âšī¸ DirectX Crash Forensics Available: GPU crash analysis (TDR events, VRAM exhaustion, present failures, frame drops) requires --focus-app "application.exe" flag. Run with forensic focus mode to enable DirectX diagnostics (adds 15-30% capture overhead).
đ PCIe Slot Configuration
Current Configuration
PCIe 2.0 (5.0 GT/s)
x8 lanes
GPU Maximum
PCIe 4.0 (16.0 GT/s)
x16 lanes
â Configuration Issues Detected:
đĄ REDUCED LANE WIDTH: GPU capable of x16 running at x8 (50% bandwidth loss)
Likely cause: PCIe lane bifurcation (M.2 drives sharing lanes with GPU slot) or installed in secondary x8 slot
Common culprit: M.2 expansion cards in lower PCIe slots can force GPU lane reduction AND speed downclocking
Check BIOS: Look for 'PCIe Bifurcation', 'M.2 Mode', or 'PCIe Lane Distribution' settings
â PCIe GENERATION MISMATCH: GPU supports PCIe 4.0 (16.0 GT/s) but running at PCIe 2.0 (5.0 GT/s)
đĄ Recommended Actions:
- CHECK M.2 CONFIGURATION: Many motherboards share PCIe lanes between GPU and M.2 slots
- M.2 EXPANSION CARDS: If using M.2 adapter cards in lower PCIe slots, they can cause lane contention AND force entire PCIe bus to downclock
- SOLUTION: Remove M.2 expansion cards from lower PCIe slots, use only motherboard-integrated M.2 slots when possible
- In BIOS, check if M.2_1 or M.2_2 slot is stealing 8 lanes from GPU (look for PCIe Bifurcation settings)
- If GPU is in secondary slot, move to primary PCIe x16 slot (topmost, closest to CPU)
- Performance impact: Minimal for most games at 1080p/1440p, ~5-10% at 4K with high VRAM usage
- Update motherboard BIOS/UEFI firmware to latest version
- Verify PCIe speed settings in BIOS (should be "Auto" or maximum available)
- Reseat GPU in slot â poor contact can force lower PCIe generation
đ FPS & Frame Time Timeline â GPU Performance Over Time
đĄ What This Chart Shows
Real-time GPU metrics sampled directly from your graphics card (NVML/nvidia-smi):
â FPS â DirectX Present timing
â GPU Load â Utilization %
â Temperature â Thermal state
â VRAM â Memory usage
â Power â Draw in watts
â Clock â GPU frequency
đĄ Use this to spot: Thermal throttling (temp spikes), GPU bottlenecks (100% util), VRAM exhaustion, frame drops
â ī¸ Poor Frame Pacing: FPS varied wildly (Ī=12.9, range: 30-147). Severe stuttering - CPU bottleneck, driver issues, or background interference.
đĄ Hover for detailed diagnostics | Click legend to toggle series | Drag to zoom, double-click to reset
â ī¸ WARNING: 98.5%
197 samples 75-90% VRAM
âšī¸ MODERATE: 1.5%
3 samples 50-75% VRAM
đŽ DirectX Graphics Activity â Forensic App Focus Enabled
Forensic Mode Active: DirectX Graphics Kernel (DxgKrnl) events captured for frame-level analysis. Shows Present() calls, frame timing, DWM composition, and per-process GPU usage. Enabled when using --focus-app with benchmark/game.
đŽ Gamer Quick Triage (Do These First)
1) FPS shows 0: Present() events were not captured (fix by running as Admin + --focus-app; update to latest build).
2) Stutter / spikes: Close overlays + GPU background apps (Discord/Chrome HW accel/OBS/NVIDIA Overlay).
3) VRAM > 90%: Lower textures first (biggest VRAM win), then resolution; disable RT if enabled.
4) GPU temp > 85°C: Clean dust, improve airflow, set a more aggressive fan curve (throttling = FPS drops).
5) TDR / Present failures: Revert GPU overclocks, clean-install driver (DDU), verify PSU + PCIe power cables.
36,555
Frames Rendered
0 frames dropped â rendering pipeline perfect
57,629
Context Switches
Heavy GPU multitasking â background apps fighting for GPU time
Per-Process GPU Usage
VRAM Usage Over Time
909 samples collected every 2 seconds
10,500 MB avg
Min: 10,114 MB | Max: 10,777 MB
Peak: 87.7% of 12,288 MB
| Process | Present Calls | Context Switches | GPU Share % |
| Diablo IV.exe | 28,378 | 11,214 | 81.7% |
| dwm.exe | 2,981 | 406 | 8.6% |
| System | 1,660 | 20,984 | 4.8% |
| AWCCOverlay.exe | 347 | 1,820 | 1.0% |
| WmiPrvSE.exe | 344 | 2,601 | 1.0% |
| ArbiterGaming.exe | 218 | 1,948 | 0.6% |
| csrss.exe | 210 | 24 | 0.6% |
| svchost.exe | 163 | 1,232 | 0.5% |
| explorer.exe | 128 | 264 | 0.4% |
| MsMpEng.exe | 58 | 267 | 0.2% |
đ Understanding This Table:
âĸ Present Calls: Frame submissions to GPU - higher = more rendering activity from this process
âĸ Context Switches: GPU scheduling events - high values indicate GPU multitasking between apps
âĸ GPU Share %: This process's percentage of total frame submissions - shows which app is using the GPU most
đ DirectX Performance Analysis & Interpretation
Stable Frame Delivery: 36,555 frames presented with 0.00% failure rate. GPU rendering pipeline operating normally.
High GPU Contention: 57,629 context switches (192/sec) - multiple apps competing for GPU. Background apps (Chrome, Discord, OBS) degrading performance.
Perfect VSync Alignment: 4,870 refresh events with 0.00% miss rate - frame delivery synchronized to 60Hz.
High VRAM Usage: Peaked at 10,777 MB (87.7%), averaged 10,500 MB. Approaching capacity limit - reduce texture quality or close background apps.
đĄ What These Metrics Mean & How To Improve Them:
âĸ Present() Calls: Frames submitted to GPU. More = higher FPS. Low? Check CPU bottleneck or game settings.
âĸ Context Switches: GPU switching between apps. High (>1000)? Close background apps like Chrome, Discord, OBS.
âĸ DMA Buffers: Command queue latency. Slow (>16ms)? Update GPU drivers, check VRAM usage.
âĸ VSync: Monitor refresh sync. Misses? GPU cannot maintain refresh rate - lower graphics settings or enable G-SYNC/FreeSync.
âĸ TDR: GPU driver crash. Any TDR events? Update drivers immediately, check for overheating, remove GPU overclock.
âĸ DWM: Windows desktop compositor. Frame drops? Disable visual effects in Settings â System â Display â Graphics.
đ Data Source: GPU metrics captured via Microsoft-Windows-DxgKrnl ETW provider. For focused app analysis with FPS timeline, use: --focus-app YourApp.exe. System-wide VRAM tracking requires nvidia-smi in PATH (included with NVIDIA drivers).