To enable NVIDIA DLSS, update your NVIDIA driver and game, open the game’s graphics settings, select DLSS Super Resolution as the upscaler, and choose a quality mode. Frame Generation, Multi Frame Generation, Ray Reconstruction, and DLAA are separate options with different hardware and game requirements.
Before you start
- GPU: You need a GeForce RTX graphics card for native DLSS features. Check Task Manager → Performance → GPU or the NVIDIA app’s system information.
- Game: The game must include native DLSS support, or appear as a supported title for an NVIDIA app override. A driver cannot add native DLSS to every game.
- Driver: Install the latest practical NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready Driver. Studio Drivers can also support these features.
- Game version: Install the latest patch through Steam, Epic Games Store, Microsoft Store, or the game’s launcher.
- Platform: The main instructions below apply to Windows. Linux and Steam Proton require additional configuration.
DLSS availability is feature-specific. NVIDIA’s current hardware matrix shows the following broad support:
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| DLSS feature | RTX 20 | RTX 30 | RTX 40 | RTX 50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DLSS Super Resolution | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ray Reconstruction | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| DLAA | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Frame Generation | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Multi Frame Generation | No | No | No | Yes |
| Dynamic Multi Frame Generation | No | No | No | Yes |
Exact availability can also depend on the game, driver, graphics API, operating system, and implementation. See NVIDIA’s DLSS feature and hardware information for the current matrix.
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How to enable DLSS in a game
- Launch the game and open Settings, Options, or Graphics.
- Look under Display, Video, Advanced Graphics, Upscaling, Resolution Scaling, or Anti-Aliasing.
- Find a setting named NVIDIA DLSS, DLSS Super Resolution, Upscaler, or Resolution Upscaling.
- Select DLSS instead of native TAA, AMD FSR, Intel XeSS, or another scaler.
- Choose a mode, starting with Quality.
- Click Apply. Restart the game if it requests one.
Menu names differ between games. For example, NVIDIA documents DLSS in Alan Wake 2 under Options → Graphics → Resolution Upscaling. If you cannot find the option, search every graphics subsection rather than assuming it is unavailable.
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Which DLSS mode should you choose?
| Output resolution | Good starting point | When to change it |
|---|---|---|
| 1920×1080 | Quality | Avoid Performance unless the game is exceptionally demanding. |
| 2560×1440 | Quality | Try Balanced for demanding ray tracing. |
| 3840×2160 | Quality or Performance | Use Performance when ray tracing or other settings need more GPU headroom. |
| 7680×4320 | Ultra Performance | Use only when the very high output resolution justifies its softer image. |
- Quality: Best first choice when image quality matters.
- Balanced: A compromise when Quality is not fast enough.
- Performance: A larger performance trade-off, often more useful at 4K.
- Ultra Performance: Intended for unusually demanding, very high-resolution workloads; it can introduce obvious softness and artifacts.
These are starting points, not universal rules. Your best setting depends on the game, target frame rate, GPU, display, and whether the game is limited by the GPU or CPU.
What the DLSS options mean
DLSS Super Resolution
Super Resolution renders the game internally at a lower resolution and reconstructs the image at the display’s output resolution. This is what most players mean when they say they want to “turn on DLSS.” It can reduce GPU rendering work, but the benefit is smaller when the game is CPU-limited or already has plenty of GPU headroom.
DLSS Frame Generation
Frame Generation creates additional frames between traditionally rendered frames. It can raise the displayed frame rate, but it does not provide the same input response as rendering every frame conventionally. Use it when the underlying frame rate is already stable, and enable NVIDIA Reflex when the game offers it. Reflex is separate from DLSS and is intended to address system latency.
DLSS Multi Frame Generation
Multi Frame Generation is not simply another name for ordinary Frame Generation. NVIDIA lists it as an RTX 50 Series feature available only in supported games or supported override configurations.
Ray Reconstruction
Ray Reconstruction uses AI reconstruction in supported ray-traced rendering paths. It is not a replacement for Super Resolution and may not appear unless the game has the relevant ray-tracing implementation enabled.
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DLAA
DLAA uses DLSS technology for anti-aliasing at the game’s native resolution. Choose it when the GPU already renders fast enough and image quality is more important than increasing frame rate. Because DLAA does not lower internal resolution, it can be more demanding than DLSS Super Resolution.
How to use NVIDIA app DLSS overrides
The NVIDIA app provides per-game DLSS controls for selected compatible titles. It does not turn every unsupported game into a native DLSS game, and the underlying in-game DLSS feature generally still needs to be enabled.
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- Select Graphics.
- Choose the game or application.
- Scroll to Driver Settings.
- Look for the available DLSS Override controls.
- Enable the desired override, then launch the game.
- Confirm that the corresponding DLSS option is enabled in the game itself.
Depending on the title and current app version, available controls can include:
- DLSS Multi Frame Generation Override for selected RTX 50 Series configurations when Frame Generation is already enabled in-game.
- DLSS Frame Generation Model Upgrade for supported RTX 40 and RTX 50 Series games.
- DLSS Transformer Model Upgrade for supported Super Resolution, Ray Reconstruction, or DLAA implementations.
- DLSS Override – Super Resolution, which may expose DLAA, Ultra Performance, preset, or custom internal-resolution choices.
NVIDIA stated that the customizable DLSS Override – Super Resolution feature required GeForce Game Ready or Studio Driver 572.83 WHQL or newer when announced. Treat that as a dated requirement because later NVIDIA app and driver releases may change the requirement.
How to verify that DLSS is active
- Check the game’s graphics information panel or performance overlay for DLSS and the selected mode.
- In the NVIDIA app overlay, open Alt+Z → Statistics → Statistics View → DLSS, where supported. This can show DLSS feature or model information.
- Compare GPU utilization and frame-time graphs before and after enabling Super Resolution. A higher headline FPS alone does not prove that every DLSS feature is working as expected.
DLSS is missing: troubleshooting checklist
- Confirm the GPU. GTX cards do not support native DLSS. RTX generation also determines whether Frame Generation or Multi Frame Generation is available.
- Confirm game support. Check the game’s official graphics documentation or NVIDIA’s current RTX games and applications information.
- Update the driver and game. Restart Windows after a driver installation if necessary.
- Check the correct menu. Search Graphics, Display, Advanced Graphics, Upscaling, Resolution Scaling, Anti-Aliasing, and Ray Tracing.
- Check the selected GPU. On a laptop, make sure the game is using the discrete NVIDIA GPU rather than integrated graphics. The game’s system-information screen may show this.
- Check the NVIDIA app. Open Graphics → select the game → Driver Settings and look for a supported DLSS override.
- Check the platform and API. Older game implementations, DirectX or Vulkan configurations, Proton, and NVAPI support can affect which options appear.
A generic NVIDIA driver installation cannot add native DLSS to an arbitrary game. If the title is not supported and has no compatible override, the setting may genuinely be unavailable.
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Fix blur, ghosting, shimmering, and interface artifacts
Start by identifying whether the problem comes from image reconstruction or frame generation:
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- Ghosting or shimmering: try Quality or Balanced, disable Frame Generation temporarily, and test the game’s native DLSS implementation without an NVIDIA app override.
- UI or moving-object artifacts: these can result from the game’s motion vectors, a Frame Generation implementation, an aggressive mode, or a driver/game regression.
- New problems after an update: confirm whether the issue is version-specific before considering a driver or game rollback.
The newest AI model is not automatically best for every GPU or game. NVIDIA notes that RTX 20 and RTX 30 GPUs lack native FP8 support, so newer transformer models can be more performance-intensive on those cards. An earlier model may therefore be preferable in some configurations.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.When Frame Generation feels laggy
- Disable Frame Generation and check the native or Super Resolution frame rate.
- Reduce demanding settings until the base frame rate is stable.
- Enable NVIDIA Reflex if the game provides it.
- Re-enable Frame Generation and reassess responsiveness.
- Do not combine native DLSS Frame Generation with NVIDIA Smooth Motion.
- Use a display-appropriate frame-rate cap when supported by the game and feature.
Frame Generation increases displayed frames; it is not a substitute for adequate underlying performance. NVIDIA also documents a specific limitation for RTX 50 Series Dynamic Multi Frame Generation: its Dynamic mode is currently incompatible with frame-rate limiters and V-Sync. That limitation should not be generalized to every DLSS mode.
Why DLSS may not improve performance
Super Resolution has limited effect when the game is CPU-limited, the GPU is already underutilized, the selected mode is Quality at 1080p, or the bottleneck is shader compilation, asset streaming, or storage. Frame Generation also does not reduce the cost of the traditionally rendered frames in the same way Super Resolution does.
Use GPU utilization, CPU utilization, frame-time graphs, and the game’s performance overlay to identify the bottleneck. Do not judge success only by the displayed FPS counter.
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Advanced: DLSS with Linux and Steam Proton
DLSS can work with Linux games and Windows games running through Steam Play/Proton, but the setup is more platform-specific than the Windows procedure. Proton must expose NVIDIA’s APIs through DXVK-NVAPI, and DLSS is normally still selected in the game’s own graphics settings.
NVIDIA documents environment variables for overriding DLSS Super Resolution, Ray Reconstruction, and Frame Generation settings. Its driver documentation also states that DLSS preset overriding is not supported on Linux in the same way as the Windows/NVIDIA app workflow. Consult NVIDIA’s gaming driver documentation for the environment variables relevant to your driver and Proton setup.
Smooth Motion is separate from native DLSS and should not be enabled alongside native DLSS Frame Generation.
Do you need a new RTX GPU?
Not if you already have an RTX 20, RTX 30, RTX 40, or RTX 50 card and the game supports the feature you want. RTX 20 and RTX 30 cards can use Super Resolution, Ray Reconstruction, and DLAA, but not native Frame Generation. RTX 40 adds native Frame Generation, while RTX 50 adds Multi Frame Generation in compatible titles. A GPU upgrade solely to make a supported game’s missing setting appear is usually unnecessary; first check the game, driver, selected GPU, and menu location.
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