As you know, Microsoft keeps releasing updates to improve Windows 10 and make it more reliable. One interesting update in Windows 10 that you might not know of is the option to change your GPU preferences. But what are GPU preferences? GPU preferences are the graphics settings you select for applications, such as video games. This means you can easily choose which GPU to assign certain applications to. Doing this helps to boost your applications’ performance and save battery life in the long run.

If your computer uses a built-in GPU and an external GPU, then the latter will be the high-performance GPU. Having two GPUs to choose from can be beneficial as it allows you to assign the more powerful one to your video games to ensure a smooth gaming experience. However, most installed apps usually choose the GPU they want to use, forcing you to manually select your preferred graphics settings.

One issue that has been troubling many Windows 10 users is how to back up their GPU preferences and reset them to their defaults for their installed apps in Windows 10. If you want to know how to do that too, then this article is for you. Here is how to back up and then restore your GPU preferences in Windows 10:

1. How to Back Up GPU Preferences for Apps in Windows 10

Your computer’s registry is involved in backing up your GPU preferences in Windows 10. Therefore, before proceeding with this method, create a system restore point or perform a registry backup in case things don’t go as expected.

To create a system restore point, follow these steps:

  1. Press the Win + S keyboard shortcut to open the Windows search bar.
  2. Type “system restore” and then select the “Create a restore point” result.
  3. Click the “Create” button on the “System Protection” tab.
  4. Give the restore point a memorable name and then select “Create.”
  5. Click OK.

To effectively back up your registry, you can use the Registry Cleaner in Auslogics BoostSpeed. This tool allows you to quickly resolve any registry-related issues without causing any harm to the computer. What makes this registry cleaner unique is how it first backs up the registry before resolving your PC problems. You can easily find the registry backup in the Auslogics Rescue Center when you need it. What’s more, BoostSpeed also removes junk files and speeds up your computer, boosting your system’s performance and your personal productivity.

Taking the above precautionary measures allows you to make any changes to your PC since you can easily restore its previous state if things go wrong.

Now use this simple guide to back up your GPU preferences in Windows 10:

  1. Press the Win + R shortcut to open the Run dialog box.
  2. Type “regedit” into the dialog box and then hit Enter.
  3. When the Registry Editor opens, clear the search box under the toolbar and then paste the following text:

“HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\DirectX\UserGpuPreferences” (without quotes)

  1. Press Enter. If this registry key does not appear, that means you haven’t made any recent changes to your GPU preferences.
  2. Right-click the “UserGpuPreferences” key (folder) on the left pane and then select “Export.”
  3. Choose where you want to export/save the .reg file on your device, then click “Save.”

2. How to Reset GPU Preferences for Apps to Their Defaults in Windows 10

Follow this guide to restore your GPU preferences using the exported .reg file on your Windows 10 PC:

  1. Locate the .reg file you saved.
  2. Double-click the file to merge it. Alternatively, right-click it and then choose “Merge.”
  3. Select “Yes” when the User Account Control (UAC) prompt appears.
  4. Click “Yes” to continue and then select OK.

If you would like to reset the GPU preferences of a specific application, then follow this procedure:

  1. Use the Win + I keyboard shortcut to launch the Settings app.
  2. Choose “System.”
  3. Under the “Display” section, scroll down to find the “Graphics settings” link and open it.
  4. Under “Choose an app to set preference,” select the type of app whose GPU preferences you want to edit, and then click “Browse.”
  5. Choose the application on your desktop, then select “Add.”
  6. Click it when it appears under the “Graphics settings” section and then select “Remove” or “Reset.”
  7. The app will disappear, and its GPU preferences will be successfully reset.

Conclusion

This article shows how to back up and restore GPU settings on a Windows 10 device. So, we hope that this guide has helped you do that on your PC. If you have additional information regarding how to easily back up and restore GPU preferences for Windows 10 apps, then please share it with us in the comments section below.