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Expand software rendering documentation with detailed WARP explanation #909

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Expand software rendering documentation with detailed WARP explanation
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23 changes: 22 additions & 1 deletion TerminalDocs/customize-settings/rendering.md
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---
title: Windows Terminal Rendering Settings
description: Learn how to customize rendering settings within Windows Terminal.
ms.date: 04/14/2021
ms.date: 12/18/2024
ms.topic: how-to
---

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When this is set to `true`, the terminal will use the software renderer (a.k.a. WARP) instead of the hardware one.

WARP (Windows Advanced Rasterization Platform) is a high-performance software rasterizer built into Windows that implements Direct3D graphics APIs using the CPU instead of a GPU. It is a Microsoft DirectX technology and is not related to the [Warp terminal application](https://www.warp.dev/).

### When to enable software rendering

Consider enabling software rendering in these scenarios:

- **Graphics driver issues**: If you experience visual glitches, artifacts, or crashes related to your GPU drivers
- **Remote desktop or virtual machines**: When running Windows Terminal over Remote Desktop or in a VM where GPU acceleration may not be available
- **Compatibility problems**: If your hardware doesn't support the required Direct3D feature level
- **Systems without a GPU**: When running on systems without dedicated or integrated graphics hardware
- **Troubleshooting**: To isolate whether rendering issues are caused by hardware or drivers

### Performance considerations

Software rendering uses your CPU instead of your GPU, which may result in:
- **Higher CPU usage** during terminal operations
- **Potentially slower rendering** compared to hardware acceleration, especially on lower-end CPUs
- **More consistent behavior** across different hardware configurations

For most users with modern GPUs and up-to-date drivers, hardware rendering (the default) provides the best performance. Only enable software rendering if you encounter specific issues with hardware acceleration.

**Property name:** `experimental.rendering.software`

**Necessity:** Optional
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