Visual Artifacting with Aero Glass

[runner105]

Hi,

I'm using Windows 10 with Aero Glass and Translucent TB.  When certain apps are playing animations, I get a very strange artifacting/screen tearing problem.  It tends to happen mostly with Windows Store apps and browsers playing YouTube videos.  It also sometimes happens while watching a Discord screenshare.  It's difficult to replicate because it doesn't happen consistently, and I also can't get a capture of it. [Doesn't appear on screen recordings or to those watching my screen.] Any help is appreciated, I'm at a loss for what to do.

 

Thanks in advance!

[JamisClarks41]

Have you tried testing by disabling Translucent TB see if the problem still happens or vice versa? Are you using the latest versions of  Aero Glass and Translucent TB and what's you're current OS and build version? Members will be able to help you more with this information.

[runner105]

The issue still occurs with Translucent TB disabled.  I'm using the latest version of TB and Aero Glass.  I'm on Windows Server 2019 Datacenter version 1809 build 17763.1369. [Though it functions identical to 10.]  Interestingly, when first installing, Aero Glass gave a "can't hook DWM" error.  I had to follow the instructions by user "Khanjar" here and use the PDB downloader to get the symbols to correctly register.  Could this be causing incompatibility?

[UCyborg]

So this must be different than the old glitch that was present in the old versions of Aero Glass. Maybe it's related to newer updates? Does anyone else use relatively updated Win10 1809 variant?

Do a test and try disabling graphics adapter in Device Manager. Unless basic display driver is already in use anyway, in which case disabling it would be pointless, this will prevent applications from utilizing graphics hardware and DWM will fall back to software rendering. It would tell if graphics driver has something to do with an issue.

[runner105]

I have two chips, as this is a laptop.  Intel HD P630 [integrated] and NVIDIA Quadro M1200 [dedicated].  I should disable both, correct?

EDIT: After disabling Intel and using only NVIDIA, the problem goes away.  So it must be related to when the laptop is switching graphics chips for better performance or battery [IE going from Notepad to YouTube or a game.] Is there a way to resolve this on dual-card systems without forcing the laptop to use only one chip?

Edited August 12, 2020 by runner105
More info available.

[runner105]

Also, which graphics card should glass be using?  I would prefer that it only uses Intel, not only to stop the terrible artifacting, but also to conserve power.

[UCyborg]

So NVIDIA Optimus is involved. If my understanding is correct, only one GPU can render graphics at the time. Certain workloads activate the dedicated GPU, so then that GPU will handle application that made it activate and desktop composition, which includes Aero Glass.

In NVIDIA Control Panel, you should be able to setup application profiles and force certain applications to always use integrated GPU. Your Windows version should also have settings dealing with preferred GPU for specific applications in the Settings app (System->Display->Graphics settings). You'd have to try and see which setting takes precedence.

Still, there is some underlying issue on your setup as switching GPUs shouldn't result in artifacting. Upgrading (or maybe downgrading) both GPUs' drivers might help.

Edited August 22, 2020 by UCyborg
Formatting

[runner105]

Ok, this is definitely the cause of everything.  I've tried setting up profiles in both settings panels, but I can't seem to figure out which aplliication(s) to designate to which card.  Also, I've tried older and newer drivers on each, but with no different results.  In response to what you said about certain GPUs handling different things, does that mean it is not possible for NVIDIA to handle something like a game while Intel handles the window manager?

[UCyborg]

Sorry, was wrong about that. Some more searching suggests both GPUs can work at once and depending on application, the application may get either Intel or NVIDIA's rendering context. But DWM tends to be pinned to Intel by default with no way or at least no easy way to change it, but it might also depend on how Optimus is implemented on particular laptop.

49 minutes ago, runner105 said:

does that mean it is not possible for NVIDIA to handle something like a game while Intel handles the window manager?

That's how it should work by default and what apparently causes glitches for some reason.

[UCyborg]

The laptop I use at work has Intel HD Graphics 530 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M. I haven't noticed anything out of ordinary when NVIDIA GPU is invoked. The laptop runs Win10 1809 and Aero Glass 1.5.13.

On 8/22/2020 at 10:46 AM, UCyborg said:

Your Windows version should also have settings dealing with preferred GPU for specific applications in the Settings app (System->Display->Graphics settings). You'd have to try and see which setting takes precedence.

Tested setting preferred GPU in both NVIDIA Control Panel and Settings app, the latter overrides the former if specific GPU is set.

I also wonder, is your screen physically connected to NVIDIA card? Otherwise, if I'm not mistaken, disabling Intel in Device Manager should result in complete lack of graphics hardware acceleration.

[runner105]

I think the problem is that I am using the generic drivers from Intel's site, which are DHC drivers.  I can't use the ones from Dell's site because they report "Incompatible Operating System".  I am on Windows Server 2019, not Windows 10, but that doesn't really make any difference in terms of compatibility.  Maybe I could download the DHC version from NVIDIA so that both of my cards use DHC drivers?

I'm not sure if the screen is physically connected or not.  My model is a Dell Precision 5520, so I guess it's technically a "mobile workstation".

Edited August 28, 2020 by runner105
Added information

[runner105]

I was able to force the installation of Dell's Intel drivers via device manager, but the problem still remains.  I looked at GPU usage in task manager, and it looks like the Intel card is the one causing problems considering it's the only one in use.  This means it isn't caused by the switching of drivers. [At least I don't think so.] Still not sure what can be done to fix this, but at least the problem is likely down to only one set of drivers.

[runner105]

I used Intel's SSU program to generate a detailed report of my system, if it's of any use.  I'll attach the report and the program to view it with. [You don't need the program, but it can make things easier to read.]

EDIT: Also, here is an example of the artifacting.  It can be a lot worse than this, but it's the same premise.

SSU.exe SSU.txt

Edited September 4, 2020 by runner105
Added information