How can I set a program or game to run on either the iGPU or the dGPU?

In the past, this selection was the responsibility of the NVIDIA Control Panel. There, you were able to specify which GPU should generally be preferred and you could set exceptions for custom programs.

Windows 10 has taken over this control since around 2019. The corresponding menu can be found by searching for "Graphics" in the Start menu.

The GUI for selecting the integrated and dedicated graphics card still exists in the NVIDIA Control Panel (see screenshot) - but it no longer has any effect there. Since then, the system works as such:

• Microsoft has an internal (non-public) list of program names. In this list, Microsoft specifies on which GPU a program should be executed. It can be assumed that Microsoft basically runs all 3D programs on the dedicated GPU. This also includes quite simple 3D programs like Microsoft's own "Paint 3D".
• You can set an unlimited number of user-defined exceptions in Windows Graphics settings. Thus, you can manually specify whether certain programs should be executed on the iGPU or the dGPU.
• If a program to be executed does not appear on Microsoft's internal list nor in a user-defined exception, then the NVIDIA control panel takes control and starts the program based on an NVIDIA-internal list or based on an exception configured in the NVIDIA Control Panel.

The system thus determines on which GPU a program should be executed according to a predefined order. The priorities are set as follows:

• Microsoft List "Custom Exception in Windows Graphics settings" NVIDIA Control Panel

The NVIDIA Control Panel is at the very end of this chain and is thus virtually obsolete in terms of choosing between iGPU and dGPU.

Example: set a program to run on iGPU

In the Windows Graphics settings, click on "Browse" and look for the path of the .exe file that represents the program. Alternatively, you can select a shortcut on the desktop or in the Start menu here, as long as it points directly to the .exe file. If you can't find the .exe file of your program on the first try, please proceed as follows:

• Start the program that you want to put on the iGPU.
• Open the Windows Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc)
• Find the program in the list in the "Process" tab or in the "Details" tab
• After a right click on the list entry: select "Open file path".
• The newly opened explorer window shows the folder where the .exe file of the program is located.
• Press Ctrl+L to switch to the Explorer address bar.
• Press Ctrl+C to copy the address path of the folder to the clipboard.
• Go back to the Windows Graphics settings and click Browse again.
• Press Ctrl+V to enter the address path from the clipboard into the search mask and confirm with "Enter".
• Now select the .exe file and confirm again.

The new entry for your program is now in the list. This list is always sorted alphabetically. Select your program in the list, click on "Options" and select the desired graphics card for this program.

In the screenshot: Furmark is manually set to the iGPU.