Do I need Direct X 12? Should I upgrade to windows 10?

Brian99 · Sep 2, 2017

Maybe I should have asked this on the windows 10 forum. I just bought a GTX 1060 6gb Armor ocv1 edition card. Ive been searching around and some say I should upgrade from windows 8.1 64bit to windows 10 64bit for DX12. Others say(I asked on a facebook forum page) You dont really need to upgrade to windows 10 because only a handful of games use DX12 but if you do it wouldn't be that much different to Windows 8.1 so its more of a preference.
Should I upgrade to Windows 10? Or just stay with windows 8.1??

Martell1977 · Sep 2, 2017

The best way to describe Windows 10 is that it's basically the love child of Windows 8.1 and Windows 7.

That being said, you don't need DX12, but more and more games are using it and DX11 will slowly get phased out. Windows 10 is a pretty solid OS and after a bit, I do like it more than Windows 7. nVidia GPU's don't benefit from DX12 as much as AMD's, but it is a fact that while only a handful of games are DX12 now, going forward, that will change and DX12 will replace DX11.

Last time I checked, Windows 10 does still have a free upgrade option from 7 or 8, but no telling if MS will leave it open. At the very least, you could go as far as getting the digital entitlement, so you can upgrade in the future, should you not decide to now.

bitty_20 · Sep 2, 2017

At the current state of DX 12, it doesn't really benefit much in games because devs don't properly optimize the API for utilization in their games. Vulkan API is actually "better" as of now and is compatible with Windows 8. You don't need to upgrade so soon.

Cioby · Sep 2, 2017

Windows 10 gets better updates and runs DX11 also.
But from what I've seen, the only Nvidia GPU that fully uses DX12 and kicks AMD in the butt, is 1080ti. So with your 1060 you wouldn't even see much benefit.

In the long run it's the question of when does your OS seems slower than W10. I changed Windows 7 a long time ago while everyone still hated W8, because I kept getting warnings and back to desktop because "hurr durr, you don't have enough memory" with 16 GB of RAM. Windows 8 and 10 doesn't do that. So I recommend you see something you don't like on Windows 8.1 to actually upgrade. Even with DX12 your card will run the same or WORSE (you can chose on games between dx11 and dx12).

13thmonkey · Sep 2, 2017

Win 10 is the future of OS's so you'd may as well get it now, if the upgrade program is still running.

photonboy · Sep 2, 2017

13thmonkey :

The upgrade option was only for one year.

However, I do agree he should upgrade at SOME point. I'd just do it now.

*You can get a KINGUIN (dot net) key for W10 Home 64-bit for about $25USD I believe and people I trust have had no issues. Here's how that works (AFAIK):

1. buy a key
2. insert 8GB or larger USB stick
3. download the MS media creation tool to create W10 media install
https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/software-download/windows10

4. May take 30 minutes or more to download and format the USB stick
5. run "setup.exe" on the stick to start the upgrade procedure
6. choose to keep "DATA and APPLICATIONS" when prompted

7. Enter key when prompted (or can enter LATER if you don't have a key yet)
8. *Have MSN e-mail + Password ready to use for LOGIN (same one you use for Windows 8 if you do that. Recommended)
9. TEST for a week or more, then
10. DELETE the W8 backup that allows you to rollback (to save space on C-drive)... google for how.

That SHOULD work without issues.

*I do recommend running at least one BENCHMARK such as Unigine Valley before and after just to confirm results are about the same.

OTHER:
DX12 as said will get more COMMON. Most "DX12" games are really DX11 with some tacked-on code. Arguably the best optimized new API game is DOOM which uses VULKAN. Vulkan should become more common than DX12 though both of these are SLOW to grow due to the added time to work with the new API's. So it's mostly game devs with a big budget.

Part of the benefit is optimizing CPU usage, so weaker CPU's (in theory) should benefit more.

Long-story short is NO, there's no pressing need to upgrade. If on the fence then the benefit would really be:

#1 - does your game support DX12?
#2 - does your game run BETTER (FPS and/or game smoothness) with NVidia Pascal graphics cards?

Battlefield 1 for example gained some FPS (depending on hardware) but had more STUTTER than DX11 mode. Also, most NVidia cards don't tend to see much gains, though again the CPU may make a difference.

photonboy · Sep 2, 2017

GEARS of WAR 4 is only DX12 if that matters. Great game IMO.

neiler0847 · Sep 2, 2017

I don't expect that folks are even writing drivers for Windows 8 anymore, so sooner or later you're going to hit that wall. If you ever have an issue with a game or other piece of software, the first thing any tech support person is going to do is tell you to upgrade.

Martell1977 · Sep 2, 2017

Or just use this:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/accessibility/windows10upgrade
for the upgrade. It says for people using "assistive technologies", but doesn't specify what that actually means.

Brian99 · Sep 2, 2017

Thank you all for your answers!! I decided todo what Martell1977 suggested about a hour ago. Its still upgrading. Ehh it wants me to upgrade to windows 10 pro... Not sure if I want pro. Thought it was gonna give me home

Martell1977 · Sep 3, 2017

Brian99 :

The installation software will be for both and upgrade to the right version according to what version of Windows 8 you have.

Karadjgne · Sep 3, 2017

If you have 7Pro, 8Pro, 8.1Pro then you upgrade to 10Pro. If you have standard 7, 8, 8.1 then upgrade to 10. Don't get them mixed up, there are a few differences in the 2x types of OS, home doesn't have the same network capabilities of Pro etc, so not going with the same can lead to incompatibility issues.

Brian99 · Sep 3, 2017

Can I still game and use my oculus rift in pro?(I have a rift to lol, But this is more about gaming then VR) Or should I just buy windows 10 home and not mess with pro? I guess the The Pro edition of Windows 10, in addition to all of Home edition's features, offers sophisticated connectivity and privacy tools such as Domain Join, Group Policy Management, Bitlocker, Enterprise Mode Internet Explorer (EMIE), Assigned Access 8.1, Remote Desktop, Client Hyper-V, and Direct Access??

Karadjgne · Sep 3, 2017

Not worth spending another $100 on a windows key when the one you have is perfectly good. Pro doesn't affect gaming over Home, Home just has slightly better media, Pro has better network and can do a few other things like turn off updates etc that Home can't.

Brian99 · Sep 3, 2017

Karadjgne :

Ok thanks. I upgraded to pro.

photonboy · Sep 4, 2017

Windows 10 Pro vs Home:

A list: http://www.techadvisor.co.uk/feature/windows/windows-10-home-vs-windows-10-pro-vs-windows-10-s-3618710/

"Home just has slightly better media"

I'm not aware of any such thing.

Other:
ASSIST version will give a watermark I believe, and may even HASSLE you at some point. I heard it can prevent the normal desktop wallpaper change but there's a workaround. Not 100% sure of those details.

KINGUIN (dot net) again is something to consider to get a key. Should be roughly $30USD
https://www.kinguin.net/category/19429/windows-10-professional-oem-key/

Martell1977 · Sep 4, 2017

photonboy :

I've used the assistive upgrade on several machines now and there is no difference. I use it for clients that wanted to wait to see if Windows 10 was going to be as horrible as Windows 8. I know what MS says the intended use for it is, but I think that as long as it helps Windows 10 gain market share, they don't really care who uses it. If they wanted to really restrict the usage, they could easily.

Do I need Direct X 12? Should I upgrade to windows 10?

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