HOW-TO · DLSS INDICATOR · CHECKED ON NPI 3.0.2.3
How to turn on the DLSS indicator and read it
The DLSS indicator is a small on-screen text that NVIDIA's DLSS runtime draws in a corner of a game to show which DLSS it is running. NVIDIA's programming guide switches it on with the registry value ShowDlssIndicator, set to 1024 on release builds of the DLSS libraries. It is not a profile setting, so NPI has no switch for it. Turn it on, start the game, read it, and turn it off again. We could not run a game, so the reading guide below is limited to what NVIDIA documents.
You need
- Rights
- Administrator
- Game
- with DLSS
- Time
- 3 minutes
Turn it on (and off)
NVIDIA’s DLSS programming guide documents the registry value. It lives in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NVIDIA Corporation\Global\NGXCore and is called ShowDlssIndicator, a DWORD. On release builds of the DLSS libraries the value is 1024 (0x400).
OFFICIAL · DLSS SR guide On Linux the guide uses the environment variable __NGX_SHOW_INDICATOR=1.
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NVIDIA Corporation\Global\NGXCore]
"ShowDlssIndicator"=dword:00000400
The off file deletes the value. To do it by hand, open regedit, go to that key, then add or delete a DWORD named ShowDlssIndicator.
Run the on file as administrator
Right-click, then run. Confirm the prompt.
Start a DLSS game
Look at a corner of the screen for a small text overlay.
Read it, then switch it off
Run the off file when you are done.
Does NPI have a switch for it?
No. The indicator is a registry value read by the DLSS library, not a driver profile setting. NPI 3.x has settings with Indicator in their names, such as ↗ (Flip Indicator), but those are other overlays, for example for the present mode. LAB · F12, NPI settings list Do not confuse them.
Read the indicator
NVIDIA’s guide says the indicator shows the DLSS version in use. It does not document each field line by line, and we have no capture from a real game, so we do not annotate one. What to look for is the version and mode, and whether it changes after you apply an override. For presets, see DLSS presets and compare with the value you set in the override guide.
Confirm your override worked
| Case | What you should see |
|---|---|
| Game default, no override | The version and mode the game ships with. |
| Override on, preset forced | A newer version than the game's own, or the preset you chose, if the game honours the override. |
| Override on, nothing changes | The game blocks it, the exe is wrong, or the setting did not apply. See the table below. |
The indicator says the old preset: why
See the troubleshooting table in the DLSS override guide: restart the game fully, check the exe is in the profile you edited, re-read the values in NPI, and check whether the NVIDIA App reset them. Add a game explains exes.
Other ways to see DLSS details
- DLSS Swapper has its own indicator toggle. We believe it uses the same registry value but have not verified that. DLSS tools compared covers it.
- The NVIDIA App overlay shows some performance data. We did not check what it shows for DLSS.
- PresentMon or FrameView can show frame generation in frame-time data.
Using Proton on Linux? The Linux page covers what carries over.
Questions people ask
How do I show the DLSS version in game?
Set the registry value ShowDlssIndicator under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NVIDIA Corporation\Global\NGXCore to 1024 as a DWORD, then start the game. NVIDIA documents this for release builds of the DLSS libraries.
Why doesn't the DLSS indicator appear?
The game may not use DLSS, may use a library that ignores the value, or the value is in the wrong key. Make sure you ran the file as administrator and restarted the game.
Can the indicator get me banned?
No vendor has said so, and no vendor has said it is safe. It is a registry value that the DLSS library reads. Avoid it in games with strict anti-cheat if you are unsure.
How do I turn the DLSS indicator off?
Delete the ShowDlssIndicator value or run our off file. On Linux the equivalent is an environment variable, set to 1 to show it.
Sources
- NVIDIA DLSS Super Resolution Programming Guide github.com · accessed 8 Nov 2026 · official