® 7 Professional, Windows® 7 Ultimate, Windows® 7 Home Premium, and/or Windows® 7 Home Basic OS. Linux OS supports manual switching which requires restart of X-Server to switch between graphics solutions. With AMD Dynamic Switchable Graphics technology, full enablement of all discrete graphics video and display features may not be supported on all systems (e.g. OpenGL applications will run on the integrated GPU or the APU as the case may be). Always check with your system manufacturer for specific mode capabilities and supported technologies."

 

[Dstoop]

Man that really sucks :/. My laptop is already plugged in and the power plan is set to "High performance".

Then odds are you're hosed unless you want to risk a hacked BIOS or hacked drivers. One other thing to try is to make sure your drivers are the latest available from the laptop manufacturer and your BIOS is at the latest version. These two things work together to detect which GPU to make available, and i've had this exact issue resolve itself with updates for some games that weren't properly detected.

 

[KingFatty]

A very good question - what happens to the laptop if you disable the Intel graphics? Such as, go into device manager, and right-click on the intel display adapter, and disable it? More aggressive would be to completely delete it and uninstall the drivers.

I'd just try it, at worst you'd see the auto-detect installation next time you rebooted.

But, before you reboot, see what happens. maybe you can delete that intel display adapter, and then just for kicks try and run the game.

 

[stichy]

Then odds are you're hosed unless you want to risk a hacked BIOS or hacked drivers. One other thing to try is to make sure your drivers are the latest available from the laptop manufacturer and your BIOS is at the latest version. These two things work together to detect which GPU to make available, and i've had this exact issue resolve itself with updates for some games that weren't properly detected.

Ahh yes, I think that might be it. I went onto the Sony website and found a BIOS update and it says that it:

• Enables the "Switchable Graphics Method" option of the "Catalyst Control Center" utility for models having hybrid graphics AMD Radeon™ HD 6630M and Mobile Intel® HD Graphics

I'll update the BIOS tomorrow and see what happens. Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

 

[stichy]

Dat moment when you see this:

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Thanks for the help everyone! To those of you who happen to stumble across this thread from a Google search in the future with the same problem as me, just update your BIOS and you're good to go!