Quick question about GPUs

Greetings, I have a brief but rather pressing inquiry:

On my current laptop, prior to replacing the hard drive, I had Windows installed in such a way that whenever I launched a demanding application—let’s say AutoCAD, for instance—the system would automatically recognize my dedicated graphics card, specifically an Nvidia GeForce 610, and utilize its power to run the software.
However, following a fresh installation of Windows, I find that none of my installed programs seem to acknowledge the existence of that dedicated GPU; instead, everything defaults to the integrated graphics, which, quite frankly, is significantly underpowered for my needs.

I did eventually stumble upon a method to force certain programs to run via the dedicated card, but it seems that Windows periodically "forgets" the hardware exists, forcing me to manually reconfigure those settings time and time again.
Furthermore, I find it incredibly tedious and somewhat absurd to have to manually adjust the settings for every single individual program just to ensure they use the better hardware, so my question is this: how can I configure the system so that all applications and games permanently run through the dedicated graphics card, much like how it functioned before I performed the clean install of Windows? I am at a loss as to why this functionality has been disrupted...

Thank you 👍

First things first—have you actually installed the drivers for that Nvidia card yet?

Second—head over to the Nvidia Control Panel, go to 3D settings, then global settings, and set the preferred graphics to the high-performance Nvidia processor.

Third—are you positive that your GPU (I'm assuming it's a 610M) is actually more powerful than the integrated graphics? That's a pretty weak card; it's barely an upgrade over an Intel HD 2000.