Alt-tab reduces FPS big time

[Teabag_Terry2]

Please help. I have tried everything but cannot get a fix for this.

I have a 2 monitor setup, 2 x 27 inch Iiyamas at 144Hz on a GTX 980.

I play League of Legends on the main screen and have a browser up on the other screen, so I can read the news, watch youtube check emails etc.

I play lol in borderless mode and get 300+ fps, but when I press alt-tab so that the cursor can move into the other screen so I can control the browser, the main screen reduces to ~15 FPS and looks awful.

The 980 isn't going anywhere near it's maximum usage, certainly no more than 60% ever. I have changed driver settings to maximum performance, and tried using programs like borderless gaming and display fusion, but it always persists - as soon as I alt-tab so that I can use the other monitor the main screen becomes horribly choppy and it's very annoying.

Can anyone shed any light on this problem?

 

[Craig321]

Check your options in game, some allow you to set 'background fps', i.e. the fps the game runs at when alt-tabbed.

 

[Teabag_Terry2]

There is no such setting in League of Legends.

 

[p5ychonaut]

You won't like this answer but most games do this when they lose focus and it is normal behaviour I'm afraid.

I'm assuming the frame rate returns to normal once you alt-tab back to League of Legends again?

 

[Teabag_Terry2]

Yes, it does.

 

[p5ychonaut]

Unfortunately it appears to be by design. Some games have console commands (in Dota 2: "engine_no_focus_sleep "0"" for example) but as far as I can tell League of Legends has no equivalent command for this.

 

[smogsy]

980 here

same happens in LoL for me even if the game is in fullscreen

found out if chrome hardware acceleration is on LoL goes to 5fps

turn off chrome HW acceleration constant 144fps

 

[nashathedog]

I read a thread here yesterday where it was being suggested that another fella connect his second screen to the on board graphics rather than the main card, Is this possible for you and would it make a difference in this situation?

 

[Teabag_Terry2]

It seems crazy that I would have to do that. Something somewhere is telling my GPU to not bother rendering league of legends whilst I brose the news on my second screen. What this is and how to disable it is entirely beyond me. I find it incredibly frustrating.

 

[Sasso]

found out if chrome hardware acceleration is on LoL goes to 5fps

turn off chrome HW acceleration constant 144fps

I discovered this the other week with any full screen game. It used to be fine so either nvidia or chrome updates something and broke it haven't noticed a different in chrome without hw acceleration tho so not a biggie

 

[joeyjojo]

Windowed (or windowed full screen, whatever it's called) might help?

 

[Liquiduk]

Fullscreen mode in League, forget about it. Windowed mode and you are laughing.

 

[Rroff]

Windows 8 and 10 seem worse for it than 7 (a fair few things changed in regard to desktop compositing) your settings for multi-display/mixed-GPU acceleration, other programs running that might use hardware accelerated rendering or other GPU features, GPU power management mode and other factors can all affect it as well as ingame settings - some forms of VSync can also have varied effects.