For a significant period, Discord has established itself as a leading voice and video application favored by PC gamers. However, a lesser-known aspect of this popular platform is its potential to hinder gaming performance if certain settings remain unadjusted. One such setting is hardware acceleration, designed to optimize the application’s performance. Yet, this seemingly beneficial feature can inadvertently consume excessive system resources.
When Discord operates with hardware acceleration enabled during gaming sessions, it can draw so much power that it negatively impacts the game’s performance. This can lead to slower gameplay and a less enjoyable experience overall.
How to stop Discord from using too many resources
Fortunately, mitigating this issue is a straightforward process. To begin, locate the settings gear icon, conveniently positioned next to the microphone and audio controls. Once inside the settings menu, navigate to the Advanced section, found within the third category labeled Application Settings, located at the bottom of the list.
Within the Advanced settings, you will encounter three options, with hardware acceleration being the most impactful on gaming performance. Disabling this feature is crucial because it allows Discord to utilize resources from your GPU, which is vital for running most video games effectively. The continuous resource consumption can lead to a noticeable decline in performance.
Moreover, it is worth noting that Discord’s optimization in this regard is not particularly robust. Users frequently report high resource consumption, which can significantly affect overall system performance. Even with hardware acceleration turned off, Discord may still utilize considerable amounts of RAM and CPU. Therefore, it is advisable to keep this setting disabled while gaming, especially if you are not engaging with friends on the platform.
