How to find out which directx is installed in vista. How to check directx version

In this manual, we will look at the question that some users face: how to find out which DirectX is installed on the computer. There are situations when the user needs to know which version of DirectX is used in the Windows operating system installed on the computer.

DirectX is a development toolkit, a set of APIs that solves programming problems in the Microsoft Windows environment. DirectX development tools are most often used when writing computer games for the Windows operating system.

In addition to the fact that DirectX is built into the operating system, Direct X is often bundled with computer games for installation on the PC along with the games. The latest version of DirectX improves the display of game graphics on a computer and allows you to unleash all the capabilities of the software.

DirectX is installed on my computer, how can I find out the version? You can check the DirectX version using the system tool or using third-party software.

In general, DirectX versions correspond to the following versions of the Windows operating system:

• DirectX 9 - Windows XP SP2
• DirectX 10 - Windows Vista, Windows 7
• DirectX 11 - Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10
• DirectX 12 - Windows 10

Please note the following:

There may be different versions of DirectX installed on your PC. You should pay attention to whether the video card supports a certain version of DirectX, because if the hardware does not support this version of the development tools, Windows will not be able to work with this version on the computer. The operating system will automatically select the latest supported version of DirectX on the computer.

Some applications require a specific version of DirectX on the computer, so the user will have to download DirectX themselves to install on the PC.

In this article we will look at 4 ways to obtain information about the installed version of DirectX: using the DxDiag system tool, video card software, using third-party programs (GPU-Z, AIDA64).

How to see which DirectX is installed on your computer using the DxDiag system

You can find out the DirectX version using the DxDiag (DirectX Diagnostic Tool) utility built into the Windows operating system. The tool provides detailed information you may need to troubleshoot video and audio problems on your computer.

To start, follow these steps:

1. Press the "Win" + "R" keyboard keys.
2. In the Run window, enter the command "dxdiag" (without quotes), and then click on the OK button.

In the “DirectX Diagnostic Tool” window, in the “System” tab, in the “System Information” section, opposite the “DirectX Version” item, the installed version of DirectX will be displayed.

In the latest versions of Windows 10, DirectX is always shown in edition 12. In fact, your computer hardware may not support this version of DirectX 12, so I recommend looking for more information.

Open the “Display” tab, in the “Drivers” section you will see the levels of support for the functions of the video card installed on the computer.

How to check which DirectX is on your computer using the video card control panel

You can find out the DirectX version using the video card software. I'll show you how to do this using an NVIDIA video card as an example:

1. Launch NVIDIA Control Panel.
2. In the left column, at the very bottom, click on the “System Information” link.
3. In the “System Information” window, in the “Display” tab, information about the video card will be displayed.

This image shows that the operating system has a DirectX 12 runtime version, a Direct3D API version of 12, and a Direct3D capability level of 11. This means that despite the system supporting the new version of DirectX 12, an outdated video card will only be able to fully work with DirectX 11.

How to find out what DirectX costs in GPU-Z

The free GPU-Z program provides detailed information about the graphics hardware installed on your computer. The program does not require installation on your computer.

Follow these steps:

1. Launch the GPU-Z program on your computer.
2. Open the “Advanced” tab, select “DirectX” in the panel (there may be different versions of Direct X), read the information provided.

Getting information about DirectX in AIDA64

The program provides extensive information about your computer's hardware and software. Including, in AIDA64 you can see the DirectX version of your computer.

Go through the steps:

1. Open the AIDA program.
2. In the “Menu” tab, in the “Computer” section, open “Summary Information”. This will display the installed version of DirectX (DirectX 12 on my computer).

For information about the supported version of DirectX, open the "DirectX" section and then "DirectX - video".

In the "Direct3D Properties" section, opposite the "DirectX Hardware Support" item, you will see the supported version of DirectX (in my case - DirectX 11). This means that the video card supports version 11 of DirectX.

Conclusions of the article

If necessary, the user can find out the version of DirectX installed on the computer running the Windows operating system. You can get the necessary information about Direct X using the DxDiag tool, graphics card software, and third-party programs: GPU-Z, AIDA64.

The Windows operating system has a rather complex structure, which only its developers can understand. For proper operation of all its components in applications and games that require serious resources, developers from the Microsoft studio release a special set of tools - DirectX. It is a mistake to think that this is just a program that users need.

In fact, DirectX is a set of tools that is supported by Microsoft for developers. It is impossible to program complex applications and games for Windows without DirectX. It must also be installed on the end user's computer of the developed program or game so that Windows can interact with it. DirectX tools are regularly improved and new versions are released. That is why it is important for the user to know which DirectX is installed on the computer, and whether it needs to be updated to work with a modern game.

How to find out which DirectX is installed

Determining the version of DirectX on a computer running Windows is very simple; for this you need to:

1. Press the Windows + R combination on your keyboard to open the “Run” line;
2. You will need to enter the dxdiag command in it;
3. This will open a system information window called “DirectX Diagnostic Tools”. On the “System” tab at the bottom you can see a column indicating which DirectX is installed on the computer.

Important: You can install any version of DirectX on your computer. However, there is an important nuance: if it is not supported by hardware, then the Windows system will not be able to work with it. Then the operating system selects the highest supported version of DirectX as active, and it is this version that is displayed in the diagnostic menu, information about which is given above.

How to determine DirectX version using third-party programs

In addition to the utilities built into the operating system, third-party applications allow you to determine the DirectX version on your computer. At the same time, they are able to provide much more information than the dxdiag command mentioned above.

A convenient computer diagnostic tool is the AIDA64 application. Its free version can be downloaded from the official developer website. This program allows you to find out information about all computer components, as well as about the software component.

In the left menu of the application you can see a separate DirectX item. It contains information in three subsections: files, video, sound:

AIDA64 is not the only diagnostic program for your computer. You can find many of its analogues on the Internet, both paid and free.

Why DirectX 12 does not work on Windows 10

One of the features of the Windows 10 operating system, which Microsoft is actively promoting, is games. The new version of the operating system at a “close to hardware level” works with games that are developed on DirectX 12. This allows players on low-power computers to run projects that require high performance.

However, some Windows 10 users may discover when checking that they have DirectX 11 or 11.2 installed, and not the modern DirectX 12. In such a situation, there is no need to download DirectX 12 from the official Microsoft website and install it on your computer, since this will not help. This version of drivers is natively available in Windows 10, and the solution to the problem should be sought in another plane.

If you see DirectX 11.2 instead of DirectX 12 on Windows 10, this is due to:

It is important to note that a more recent DirectX on a computer does not replace previous versions. That is, if an application or game requires DirectX 8,9 or 10 to run, and later versions are installed on your computer, you need to download the “old” driver.

Sometimes, in order to install and correctly play media files and run games, you need to determine whether your PC operating system meets the installation requirements, or whether you need to update software resources. To do this, you need to find out which DirectX was installed on your computer. There are several ways to do this.

Why is a DirectX update required?

For the software to work fully, you need to create an appropriate working environment: install the package of missing drivers and related programs. For example, to be able to watch videos in the browser, you need to install the Adobe Flash Player module, and to run popular games you must install DirectX 11.
Constantly monitoring the relevance of the multimedia package, as well as all software on your computer, helps to avoid incorrect system operation and installation of erroneous programs.
As a rule, when you purchase and download a certain program, it already includes DirectX or a function for updating it if it is already present on the PC. If problems arise with updating or installing DirectX, you need to independently find out the cause of the incompatibility between the application and the OS.

How to find out the DirectX version by OS name

DirectX is already built into modern operating systems. You can understand which DirectX is installed by looking at the system version:

• Windows 7 is installed in tandem with DirectX 10.
• Windows 8 usually contains DirectX 11.
• Well, the latest Windows 10 is equipped with either DirectX 11 or DirectX 12.
• If your PC has an outdated OS, for example, Windows XP, then most likely you have DirectX 9 installed. This version must be updated, otherwise most games will not even install.

Determining DirectX version using the command line

If you have previously updated DirectX or downloaded different versions bundled with applications, it will be difficult to find out its exact version just by the OS name. Therefore you need to use this method:

• Open the Start menu and type dxdiag in the Search programs and files line.
• Or simultaneously hold down the “Windows” + “R” key, after which a menu will open with the ability to execute commands, where you should also type dxdiag.
• In the window that opens, you can find the necessary information about DirectX.

Finding out the DirectX version using third-party applications

• You can find out which DirectX is installed on your computer in the control panel of the built-in video card. For example, you can take an NVidia video card. If you open the system information window, information about DirectX will also be listed there. You can find information about the graphics editor in this way: “Start” - “Control Panel” - “NVIDIA Control Panel”.

• You can also get the necessary information using special utilities, for example, Aida 64 (old name Everest). You can find and download this application for free on the Internet. In addition to information about DirectX, this utility has many useful functions that you will definitely need.

Now you know how to determine the current version of DirectX that is installed on your PC. All that remains is to update it to the latest version, if necessary.

Active users who often play various games come across such a program as DirectX. 

If anyone else doesn’t know what this is or why it is needed, let’s try to briefly explain. 

This is a developed set of software library files for the normal operation of games on a computer. Simply put, this is a program without which games will not launch or will simply freeze. At best, without Direct X, games will simply slow down, but this will not bring any pleasure. Avid players know that almost every game on the disc usually comes with the current version of DirectX, without which the game simply will not work. Naturally, when installing any game, you need to take into account the presence of supported DirectX on the computer.

• How to view the DirectX version In fact, it is very easy to find out which version of the API libraries is installed on your computer.
• In the Windows search bar, write the command - 

dxdiag.Open the utility.This is a small diagnostic utility .
DirectX  and version checksIn the program window m

s

• we can see all the information about the system. Current installed edition, paging file, amount of RAM, system version and bit depth, and BIOS firmware.   How to find out DirectX on Windows 7 ,  Besides, there is another way how to find out the version of DirectX.
• To do this you need to launch the classic application   "Run" There are several ways to do this. In Windows 7 it is located in the " Start " Or use a keyboard shortcut 

  WinKey+R   (for any operating systems of the Windows family).WinKey  - this is the home key

• , usually marked with a logo 

Windows.

In the application window that opens, enter the command to launch DirectX diagnostics.   "Run" Windows 10 version check DirectX You can also find out which DirectX is installed on the system through the command line console. There are many ways to launch it. In the latest versions of Windows 10, for example, the easiest way to do this is through the “   ", on which you need to right-click and select from the list  . Then enter our treasured command in the console to launch the DirectX diagnostic utility.

We look at DirectX in Windows 8

Command to run diagnostics   dxdiag   On Windows 8 operating systems you can open it in the following way:

• Go to the start screen, then click on the down arrow to open the list of all applications, and here in the search bar we write our command.

You can also check the release using third-party software, for example, using the AIDA64 or Everest program. Both programs are from the same developer and are almost identical. Of all the possible functions and capabilities that they have, you can also see what version of DirectX is installed on your computer.


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DirectX, like any other software, requires periodic updates. Why is it so important not to neglect them? How to determine the product version on your computer?

What is DirectX and what is it for?

DirectX is a set of APIs (various functions, constants, etc.), designed to solve various problems associated with programming on Microsoft Windows. Direct is often bundled with computer games and is mainly used by gamers.

DirectX is a free application that is freely available on the official Microsoft website.

The program ensures interaction between the video card and the game: it directs all the computing power of the computer to high-quality graphics. Thanks to DirectX, users can enjoy beautiful landscapes, well-drawn characters and detail in games.

DirectX does not improve graphics, it only gives developers the opportunity to make the picture more beautiful. If a game was written for version 9, then installing 10 will not change anything, but a game developed for 11 will look worse in 10.

How to Check Current DirectX Version on Windows 7 PC

DirectX is one of the programs installed by default on the operating system. Each has its own version.

But there may be differences when updating the system. How to find out the DirectX version on a computer running Windows 7?

If Windows could not find the dxdiag command, then version 5.0 or earlier is installed on your computer, in which case, install the latest version of DirectX through Windows Update.

How to find out the DirectX version (video)

DirectX is software built into the Windows operating system that affects graphics in computer games. If you want to enjoy realistic landscapes with well-drawn details, we recommend regularly updating the product to the latest version.