A basic way to check your PC specs on Windows 11 is to right-click Start and open Settings > System > About. The Device specifications and Windows specifications sections list your processor, installed RAM, whether Windows is 32-bit or 64-bit, and the Windows edition and version, while core counts and the GPU entry are in Task Manager's Performance tab (open it with Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and the DirectX version is in dxdiag. You need these values to compare your PC against a game's official spec sheet, and games such as Delta Force publish one on their official pages. This guide follows menu names confirmed in Microsoft's documentation on September 30, 2026, and it only covers how to look up your specs, not whether a particular game will run well.
Bottom line: the Settings app covers the basics
For the basics such as processor, RAM, and Windows version, the Settings app is enough, and you only need to open Task Manager and dxdiag when you also want core counts, the GPU entry, or the DirectX version. The steps below are written for Windows 11, and screens can differ slightly between updates. If you are also thinking about recording gameplay, read the recommended specs for game recording next.
Step by step on Windows 11
- 1Read the basics in Settings — Right-click Start, then go to Settings > System > About. Under Device specifications, read the processor type, the amount of installed RAM, and whether you run 32-bit or 64-bit Windows. Under Windows specifications, read the edition and version.
- 2Check your storage — Open Settings > System > Storage. If you have more than one drive, go to Advanced storage settings > Storage used on other drives to see how much each one is using.
- 3Find your core count in Task Manager — Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc, or right-click Start and choose Task Manager. On Windows 11, select Performance > CPU in the left pane, and the Cores and Logical processors values appear.
- 4Look at the GPU entry in Task Manager — If the Performance tab lists a GPU, select it. GPUs are numbered by physical location (GPU 0, GPU 1, and so on), and the page shows per-engine usage, dedicated and shared video memory, and overall GPU usage. Microsoft says this view requires a GPU driver that supports WDDM 2.0 or higher, and that shared memory is ordinary system memory of which the GPU can use up to half of physical memory. The Microsoft documents this guide relies on do not say whether a product name is shown there, so this guide does not cover it, and labels can vary with your Windows display language.
- 5Check the DirectX version with dxdiag — Type dxdiag in the search box and select it to open the DirectX Diagnostic Tool. On first launch it may ask whether to check that your drivers are digitally signed. On the System tab, look under System Information for the DirectX version, and use Save All Information... to save the diagnostics so you can share them. To see the WDDM version, open the Display tab and read Drivers > Driver Model.
Spec-checking tools at a glance
| Tool | How to open it | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Settings (System > About) | Right-click Start > Settings > System > About | Processor, installed RAM, 32-bit or 64-bit, Windows edition and version |
| Task Manager (Performance) | Ctrl + Shift + Esc, or right-click Start > Task Manager | CPU cores and logical processors; GPU entries (per-engine usage, dedicated and shared video memory) |
| DirectX Diagnostic Tool (dxdiag) | Type dxdiag in the search box and select it | DirectX version on the System tab, driver model on the Display tab, Save All Information... |
If a value is missing or confusing
- If Task Manager shows no GPU entry, open dxdiag, go to the Display tab, and check under Drivers > Driver Model that the driver is WDDM 2.0 or higher.
- Cores and logical processors are two different values. Read the Cores and Logical processors lines separately under Performance > CPU.
- With several drives, do not stop at the first Storage screen. Also open Advanced storage settings > Storage used on other drives.
- When you compare against a game's spec sheet, also note whether your Windows is 32-bit or 64-bit and which edition and version you have.
Why specs matter before you record games
If your graphics card is an NVIDIA card, DOR, a free Windows game recording app, uses NVENC hardware encoding by default on NVIDIA graphics cards. DOR detects supported games automatically, saves the full match as an mp4, records game sound and your microphone at the same time, and collects the recordings in its in-app library. If you play Roblox on PC, for example, DOR supports full-match auto recording but not automatic highlight clips. Checking specs is only a starting point for judging recording load, and it does not mean DOR fixes a spec problem. If your PC has little headroom and you are unsure about recording, see the guide to recording games on a low-end PC.
Official sources (checked September 30, 2026)
Based on Microsoft Support: Find information about your Windows device, Microsoft Support: Find out how many cores a processor has, and Microsoft DirectX Developer Blog: GPUs in the Task Manager. The dxdiag steps follow Microsoft Support's Open and run dxdiag.exe page. Menu names and layouts can change with Windows versions and updates, so treat the date above as the reference point.
