PIX on Windows
Performance tuning and debugging for DirectX 12 games on Windows
Latest posts
PIX 2509.25 – support for new D3D features and devices, and misc bug fixes
Today we released PIX version 2509.25, which can be downloaded here. This release includes everything in the previous 2507.11 release, plus: Patch Tuesday Compatibility Fix TL;DR: If you are hitting errors where PIX says that it can't enable experimental features, then please update to PIX 2509.25 (or later) and try again. More details: Windows 11 update KB5065789, initially releasing as a preview in late Sept 2025, updates the system32 copy of D3D12Core.dll to be roughly the same as DirectX Agility SDK 616.1. That new Agility SDK introduced a breaking change to the D3D12EnableExperimenta...
PIX 2507.11 – misc bug fixes + improvements
Today we released PIX version 2507.11, which can be downloaded here. This release includes everything in the previous 2505.30 release, plus the following bug fixes: As usual, if you hit any issues or have any suggestions for us then please contact us via the "Send Feedback" button in PIX or via #pix on the DirectX Discord.
PIX 2505.30 and 2505.30-preview: support for DXR 1.2, Cooperative Vectors and more
Today we released two new versions of PIX, which can be downloaded here. These complement the new D3D12 Agility SDKs released today. The new versions of PIX are: Both versions also include some bug fixes compared to the last PIX release, 2505.09. Details are listed below. We recommend that you only use PIX 2505.30-preview if you are using a preview D3D12 feature like Cooperative Vectors or SER. We recommend that all other PIX users use 2505.30. As usual, if you have any feedback or suggestions for PIX then please get in touch! The best ways are via the DirectX Discord...
New memory profiling features in Timing Captures
The 2505.09 release of PIX on Windows adds several new features to help you optimize your game's use of memory. These features include: Memory-related Metrics The memory metrics for your game's process are available in both the Metrics layout and the System Monitor. These counters enable you to track your commit charge, or page file usage, along with the number of page faults and the overall working set size. Memory Usage Lane in the Timeline A new lane named Memory Usage is now available in the Timeline. The amount of memory allocated per allocator throughout the capture is graphed, al...
Power status, CPU frequency and CPU C-State counters
Starting with the 2505.09 release of PIX on Windows, new metrics have been added to help you optimize your title on battery powered devices such as tablets and Windows handheld gaming devices. With these counters, you can see whether performance issues in your game can be correlated with power-related events, such as a change in CPU C-state, or a device going into power saving mode, for example. These metrics are available in System Monitor, and in the Metrics, Comparison, and Budgets layouts in Timing Captures. The following metrics are provided: System Power Status Metrics Per-Processor...
PIX 2505.09 – Revamped UX, Improved Usability, and Many New Features
Today we released PIX on Windows version 2505.09, which can be downloaded here. Since our preview announcement at GDC, we have been working hard to deliver the changes we promised and more. Today’s release includes many new improvements to PIX, including big overall changes and changes specific to GPU Captures and Timing Captures. Other improvements, such as information about the PIX API preview, will be available in the coming weeks – stay tuned! As usual, if you have any feedback or suggestions for PIX then please get in touch! The best ways are via the DirectX Discord (#pix) or via the Help->Send Feed...
Introducing Budget Profiles in Timing Captures
The 2505.09 release of PIX on Windows introduces the concept of Budget Profiles in Timing captures. A Budget Profile is a grouping of budgets defined for their respective metrics. A common use of Budget Profiles is to define the performance targets, or profiles, for different hardware specifications. For example, your studio likely has different performance targets for min-spec, mid-range and high end PCs. Budget Profiles are defined and managed using a new Budgets layout. Click the New Profile button on the Budgets layout to create a new profile. A dialog will appear, prompting you to name your new...
Changes to PIX Events with a D3D context parameter
Prior to the 2505.09 release of PIX on Windows, calls to PIXBeginEvent and PIXEndEvent that include a Direct3D context were required to be called from the same CPU thread. Starting with the 2505.09 release, PIXBeginEvent and PIXEndEvent calls that include a context (referred to as PIX GPU events) may now be made on different CPU threads. This change has been made based on customer feedback that became more prominent after the release of Unreal Engine 5.5 as Epic changed the way in which they emit these events. With this change, the starting and ending times for the corresponding CPU work will be rendered ...
Capturing video frames in Timing Captures
Starting with the 2505.09 release of PIX on Windows, an option has been added to Timing Captures to record video frames along with the timing data. If the option to collect video frames is selected before a capture is taken, PIX will add a lane named Video Frames to the Timeline view. This lane will contain images that show the video frames over the duration of a capture. Viewing video frames alongside timing data allows you to see the state of the title at the point where a performance problem occurred. Select the “Select a video capture source…” button to opt in to collecting video frames. Doing so d...
PIX 2503.24: misc bug fixes
Today we released PIX version 2503.24, which can be downloaded here. This release includes everything in the previous 2501.30 release, plus the following bug fixes:
PIX 2501.30-preview: Application Specific Driver State, Recreate At GPUVA and Tight Alignment
Today we released PIX version 2501.30-preview, available for download here. This release has initial support for the exciting new D3D12 features that were released in a preview DirectX Agility SDK today. Please visit this blog post for more information about the Agility SDK release. 2501.30-preview is a preview version of PIX. It is identical to 2501.30 (non-preview) except it also has support for the new preview D3D12 features. We only recommend using this version of PIX if you are trying out the new D3D12 features. We recommend that all other PIX users stick to the most recent regular version of PIX availabl...
PIX 2501.30 – Support for Shader Hash Bypass, bug fixes, and everything in 2412.12
Today we released PIX version 2501.30, which can be downloaded here. This release includes support for everything that was in the 2412.12 version of PIX, plus the following improvements: Support for Shader Hash Bypass PIX has full support for this new D3D12 feature that allows apps to bypass shader hash validation in D3D12 runtime by embedding a sentinel BYPASS hash value in any shader binary. For more information about Shader Hash Bypass, please visit this blog post. GPU Captures: Timing Captures: As usual, please send your suggestions and/or feedback to us via the feedbac...
PIX 2412.12 – Texture/Buffer/Visualizer improvements, Work Graph Shader Debugging, and many Timing Capture improvements
Today we released PIX on Windows version 2412.12, which can be downloaded here. This release includes several new improvements to GPU Captures and Timing Captures, including: GPU Captures: Timing Captures: As always, nearly all of the new functionality in this release was added in direct response to customer feedback. Please continue to contact us with your issues and requests! The best ways to reach us are via the "Send Feedback" button in the top-right corner of PIX, and via the #pix channel on the DirectX Discord. GPU Captures Custom Buffer/Texture/Mesh Visualizer Impro...
Timing Capture Range Details “v2”
Release 2412.12 of PIX on Windows includes a Preview of a new implementation of the Range Details view in Timing Captures. The initial implementation of the Range Details view allowed you to list individual data items for a given range of time. While this capability provided several basic scenarios, it was not flexible enough to support many of the analysis scenarios that PIX users have requested over the last few years. Limitations of the current Range Details view include a limited, hard-coded set of filtering and grouping capabilities per data type. Additionally, aggregations are not provided for most ...
The Timing Capture comparison layout
Starting with version 2408.05 of PIX on Windows, the Timing Capture comparison features have been moved from the Metrics view to a new dedicated Comparison Layout. This layout improves several comparison workflows, including the ability to compare data from multiple captures. The Comparison Layout produces a statistical comparison of the average duration for the points that represent PIX event hierarchies in two selected ranges of time, or for the points above and below a metric's budget. Statistical comparisons help determine which portions of the event hierarchies had statistically different durations for t...
PIX 2409.23 – Support for new devices, bug fixes, and everything in 2408.09
Today we released PIX version 2409.23, which can be downloaded here. This release includes everything that was in the 2408.09 version of PIX, plus the following improvements: GPU Captures: Timing Captures:
Multi-process profiling support in Timing Captures
Starting with the 2408.05 release of PIX on Windows, performance data from multiple processes can be analyzed with a single Timing Capture. The ability to analyze multiple processes simultaneously is useful in scenarios where multiple copies of a game server are running on the same machine, for example. PIX will capture data from all running processes on a machine when a Timing Capture is taken. However, callstacks are only captured for the title process that you started, or attached to, from the PIX UI. In multi-process scenarios, you'll want to check the Callstacks for non-title processes checkbox before ...
PIX 2408.09 – Bug fixes + everything in 2408.05
Today we released PIX version 2408.09, which can be downloaded here. This release includes everything that was in the 2408.05 version of PIX, plus the following bug fixes: