HOW-TO · PROFILES · CHECKED ON NPI 3.0.2.3
How to add a game .exe to an NVIDIA profile
First search the profile box for the game's name or exe: NVIDIA already has profiles for most games. If there is none, click New, name the profile, then Add Application and enter the exe that actually renders the game, often in a Binaries folder and not the launcher. Apply, start the game, and check the change took effect. An exe can belong to only one profile.
You need
- NPI
- 3.0.2.1 or newer
- Rights
- Administrator
- The game
- installed, ideally running once
- Time
- 5 minutes
Step 1: Check whether NVIDIA already has a profile
Type the game’s name or exe in the profile box and press Enter. NVIDIA’s driver ships profiles for thousands of games, so there may already be one. You can also drop an .exe, a shortcut or a Steam shortcut onto the NPI window, and NPI resolves Steam and Epic installs to the right exe. CODE · upstream source How to use NPI shows the window.
Step 2: Find the real game exe
Launchers are the usual wrong answer. Start the game, open Task Manager, right-click the game process and choose Open file location. The file highlighted is the exe to attach.
| Game | Attach this | Not this |
|---|---|---|
| Fortnite | FortniteClient-Win64-Shipping.exe | EpicGamesLauncher.exe, FortniteLauncher.exe |
| Counter-Strike 2 | cs2.exe | steam.exe |
| PUBG: Battlegrounds | TslGame.exe | TslGame_BE.exe, TslGame_UC.exe |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | Cyberpunk2077.exe | REDlauncher.exe |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | RDR2.exe | PlayRDR2.exe, Launcher.exe |
| Skyrim Special Edition | SkyrimSE.exe | SkyrimSELauncher.exe |
Names come from our games database, a desk check and not an install check, so confirm with Task Manager. An Unreal Engine game usually looks like this:
GameName\
GameName.exe launcher stub, not this
GameName\Binaries\Win64\
GameName-Win64-Shipping.exe attach thisMicrosoft Store and Game Pass games
NPI’s Add Application accepts a UWP app ID as well as an exe name, according to its source. CODE · upstream source We did not test a Store game, so we cannot say which name works.
Step 3: Create the profile and add the exe
Click New
NPI asks “Enter a unique name for your new custom driver profile.” Use the game’s name. LAB · F16
Click Add Application
Enter the exe name from step 2. NPI also asks for an optional FindFile rule.
Apply Changes
Click Apply Changes. Nothing is written to the driver until you do.
Optional: FindFile
FindFile narrows a profile to installs that contain a given file. Use it only when two games share a generic exe name. It exists in 3.0.1.16 and later, and NPI stores it in a separate element so older .nip files still load. CODE · upstream facts
Step 4: Prove it applies
In the new profile set Frame Rate Limiter V3 to 60 FPS, start the game, and watch the frame rate in any overlay. Then set it back. Frame rate limiter explains the setting. We did not run this on a GPU. It is the proof step we recommend, not a result we measured.
“Application already in use” and other errors
Application already in use by profile '<profile name>'CODE · NPI source The exe is already in another profile, which the message names. Search for that profile and change your settings there. Or remove the exe from it, but a predefined NVIDIA profile also carries the game’s own fixes, and those stop applying to the game if you remove the exe. NPI error messages covers the rest.
Worked examples of picking the right exe: Skyrim, Fallout 4 and New Vegas (script extender loaders) and Microsoft Flight Simulator (Steam and Store builds).
Undo it
Select the profile and use Delete, or remove only the application. Deleting a profile detaches its applications first in recent versions. Undo and reset has the steps, and NIP files shows how to export a backup first.
Questions people ask
Which exe do I add for a Steam game?
The process that renders the game, which Task Manager shows while it runs. Open file location on that process. Dropping the game's Steam shortcut onto the NPI window also resolves the exe.
Why doesn't my profile apply?
Most often the profile has the launcher exe, not the game exe, or the exe belongs to another profile. Check the exe name, the profile it sits in, and restart the game after applying.
What does Application already in use mean?
The exe is already in another profile, which the message names. An executable can belong to only one driver profile.
Can I add Game Pass games?
NPI's Add Application accepts a UWP app ID as well as an exe name, according to its source code. We could not test a Game Pass game without a GPU, so this is not confirmed.
Do I need to create a profile if the game already has one?
No. Change the existing profile. Creating a second one with the same exe causes the in use error.
Sources
- NPI source github.com · accessed 8 Nov 2026 · upstream