How to Enable Hardware Acceleration on a PC for Better Performance

How to Enable Hardware Acceleration on a PC for Better Performance

 

Introduction

Want to make your PC run faster, smoother, and more efficient? Hardware acceleration is the key to boosting performance for gaming, video editing, and web browsing.

By default, Windows may not fully utilize your GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), leading to laggy visuals, slow video rendering, and poor gaming performance.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to enable hardware acceleration on a PC to optimize graphics, videos, and overall system speed.

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1. What is Hardware Acceleration?

Hardware acceleration is a feature that allows your PC to offload intensive tasks from the CPU to dedicated hardware like the GPU (graphics card), sound card, or other specialized processors.

✔ Benefits of Enabling Hardware Acceleration:

✔ Improves Graphics Performance – Faster rendering in games and applications.
✔ Speeds Up Video Playback – Reduces lag and buffering in 4K/HD videos.
✔ Enhances Web Browsing – Makes animations and scrolling smoother.
✔ Optimizes Multitasking – Reduces CPU load for better performance in multiple applications.

💡 Pro Tip: If you experience stuttering in games, slow video rendering, or laggy UI animations, enabling hardware acceleration can fix these issues.

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2. Enable Hardware Acceleration in Windows Settings

Windows has a built-in hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling feature that allows apps to use the GPU more efficiently.

✔ How to Enable Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling in Windows 10 & 11

1️⃣ Press Windows + I to open Settings.
2️⃣ Click System > Display.
3️⃣ Scroll down and click Graphics Settings.
4️⃣ Under Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling, toggle it ON.
5️⃣ Restart your PC to apply changes.

💡 Pro Tip: This feature reduces input lag and improves frame rates in games.

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3. Enable Hardware Acceleration in Your GPU Settings

To get the best performance boost, enable hardware acceleration through your graphics card settings (NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel).

✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in NVIDIA Control Panel

1️⃣ Right-click on the desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel.
2️⃣ Go to Manage 3D Settings > Global Settings.
3️⃣ Find Hardware-accelerated GPU Scheduling and set it to On.
4️⃣ Click Apply and restart your PC.

💡 Pro Tip: Enable "Maximum Performance Mode" in Power Management Mode for the best gaming performance.

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✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in AMD Radeon Settings

1️⃣ Right-click on the desktop and open AMD Radeon Software.
2️⃣ Click on Graphics > Advanced Settings.
3️⃣ Enable Hardware Acceleration and Radeon Boost (if available).
4️⃣ Restart your PC.

💡 Pro Tip: Enable Radeon Anti-Lag for improved responsiveness in games.

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✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in Intel Graphics Settings

1️⃣ Right-click on the desktop and select Intel Graphics Command Center.
2️⃣ Go to Video > Enhancements.
3️⃣ Toggle Hardware Acceleration ON.
4️⃣ Restart your PC.

💡 Pro Tip: Enable "Performance Mode" in the Power Settings for faster processing.

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4. Enable Hardware Acceleration in Web Browsers

Enabling hardware acceleration in browsers improves video playback, scrolling, and graphics performance on websites.

✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in Google Chrome

1️⃣ Open Google Chrome.
2️⃣ Click on the three-dot menu > Settings.
3️⃣ Scroll down and click Advanced > System.
4️⃣ Toggle Use hardware acceleration when available to ON.
5️⃣ Click Relaunch to apply changes.

💡 Pro Tip: This helps reduce CPU usage when streaming YouTube or Netflix.

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✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in Mozilla Firefox

1️⃣ Open Firefox and go to Settings.
2️⃣ Scroll to Performance and uncheck Use recommended performance settings.
3️⃣ Check Use hardware acceleration when available.
4️⃣ Restart Firefox.

💡 Pro Tip: If Firefox crashes, disable hardware acceleration as some older GPUs may not support it.

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✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in Microsoft Edge

1️⃣ Open Microsoft Edge.
2️⃣ Click Settings > System and Performance.
3️⃣ Toggle Use hardware acceleration when available to ON.
4️⃣ Restart Edge.

💡 Pro Tip: Edge has built-in video acceleration that enhances 1080p and 4K streaming.

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5. Enable Hardware Acceleration for Gaming

For gamers, hardware acceleration is essential for reducing lag and improving FPS.

✔ How to Enable Hardware Acceleration in Windows Game Mode

1️⃣ Press Windows + I to open Settings.
2️⃣ Go to Gaming > Game Mode.
3️⃣ Toggle Game Mode ON.
4️⃣ Restart your PC.

💡 Pro Tip: Game Mode prioritizes resources for gaming, reducing background activity and improving FPS.

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✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in Steam Games

1️⃣ Open Steam.
2️⃣ Go to Settings > Library.
3️⃣ Enable Hardware Video Encoding.
4️⃣ Restart Steam.

💡 Pro Tip: For maximum performance, enable "High-Performance Mode" in the Windows Power Plan.

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6. Enable Hardware Acceleration for Video Editing & Streaming

If you use apps like Adobe Premiere Pro, OBS Studio, or DaVinci Resolve, enabling hardware acceleration can speed up rendering and encoding.

✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in Adobe Premiere Pro

1️⃣ Open Adobe Premiere Pro.
2️⃣ Go to Edit > Preferences > Media.
3️⃣ Enable GPU Acceleration (CUDA or OpenCL).
4️⃣ Restart Premiere Pro.

💡 Pro Tip: This speeds up rendering by up to 5x compared to CPU-only processing.

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✔ Enable Hardware Acceleration in OBS Studio

1️⃣ Open OBS Studio.
2️⃣ Go to Settings > Output.
3️⃣ Set Encoder to NVENC (NVIDIA) or AMF (AMD).
4️⃣ Apply settings and restart OBS.

💡 Pro Tip: Use NVENC encoding for smoother 1080p/60fps streaming.

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7. When to Disable Hardware Acceleration

While hardware acceleration boosts performance, it can sometimes cause crashes or glitches.

✔ If videos freeze or display artifacts, disable hardware acceleration in browser settings.
✔ If a game crashes after enabling GPU acceleration, update your graphics drivers.
✔ If Windows UI lags or flickers, disable hardware acceleration in Windows Graphics Settings.

💡 Pro Tip: Older PCs with weak GPUs may perform better with hardware acceleration turned off.

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8. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What does enabling hardware acceleration do?
✔ It offloads intensive tasks from the CPU to the GPU, sound card, or other dedicated hardware, improving performance.

Should I enable hardware acceleration?
✔ Yes! It’s beneficial for gaming, video editing, and web browsing.

Why does hardware acceleration cause crashes?
✔ Some older graphics cards may not fully support hardware acceleration. Updating drivers usually fixes the issue.

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Conclusion

Enabling hardware acceleration improves graphics, gaming, video playback, and overall PC performance.

✔ Quick Recap:

✅ Enable GPU Scheduling in Windows Settings.
✅ Turn on Hardware Acceleration in Graphics Card Settings (NVIDIA, AMD, Intel).
✅ Enable in Web Browsers for Smoother Streaming.
✅ Use it in Video Editing & Streaming Software for Faster Processing.

Did this guide help? Let us know in the comments! 🚀