QUESTION
How do I locate the shader model of my graphics card on my Windows-based computer?
ANSWER
The shader model can be identified using a Microsoft utility called DirectX Capabilities Viewer.
To identify the shader model
- Download the Microsoft DirectX Capabilities Viewer.
The executable file for this utility will most likely be located in the Downloads folder, unless you've chosen a specific location to save it to.
- Once downloaded, double-click on the dxcapsviewer.exe located on your system to open the utility.
- With the utility open, expand DXGI Devices in the top left corner, expand the folder for your video card, then click on the Direct3D 12 folder. The Shader Model version will be listed on the right side.
- If the shader model is not using at least version 6.0, the driver for your graphics card may need to be updated to be compatible with newer versions of Chief Architect software. Please see the appropriate troubleshooting article in the Related Articles section below to learn more about updating drivers.
If the shader model does not list 6.0 or greater after updating the graphics card driver, the graphics card may be incompatible. Please refer to the Related Articles section below to learn more about the minimum system requirements.
