What is the bottleneck problem..and how to avoid it

I recently upgraded the graphics card in my computer in order to run the latest games smoothly, as I bought the latest and most powerful graphics card in the market, but suddenly after playing some games I discovered that the performance of the computer is extremely low! This is not what you were expecting...isn't it?! Unfortunately, this scenario is very common, as some people think that the graphics card is the most important part when it comes to playing games on the computer, and this is true, but there are other things to keep in mind, as a weak processor can change everything and hinder the performance of the graphics card strong. In the computer world, this problem is diagnosed as a "bottleneck". In this article, we will cover almost everything about this problem, where we get to know the concept of the term, and how do you know if your computer is suffering from it? And how to avoid it in the future when assembling a new gaming computer. 

 

A bottleneck is generally a negative term that describes a specific component that degrades computer performance

This issue occurs when one subcomponent (eg the processor) prevents another component (eg the graphics card) from achieving its maximum capabilities to perform a task, due to technical limitations of both.

 

How and when does the computer bottleneck problem occur

Computer performance deterioration in games is most likely the result of a bottleneck problem caused by the processor. Let's say, for example, that your computer has a weak and old processor, and a powerful and modern graphics card. When you are playing a modern game that requires high graphics, this processor will reduce the number of frames (FPS) that this powerful graphics card can produce.

 

This limitation on the number of frames occurs because the processor is not fast enough to process data at the same rate as the graphics card. More specifically, when you play a video game, the processor sends frame data to the graphics card, which in turn displays these frames on our computer screen. Moreover, the processor is also responsible for handling the physics and artificial intelligence of games. As a result, a weak processor needs more time to handle the tasks, which makes the powerful graphics card idle as it waits for the data of the next frame.

 

In the end, the user does not get what he expected from the modern screen card he purchased to play new games smoothly. Note that slowness is not the only negative result, but you may experience interruptions in the image as well. Before we move on to explaining how to know if your computer has a "bottleneck" or not, let's explain the opposite scenario. What if the graphics card is weaker than the processor? You will simply benefit from the full capabilities of the graphics card while playing. When a bottleneck occurs due to the graphics card, it means that the graphics card is being consumed by the games to the maximum and thus you get the full number of frames it can produce without hindrance.

 

How do you know if the processor is causing a "bottleneck" for the graphics card

 

The best way to find out if your computer is experiencing a bottleneck problem is to monitor the consumption of both the CPU and the graphics card while playing a game. To do this, you can use any computer performance monitoring software such as MSI Afterburner for example. It's a very powerful and free tool that will not only help you monitor the performance of your computer hardware while you're gaming - you can use it to overclock your graphics card as well if you want. Anyway, if you want to rely on MSI Afterburner to monitor performance, all you have to do after installing and running the program is to click on the Settings button to open the Settings window from which we head to the Monitoring tab. From there, you'll select CPU usage and place a checkmark next to the "Show in On-Screen Display" option, then also do the same for GPU usage as shown in the image attached above. When finished, click on the OK button below to save the settings.

 

Next, minimize the MSI Afterburner window (don't close it) so it stays running in the background. Then open RivaTuner which is usually included with MSI Afterburner during installation. To open this program all you have to do is double-click its thumbnail on the taskbar *in the Notification Area*. From the main interface, all you have to do is activate the Show On-Screen Display option, then minimize the window.

 

After everything is set, be sure to close any unnecessary programs running in the background, close your browser, media player, and any other tools (except for MSI Afterburner and RivaTuner). Now run the game that will be tested, it is not required to modify anything in the graphic settings of this game, but leave it as it is. As you start playing, look at the numbers displayed in the upper left corner of the screen. These numbers represent the current actual performance of the CPU and GPU. If you notice that the processor consumption exceeds the consumption of the graphics card or is at a low or medium level, then you have a bottleneck problem due to the processor, and therefore you must buy a new and modern processor to match the performance of the graphics card. In the ideal case, the processor and graphics card should be at the same level of consumption in games.

 

How to avoid the bottleneck problem when assembling a gaming computer

 

The key to avoiding the bottleneck problem is to put together a budget-balanced computer, for example, don't buy a first or second generation Intel i7 processor because it's cheap and then buy an Nvidia RTX graphics card because it's more powerful. Try to keep the technical specifications of the device balanced, not necessarily 100% accurate but at least keep the bottleneck rate very low. And just to be easy, there is a simple online tool called Bottleneck calculator that directs you to choose a processor and graphics card with the same level of performance. All you have to do is select the processor first, then the graphics card second according to your budget. Then the site will give you the result

 

The result expresses to you the average rate of bottleneck in this computer, and the tool will tell you whether the cause is the processor or the graphics card, and it will also recommend the best processor that you can buy to avoid the occurrence of a bottleneck. According to the developers of the tool, the result that appears is based on the average consumption of the processor and graphics card by different programs and games, so it is closer to reality.