Issue description
When running Archicad on a Windows workstation with an NVIDIA graphics card, performance or display issues may occur. This can be caused by outdated drivers, incorrect graphics processor settings, or hardware-related problems such as docking stations or faulty video cables.
Solution
Update the NVIDIA video card driver
An outdated driver can often lead to graphics-related issues in Archicad.
- Before updating, create a Windows System Restore Point as described in Microsoft’s guide: Create a system restore point.
- Download and install the latest NVIDIA Studio Driver from the official download page: NVIDIA Driver Downloads.
Force Archicad to use the NVIDIA graphics card
Windows 10 (starting with version 20H1) assigns graphics processors to applications and may override NVIDIA settings. To force Archicad to use the dedicated GPU:
-
Open Windows Graphics Settings and configure the GPU preference for Archicad. For guidance, see this article: How to set per-app graphical performance settings in Windows 10.
- If no OS preference is set, you can configure it in the NVIDIA Control Panel:
- Right-click on the desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel.
- Go to Manage 3D Settings → set Preferred graphics processor to your NVIDIA GPU.
- Under Power management mode, select Prefer maximum performance.
- For the GPU used for OpenGL rendering, select your NVIDIA graphics card.
- If using multiple monitors, in the Set up multiple displays section, verify both monitors are assigned to the NVIDIA GPU.
Additional guide: NVIDIA Control Panel Quick Start Guide (PDF)
Check docking stations and video cables
Sometimes, the issue is hardware-related rather than driver or settings-based.
- If using a docking station, try removing it and connecting the monitor cable directly to the discrete NVIDIA GPU port.
- Test with a different video cable if available, to rule out a faulty connection.
By ensuring drivers and system preferences are correctly configured and verifying no hardware bottlenecks exist, you can typically resolve NVIDIA video card issues that affect Archicad performance on Windows.