How can I check for faulty video card hardware in Windows?

1.Check Your Computer’s Specifications

The first step in diagnosing and potentially fixing a faulty video card is to determine what type of video card you’re using. On Windows 10, open the start menu and type “about” into the search bar. This will direct you to the about your PC page where you can find the graphics card information. Here, you should be able to find both your graphics card model and the manufacturer.

2.Check Your Computer’s Performance
If you already know what type of graphics card you have, you can skip this step. Otherwise, once you know what type of graphics card you have, you can check your computer’s performance by opening the Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del). Under the Performance tab, you should be able to find a graph that shows your GPU usage. If you notice that your GPU usage is consistently high, there may be an issue with your graphics card.

3.Update Your Graphics Card Drivers
Once you’ve determined that your graphics card may be faulty, the next step is to update your graphics card drivers. This can be done by visiting the manufacturer’s website and downloading the most recent version of the graphics card driver. If there is not a newer version available, you may want to consider resetting the driver to see if that helps. To do this, open the Device Manager (Press Windows key + X). Find the graphics card in the list, right-click on it, and select Update Driver Software. Then, select “Search automatically for updated driver software”.

4.Run a Stress Test
After you’ve updated the graphics card driver, you may want to try running a stress test to see how the graphics card performs under duress. To do this, download a stress testing program, like Unigine Heaven or FurMark. These programs are designed to push your graphics card to its limits and measure its performance, which can help diagnose potential hardware issues.

5.Install a Video Monitor App
Finally, you may want to install a video monitor app, like MSI Afterburner, to get a better picture of the video card’s current performance. These apps provide more detailed information than the Task Manager and can help pinpoint potential issues with the video card.

By following these steps, you should be able to determine whether or not your video card is faulty and take steps to remedy the issue.