• OSWindows

  • Visualizing Vertical Blank Lock? Comparing Windows 10 1507 and 1607 with GPUView

EDIT: The different behaviour of Windows 10 build 1507, where there were constant VSync ticks, appears not to be due to some difference in that Windows build as I suspected, but due to a game launcher running in my system tray, and specifically libcef.dll. Perhaps it was a movie/ad playing in the background. When I exit the game launcher, Windows 10 build 1507 behaves the same as build 1607 and 22H2 (which I just tested).

Windows 10 build 1507 and 1511 are sometimes considered to be the final Windows builds before eyestrain was introduced or increased. The introduction of Windows 10 build 1607 (“Anniversary Edition”) was when many on the forum noticed a change for the worse.

OS 1: Windows 10 build 1507 (2015 LTSB with latest cumulative update), Intel HD 530 driver version 21.20.16.5174, WDDM 2.0

OS 2: Windows 10 build 1607 (2016 LTSB with latest cumulative update), Intel HD 530 driver version 21.20.16.5174, WDDM 2.1

I performed logging with GPUView, included in Windows ADK, for 15 seconds.

VSyncState

(1) OS 1 (1507): GPUView shows no changes in VSyncState. (This does not mean that VSync is off)

(2) OS 2 (1607): VSyncState changes, spending time in both the On and Off position

VSyncState (VSync overlay On) - Blue lines are VSync events

(3) OS 1 (1507): There are VSync events throughout the capture.

(4) OS 2 (1607): VSync events only occur when VSyncState is On

FPS

(5) OS 1 (1507): FPS is mostly constant, with a small dip before each frame

(6) OS 2 (1607): FPS spends a short time constant with each frame, and then declines before increasing with a new frame

FPS (VSync Overlay On)

(7) OS 1 (1507): FPS behaviour with VSync overlay

(8) OS 2 (1607): FPS behaviour with VSync overlay. FPS is constant for the portion where VSyncState is On and VSync events are occurring, and slowly declines when VSyncState is Off and VSync events are not occurring.

Do images (4) and (8) show us the vertical blank lock mentioned by @ensete Microsoft engineer contact, and that these changes were implemented between Windows 10 build 1507 and 1607, or am I visualizing something different?

You have gathered data. Now tell the story/analysis of the graphs.

You need to say what is being looked at here, because vsync as a concept is not a bad thing. I like it because it doesn't have tearing.

You should also do a test using one of the more recent builds of 10, and also 11 just for curiosity's sake. You don't need to install to a drive partition if you don't want to, if you have an external SSD you can use Rufus to make a Windows-to-Go drive and boot from that directly.

The different behaviour of Windows 10 build 1507, where there were constant VSync ticks, appears not to be due to some difference in that Windows build as I suspected, but due to a game launcher running in my system tray, and specifically libcef.dll. Perhaps it was a movie/ad playing in the background. When I exit the game launcher, Windows 10 build 1507 behaves the same as build 1607 and 22H2 (which I just tested).

  • JTL replied to this.

    degen When I exit the game launcher, Windows 10 build 1507 behaves the same as build 1607 and 22H2 (which I just tested).

    For all the advancements in scientific literature, you seldom hear about the intermediate failures of experiments it took to get there.

      dev