Issues with my NVIDIA GeForce

Hey everyone, I was hoping you all might be able to help me out because I’m feeling a bit stuck on how to fix this issue myself.
I recently picked up a laptop, and it came with Windows 8 pre-installed, but honestly, it looks like whoever set it up really didn't have a clue what they were doing.
It has an integrated NVIDIA GeForce graphics card, which is supposed to share memory with the system RAM, but from what I've managed to gather by digging through some YouTube videos and various online forums, it seems the person who installed the OS messed with the BIOS settings and prevented the graphics card from accessing the RAM properly.

For instance, when my brother tries to play some basic little game, it just won't run because the system claims there isn't enough video memory available.

So, I’m reaching out to see if anyone would be willing to walk me through this—I’d even be happy to jump on TeamViewer if someone could just help me get it sorted out.

I'm currently down at the coast, just hanging out at home, and there's absolutely nobody around here I can turn to; I don't know a single person in this area who actually knows anything about computers, and honestly, my brother is driving me absolutely crazy!

Problem solved!

Maybe give this a shot too:http://www.iobit.com/gamebooster.html

I wasn't just asking about the specs for the sake of it; if that machine is running on basic Intel HD graphics, you're probably not going to get much more out of it than a game of Solitaire...
You really have to make a distinction here between those old chips and the newer i3 or i5 processors, since the integrated graphics built directly into those newer CPUs are actually quite a bit more capable than the ancient Intel integrated stuff we used to deal with...

Jamie Hall said:Problem solved!

I actually gave that a shot myself, but I hit a bit of a wall because my BIOS doesn't seem to have those specific options for Video memory or shared memory, which is exactly what I'd need to tweak things so everything runs smoothly, you know? Just so you can see what I'm looking at, here's a shot of my screen: http://www4.slikomat.com/13/0713/c4o-105085.jpg

Honestly, Henry Morales32, I don't really have the energy for all that nonsense because I already know deep down it’s going to work just fine

shadowlynx102 said:I wasn't just asking about the specs for the sake of it; if that machine is running on basic Intel HD graphics, you're probably not going to get much more out of it than a game of Solitaire...
You really have to make a distinction here between those old chips and the newer i3 or i5 processors, since the integrated graphics built directly into those newer CPUs are actually quite a bit more capable than the ancient Intel integrated stuff we used to deal with...

The laptop is a Dell Inspiron that I've only had for about ten days, and I've attached a photo here showing all its specific details http://www4.slikomat.com/13/0713/rsv-105311.jpg so I honestly feel like it should be capable of running something a bit more substantial than Solitaire
I was trying to get some Need for Speed Underground or maybe an older soccer game to run

I actually spent some time searching on YouTube to see if I could tweak some settings in the BIOS to help things along, but like I mentioned to Jamie Hall, there just isn't anything like that in the BIOS menu—and please don't tell me I'm just being silly or can't find it, because I've looked, and it truly isn't there

MAYBE THESE TWO OTHER PHOTOS WILL BE HELPFUL TO YOU
http://www4.slikomat.com/13/0713/51w-105237.jpg
http://www4.slikomat.com/13/0713/s6m-105552.jpg

Wait, which version are you running, Windows 8 or 8.1?

Try grabbing this and see if the install actually goes through:
http://global-download.acer.com/GDFi...C=ACER&SC=PA_6

Honestly, I wouldn't hold my breath... we've got zero luck here. This thing is basically just a basic laptop meant for checking emails and browsing the web.

Carl Wilson said:Wait, which version are you running, Windows 8 or 8.1?

Try grabbing this and see if the install actually goes through:
http://global-download.acer.com/GDFi...C=ACER&SC=PA_6

Honestly, I wouldn't hold my breath... we've got zero luck here. This thing is basically just a basic laptop meant for checking emails and browsing the web.

It’s running Windows 8.1, so I'm downloading it now and I'll give it a shot, but hey, don't be such a jerk—for the price point, this laptop is actually a beast compared to most other machines under $1333, though I guess since you clearly know better than me, it must just be "garbage."

🤣 Whatever you say, man. I guess you're the expert here, thinking a laptop meant for $833 with a processor basically designed for cheap netbooks and tablets should just be able to handle 3D games without breaking a sweat.

Carl Wilson said:🤣 Whatever you say, man. I guess you're the expert here, thinking a laptop meant for $833 with a processor basically designed for cheap netbooks and tablets should just be able to handle 3D games without breaking a sweat.

🙂🙂 It honestly bugs me how everyone jumps in to lecture me, like, what would you even expect from a laptop in the $1167 price range? But hey, let me ask you this—since you're clearly so much more knowledgeable and feel the need to tear down my choice like this, do you actually have something better to recommend?
And besides, we aren't even really talking about the processor here, let alone the performance of 3D games.

Look, I wasn't trashing the choice or saying it was "trash," even if my last post made it sound that way. Honestly? This thing is a killer little machine for office work or just browsing the web, especially since that Bay-Trail processor is super efficient and stays ice cold. If you swapped out the hard drive for an SSD, you’d basically have this silent, whisper-quiet little beast 🙂. And man, don't ask me why some genius over at Acer thought this thing needed 8GB of RAM—that's the one part of the spec sheet that's just totally missed the mark. The real issue here is that you're trying to use it for the exact opposite of what it was actually built for. Like, who's gonna drop $800, $1,200, or even $1,500, $4000 on a laptop when they could just do all their basic stuff on this for maybe $300? At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter what kind of rig I'm running or what I paid for it.

So, did you actually get it downloaded and installed yet?

So, I went ahead and downloaded everything you sent over, but honestly, nothing changed at all; the game still runs like absolute garbage and just won't work properly. Since I'm clearly out of my depth here, I was wondering if someone could maybe hop on TeamViewer and walk me through this?
I really don't want to wreck this laptop with gaming—that’s not what it was built for at all. It's strictly for my college coursework and stuff like that, and I have zero intention of ever using it for games myself. My 12-year-old brother is the one constantly trying to play stuff on it while I'm busy working my tail off cleaning vacation rentals, scrubbing floors, and deep-cleaning kitchens... I just can't let him run around alone to go swimming, so I end up hauling him to the beach myself just so he actually gets to see the ocean, you know? I'm working these jobs specifically so I can afford to pay for a year of college, because, thank God, my parents just aren't in a position to cover my tuition right now.
They actually had to put this laptop on a 12-month payment plan just so I'd have something reliable for school, since the old one I got from my uncle finally gave up the ghost.
Anyway, thanks to everyone for trying to help, truly, but I think I'm done stressing over this; my brother can just stick to watching movies or cartoons on the TV or the laptop instead. I'm just not going to tire myself out fighting with this anymore. :'(

But if he pulled that out of the BIOS, wouldn't Windows fail to run at full resolution?
To check that, just type "dxdiag" into the Run command; you'll be able to see right away if the graphics are active and how much memory is allocated to them.

In the BIOS, those settings should be under the northbridge configuration.

Joshua Wright70 said:But if he pulled that out of the BIOS, wouldn't Windows fail to run at full resolution?
To check that, just type "dxdiag" into the Run command; you'll be able to see right away if the graphics are active and how much memory is allocated to them.

In the BIOS, those settings should be under the northbridge configuration.

WELL, DO YOU WANT ME TO SEND YOU MY TEAMVIEWER SO YOU CAN JUST FIX IT FOR ME IF YOU ACTUALLY KNOW HOW OR NOT

I don't want your TeamViewer, and you shouldn't be giving it to anyone else either.
Just type "dxdiag" into the Run box and tell me what shows up under the graphics properties or whatever. That’s the only way we can figure out what actually needs fixing.

To launch the DirectX Diagnostic Tool on Windows 8, hit this shortcut
[Win-Logo]+[R], then just type in the command
dxdiag.exe

We specifically need to see the display tab.

First off—you can't just go into the BIOS and toggle video memory off. The amount of dedicated VRAM is tied directly to how much RAM you have installed, and there isn't a setting to just change it on a whim. Just do what Joshua Wright70 suggested and run that dxdiag tool.
Second: nobody is going to be able to remote into your BIOS using TeamViewer, so don't worry about that.

Honestly, you're working with a pretty weak processor here, and that integrated graphics setup isn't much to write home about—so don't expect to be running anything heavy on it. That "insufficient video memory" error usually pops up because the game doesn't actually support integrated graphics at all; it's looking for a dedicated GPU, and since it can't find one, it assumes you've got zero video memory.

Honestly, just go hunt down some Flash games online—there’s a massive amount out there and they're actually pretty fun. They should run just fine. Or, look for something older, maybe from like ten years ago? That ought to work okay too. I mean, if we managed to survive back in the day with crappy graphics, we can definitely handle some new-gen 2D stuff 🙂.

Look, if you don't believe me, just check out this review. Pay extra attention to what they say under the graphic card and gaming sections: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-....115932.0.html
Everything looks solid and everything works perfectly fine 👍.

Maybe give Need for Speed Underground or something similar from back in the day a shot.
I've got my doubts about any 3D game released before 2005 actually running on that hardware. On my setup with integrated NVIDIA GeForce, I could only really pull off strategy games—and even then, I could barely manage Settlers 5 at its native resolution.

Need for Speed Underground, the whole Stronghold series, Rise of Nations, Age of Empires... those should run pretty smoothly.

So, I just typed in dxdiag like we talked about, and this popped up on my screen: http://www4.slikomat.com/13/0713/g4l-Captur.png along with this other window too http://www4.slikomat.com/13/0713/6az-Captur.png