FIX: MSI Afterburner Not Detecting GPU On Windows 11/10

If you're not seeing your GPU in MSI Afterburner, chances are you might be using a buggy or outdated graphics driver. In fact, for your rig to function properly, you should always make sure you have all the drivers up to date.

Many users complain of experiencing problems with MSI Afterburner not detecting graphics cards on Windows 10 or 11.

If you're a gamer or video editor, then having the latest GPU drivers is crucial for ensuring optimal performance and stability in your favorite applications. But when your GPU isn't properly detected by MSI Afterburner, it can be a frustrating experience.

Luckily, there are several potential solutions that can help resolve the issue so that you can get back to gaming or editing without any problems.

In this guide, we'll show you a few different methods that you can try to get MSI Afterburner to detect your GPU on Windows 10 or Windows 11.

TL: DR

MSI Afterburner is a popular GPU monitoring and overclocking tool.
MSI Afterburner is the most used graphics card software.
Many users complain of experiencing problems with MSI Afterburner not detecting graphics cards on Windows 10 or 11.
The Afterburner not detecting GPU issues can occur because of several reasons: improper network connection, of misconfigured settings, outdated Graphics Drivers, Vanguard anti-cheat programs, corrupted software, and interfering applications.
You can fix the issue with different methods:

Check the connection and cable
Disable low-level IO driver
Update your Graphis Drivers
Do you have Vanguard anticheat?
Troubleshoot in Clean Boot
Reinstall MSI Afterburner

In this article, we walk you through how to fix the MSI Afterburner Not Detecting GPU on Windows 11 and Windows 10

What is MSI Afterburner?

MSI Afterburner is a popular GPU monitoring and overclocking tool, offering many features and customization options for both beginner and advanced users.

It allows you to easily monitor your GPU performance metrics in real-time: including clock speed, temperature, fan speed, and much more. And with built-in support for powerful overclocking tools like NVIDIA's "GPU Boost" technology and AMD's "PowerTune", it gives you control over your PC's graphics hardware.

But despite its popularity and wide range of features, overclocking apps can sometimes have problems detecting GPUs on some systems.

Why is my GPU not detected?

There are various reasons why your GPU drivers are not detected. It can be because of improper connection. You have either not connected your display to the right port, or your connecting cable has malfunctioned. It can be because of misconfigured settings.

Other reasons include outdated Graphics Drivers, Vanguard anti-cheat programs, corrupted software, and interfering applications. We will talk about everything in detail and see what should be done to resolve the issue.

If you're experiencing issues with MSI Afterburner not recognizing your GPU on Windows 10 or Windows 11, then don't worry - you're not alone.

Try These Fixes

You can try a few things without a lot of effort. Continue on until it's the only thing that works. If you're having trouble getting MSI Afterburner to detect your graphics card on Windows 10 or 11, there are a few things you can try:

Make sure that your graphics card is properly installed in your PC
Update your graphics card drivers to the latest version
Uninstall and reinstall MSI Afterburner
Check your device's compatibility
Clean boot your system
Temporarily close programs that may interfere
Contact MSI customer support for further assistance

As one of the most popular overclocking and monitoring tools available, it's no surprise that many PC gamers rely on overclocking to get the most out of their hardware on Windows systems.

However, some users have reported issues with the software not working properly on Windows 10 or 11.

If the issue persists or you don't know how to perform the solutions above, check our step-by-step guide below for a more detailed walkthrough!

How To Fix MSI Afterburner Not Detecting GPU on Windows 10/11

Method 1. Clean Boot Your System

A clean boot is a way to start Windows with a minimal set of startup programs and services. This will help you determine if any third-party programs or services are interfering with Afterburner's ability to detect your GPU.

To clean boot your system, follow these steps:

Press the Windows + R keys on your keyboard to bring up the Run utility in a new window.
Type in “msconfig” without the quotation marks and press the Enter key on your keyboard. This will launch the System Configuration window.
Switch over to the Services tab. Make sure that you check the Hide all Microsoft services box. This is going to ensure that you only see third-party services.
After hiding all system services, click the Disable all button to disable every third-party service on your device.
Click the Apply button and restart your PC. When you boot next, your system will only initiate essential services.
Restart your computer. You'll be in a clean boot state with only official Microsoft services running.

If this didn’t seem the work, make sure to try the next method below!

Method 2. Update Graphics Drivers

The first thing you'll want to do is uninstall your existing graphics drivers and then reinstall them from scratch. This will ensure that all of the files and settings are correctly configured for MSI Afterburner, and it may fix any corrupted files that could be causing the issue.

How To Automatically Update Display Drivers on Windows

Windows update has a feature that allows you to automatically update outdated drivers. This can help you quickly find and get some of your components up-to-date without having to individually check for new versions.

To access the Start menu, click the Windows symbol in the lower-left corner of your screen, and then choose Settings. Alternatively, press Windows + I to bring up the menu.
Select the Update & Security tile from the drop-down menu. The majority of your Windows Update settings can be found here.
Go to the Windows Update section, and then click on the View optional updates link if it’s available.
Expand the Driver Updates section to see which components need to be updated right now. Simply check the boxes next to the drivers you want to update, then click the Download and Install button.
Allow Windows to download and update your outdated drivers before restarting your machine.

How To Manually Update Drivers on Windows

Use the steps below to manually update a driver that may be out of date. Keep in mind that only legitimate sites should be used to download drivers! Some fraudulent websites may try to trick you into downloading malware-infected files.

To access the needed utility, press the Windows + X keys on your keyboard and choose Device Manager from the context menu.
Select Update driver from the context menu after right-clicking on the graphics card you wish to update.
Choose how you want to update. You may either let Windows find a driver for you automatically or manually seek a fresh driver file on your machine.

Method 3. Uninstall Vanguard (If Applicable)

If you have the anti-cheat program Vanguard installed on your PC, then it's likely that this is causing the issue with MSI Afterburner not finding your graphics card.

Vanguard is known to interfere with a variety of other programs and can cause all sorts of problems, so it's always best to uninstall it if you don't need it.

Click on the Start menu in your taskbar.
Select Settings, indicated by a gear. Alternatively, you can use the Windows + I keyboard shortcut to reach this application quicker.
Click on the Apps tile.
Switch to Apps & features from the left-side panel. You should see a list of applications currently installed on your PC that are detectable by Windows.
Select the Vanguard application by clicking on it once. Now, you can click on the Uninstall button.
Click the Uninstall button again to confirm your choice and open the helper wizard. This will open up in a new window.
If prompted by the UAC (User Account Control), click Yes to allow the uninstaller to make changes on your device. If your account doesn’t have permissions, learn how to convert a local account into an administrator.
Follow the on-screen instructions provided by the developer. In some cases, you have the option to save configuration files on your device in case you plan to reinstall the same application in the future.
Wait for the uninstallation to complete. This might take several minutes depending on the application you’re removing and your device. When done, restart your computer and see if the problem was solved.

Method 4. Check Your Cables

If you're still having trouble getting the app to detect your GPU, then the next thing you'll want to do is check all of your cables and connections.

Make sure that everything is properly plugged in and seated, and try restarting your PC to see if that solves the problem. Double-check the dedicated GPU port as well.

You can also take your graphics card and put it into a different computer. If the app is able to detect the graphics card on another computer but not your own, then you may have a bad PCI-E slot, misconfigured settings on Windows, or another hardware issue like a damaged connecting cable.

Method 5. Disable Low-Level IO Driver

If you're using an AMD graphics card, then you can try disabling low-level IO driver access. This is a known issue with some AMD drivers and can cause problems with a variety of programs.

Open MSI Afterburner.
To access the Settings, click on the gear icon.
Under Compatibility properties, clear the checkbox for Enable low-level IO driver.
Click Apply. Finally, click OK to store the modifications.

Method 6. Reinstall the Latest Version

If you've tried all of the methods above and still can't get the software to detect your GPU, then the issue might be with the software itself. In this case, you'll need to uninstall and reinstall it to see if that fixes the problem.

Download the latest version of the software from the official website, and follow the instructions in the installer to update your program.

Final Thoughts

We hope these solutions helped you fix the problem with Afterburner not detecting GPU. If you have any questions, feel free to leave us a message! We're always available to help!

If you have any questions left unanswered or problems not addressed, please feel free to reach out — our team of experts would love to help! You can also check our Blog for more great articles like this one or our Help Center for a wealth of information on how to troubleshoot various issues.

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Fix: MSI Afterburner Not Detecting GPU on Windows 11/10