Adobe Photoshop uses the graphics processor on your system to render 3D effects and so much more. Having a good graphics card is an added advantage to running Adobe Photoshop smoothly. But, what if Adobe Photoshop doesn’t even recognize the graphics card on your system? There are many reasons that can lead to this issue. But, there’s nothing to worry about. Just follow these easy instructions to make Photoshop detect the GPU in just a few quick steps.
Fix 1 – Set the app to use the dedicated GPU
If you have two GPUs on your system, you have to set the Photoshop to use the dedicated GPU.
1. Close Photoshop, if it is already opened.
2. Once you have closed it, press the Windows key and the I key together to open Settings.
3. After that, tap on “System” on the left pane.
4. Then, click on the “Display” settings to access it.
5. On the right-hand side, scroll all the way down and click on “Graphics” settings.
6. Next, you have to click on “Browse“.
7. Now, navigate to the location of Photoshop. It is usually located in this location –
C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2015
8. Select the “Photoshop” application from the list of files and folders.
9. Then, tap on “Add” to add it to the list.
10. Coming back to the Settings page, tap on “Options” to access the graphics options.
11. Now, just switch it to the “High Performance” settings.
12. After that, tap on “Save” to save the settings.
This will make sure that Photoshop uses the graphics card that you have chosen.
Close the Settings window.
1. Now, open Adobe Photoshop.
2. Then, you have to tap on the “Edit” menu and click on “Preferences“.
3. Next, click on the “Performance” option to open Performance settings.
Here, you will find the graphics card is recognized.
Fix 2 – Move the sniffer file
Removing/moving the GPU sniffer app should let Photoshop detect the graphics card.
1. Make sure that you have closed Photoshop before you proceed.
2. Tap on the Windows icon on the taskbar and type “Adobe Photoshop“.
3. In the search results, right-click on the “Adobe Photoshop CC 2015” and tap on “Open file location“.
4. It shall lead you to the Programs folder. Now, right-click on the “Adobe Photoshop CC 2015” and then, click on “Open file location“.
5. When the Adobe Photoshop folder opens up, look for the “sniffer” application.
6. Then, select “sniffer” and press Ctrl+X keys together to cut the file.
7. Go to your Desktop (or any location you prefer) and paste it there.
After that, close the File Explorer.
8. Then, open Adobe Photoshop app.
9. After that, press the Ctrl+K keys together to access the preferences.
10. Next, tap on “Performance” on the left-hand pane.
You will notice that Photoshop has detected the graphics card.
Fix 3 – Change the PhotoshopPrefsManager
If resetting the graphic settings of Photoshop doesn’t work, try the same for the PhotoshopPrefsManager.
1. Close Adobe Photoshop and open the Settings on your system.
2. In Settings, tap on “System” on the left pane.
3. Next, tap on the “Display” on the right-hand side.
4. Now, scroll down and click on “Graphics” settings to access it.
5. Then, on the right-hand side, tap on “Browse“.
7. After that, go to the Adobe Photoshop location –
C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2015
8. Here, look down through the list of apps, files, and folders and select “PhotoshopPrefsManager“.
9. Then, tap on “Add“.
10. Just, tap on “Options” to change the graphics preference.
11. Then, choose the “High Performance” settings.
12. After that, tap on “Save” to save the settings.
Finally, close the Adobe Photoshop.
Then, open Photoshop and test whether this works
Close Adobe Photoshop and relaunch it again.
Fix 4 – Update the graphics card
If you are not using the latest version of the graphics card, Photoshop may not recognize it.
1. Right-click on the Windows key (⊞) and tap on the “Device Manager” to access the Device Manager settings.
2. Just, tap on the “Display adapters“. It will be expanded to show you the graphics card drivers.
4. Then, right-click on the dedicated graphics card driver and tap on “Update driver“.
5. Here, you will notice two options. Click on “Search automatically for the drivers“.
This will let Windows search for the latest available driver and install it in the process.
Let Windows detect and install the latest version of the graphics card.
Close the Device Manager. Restart the system just after that.
Once it boots up, open Photoshop and test whether it is detecting the graphics driver or not.
NOTE –
If you are using a dedicated graphics card, like NVIDIA cards, you can download the latest version of the driver and install it manually. Or, use the NVIDIA GeForce Experience app to do so.
Fix 5 – Disable the Open CL settings
Another resolution can be disabling the Open CL settings on your system.
1. Once you have opened Adobe Photoshop, press the Ctrl key and K key together.
It will bring up the Preferences screen.
2. In the Preferences window, tap on the “Performance” tab.
3. Now, click on the “Advanced Settings…” in the ‘Graphics Processor Settings’ tab.
4. Uncheck the “Use OpenCL” box and click on “OK“.
Close Photoshop and open it again.
Fix 6 – Lower the cache level
Lowering the cache level can fix the graphics card issue.
1. Open Adobe Photoshop.
2. When it opens up, press the Ctrl+K keys together.
This will open up the Preferences settings.
3. When the Preferences opens up, go to the “Performance” section.
4. Then, set the “Cache Levels” to “4“.
5. Finally, tap on “OK” to save the changes.
Once you have done that, close Adobe Photoshop and relaunch it.
After relaunching the app, check whether the graphics card has appeared or not.
Fix 7 – Reset Photoshop preferences
If nothing works, try resetting the Photoshop Preferences to their original settings.
1. After opening Photoshop, click on the “Edit“.
2. In the Edit menu list, tap on “Preferences” and then, click on “General” settings.
3. Now, tap on the “Reset preferences on quit” option to reset all the settings.
4. You will receive a warning message. Tap on “OK” to proceed further.
Close Adobe Photoshop. Then, launch it again.
Open Preferences and test whether it is detecting the graphics card or not.
Fix 8 – Disable the integrated GPU
If you have two GPUs (one integrated and one dedicated), disabling the integrated one may help you resolve this problem.
1. You have to open the Device Manager. So, press the Windows key+X keys together and then, click on “Device Manager“.
2. When the Device Manager opens up, expand the “Display adapters“.
3. Here, you will notice two graphics cards. Right-click on the integrated graphics card and tap “Disable device“.
You will see a warning prompt. Just click to confirm disabling the device.
Once you have done that, close the Device Manager. Then, restart your computer. Upon restarting, open Adobe Photoshop, and you will find that it has detected the graphics card.