I have some programs that reserve large amounts of VRAM, leading to issues for other programs. For example, SnagIt, a screenshot tool, will hold this VRAM for an extended period of time, amounting to 2-4 GB VRAM reserved on a 2x 4k system. Unfortunately, this causes issues with CAD programs like Fusion 360.
On my system, I have a Nvidia GTX 1080 card with 8 GB VRAM, and an Intel HD 630 integrated GPU with 32 GB of shared VRAM available (system RAM is cheap, dedicated VRAM is not). I suspect I can work around my issue by offloading these low-priority programs like SnagIt to the integrated GPU, where hopefully they do not reserve dedicated VRAM that could be put towards more useful tasks.
I have both Nvidia and Intel graphics drivers already installed and both adapters enabled. My displays are physically connected to the Nvidia card but the Intel GPU is definitely operational, as QSV video encoding works.
Is it possible to get specific programs to run on the Intel iGPU instead of the main Nvidia dGPU? How?
Best Answer
On recent versions of windows - I did this with 2H20, but I'm pretty sure that you can do it on other versions, windows will automatically run applications based on what is the "best" GPU. I found that if an application is on a monitor on a specific GPU, it will preferencially run on that. I also found out, with a little research that you can explicitly get an executable to run on a specific GPU
In the display settings menu, there's an option hidden right at the bottom called graphics settings.
You can click on browse here, and pick an executable
Then click on options, which will let you pick your video card.
In your particular case, pick your integrated graphics card, and the application will run on that card preferencially - which should let you save some of the video ram, and GPU power for hungrier software. In theory, if you had the power, you could also run the apps on a separate discrete card, depending on your needs.