Do you stare at loading screens for too long when gaming on your Windows 11 PC? Microsoft’s new Directstorage technology in Windows 11 aims to slash game load times by optimizing how the OS handles storage I/O.

By allowing graphics cards to access high-speed Nvme Ssd storage directly, DirectStorage provides substantial performance gains for launch times, fast travel, and texture loading. Enabling this exciting new feature is straightforward once you ensure your hardware meets the requirements.

Let’s examine how you can leverage DirectStorage to reduce frustrating wait times and get back into games faster than ever on Windows 11.

Understanding DirectStorage and How It Speeds Up Games

DirectStorage takes advantage of modern graphics cards’ new GPU decompression hardware. Here’s an overview of how it works:

• Game assets like textures and models are compressed to save space on your NVMe SSD.
• When loading a game, the compressed data needs to be decompressed.
• Previously, the CPU handled all decompression, creating a bottleneck.
• With DirectStorage, the GPU handles decompression, massively reducing load times.
• The NVMe SSD can also directly transfer data to the GPU rather than through the CPU.

Bypassing the CPU and allowing parallelized work across GPU cores results in substantial performance gains over traditional storage stacks. DirectStorage reduces load times while freeing up more CPU power for improved frame rates during actual gameplay.

Requirements for Leveraging DirectStorage

To benefit from DirectStorage accelerated load times, your Windows 11 gaming PC needs:

A compatible NVMe SSD

DirectStorage requires an NVMe solid-state drive. SATA SSDs and hard disk drives can’t provide fast enough sequential speeds. Any NVMe SSD will work, but faster drives like PCIe 4.0 provide more bandwidth.

A DirectX 12 GPU

Your graphics card must support DirectX 12 Ultimate to handle GPU-based decompression. NVIDIA RTX 2000 series and newer cards and AMD RDNA 2 GPUs are compatible.

The latest Windows 11 updates

Make sure to apply all the latest Windows updates to install the necessary drivers and components for DirectStorage. Keep Windows up to date going forward.

DirectStorage-enabled games

The game must be programmed to leverage DirectStorage through the Xbox Game Development Kit. As developers adopt the technology, more and more games will see faster load times.

As long as you meet these requirements, you can enable DirectStorage through Windows settings.

Enabling DirectStorage for Faster Game Loading

Here are the steps to enable DirectStorage to start experiencing faster load times:

Step 1: Open Windows Settings > System > Storage

Step 2: Click on “More Storage Settings” under More storage settings

Step 3: Toggle “DirectStorage” to On

Step 4: Ensure “Enhanced storage features” are also enabled

Step 5: Restart your PC

That’s it! Windows will automatically optimize supported games to use DirectStorage after a reboot. Double-check that it shows as enabled under the Storage settings.

Testing DirectStorage Performance Gains

Only a few games, like Forza Horizon 5, are optimized for DirectStorage. Here are some ways to test the performance boost:

Use built-in benchmarks

Many games have repeatable benchmarks you can run that test load times. Compare the results with DirectStorage on and off.

Use a timer

Use a stopwatch to time specific actions like launching the game or fast traveling between areas. Compare times with DirectStorage enabled versus disabled.

Use performance monitoring

Utility apps like MSI Afterburner can monitor frame times and hardware usage. Look for reduced CPU usage during loading.

Eyeball it

Carefully observe load screens when toggling DirectStorage on and off. The reduction in loading times should be noticeable.

Gamers are reporting 2-4x faster load times in DirectStorage-optimized games, allowing you to get into the action sooner.

DirectStorage versus Quick Resume

DirectStorage accelerates game asset loading from scratch. This differs from Quick Resume on Xbox Series X/S and PC Game Pass, which suspends games in memory for near-instant resumes.

The two technologies are complementary. DirectStorage speeds up initial game launches when not Quick Resumed. Quick Resume then lets you continue almost instantly.

Getting the Most from DirectStorage

Here are some tips to maximize the performance benefits of DirectStorage on your Windows 11 gaming rig:

• Make sure to install the latest GPU drivers, which optimize DirectStorage performance.
• Don’t clutter your NVMe drive with other apps – keep games on their dedicated partition.
• Disable antivirus scanning on your game drives, which can interfere with DirectStorage.
• Close unnecessary background apps before gaming to allow the total PCIe bandwidth for DirectStorage.
• Keep Windows fully updated and regularly restart your PC to ensure optimal integration.
• Consider upgrading to a faster-gen 4 NVMe SSD for greater bandwidth.

Take full advantage of cutting-edge DirectStorage technology to slash frustrating waiting and get to the fun faster.

DirectStorage Game Support

The list of games optimized for DirectStorage is still limited but growing:

• Forza Horizon 5
• Microsoft Flight Simulator
• Halo Infinite
• Redfall (upcoming)
• Forspoken (upcoming)

More major game releases in 2022 and beyond will likely integrate DirectStorage optimization. Also, look for updates to existing games and add support.

DirectX 12 Ultimate adoption is critical, as it defines the GPU decompression standard that DirectStorage relies on. Support should rapidly improve as GPU hardware, and compatible games become more prevalent.

The Future of DirectStorage Gaming

DirectStorage marks an exciting milestone in eliminating storage bottlenecks and streamlining data transfers for lower latency and fast load times. We will see games with near-instantaneous action when combined with the velocity architecture of next-gen consoles.

As developers learn to optimize games for DirectStorage, performance will dramatically improve beyond initial implementations. Faster NVMe drives plus GPU decompression hardware will also enhance speeds over time.

Evolving storage APIs like Microsoft’s Sampler Feedback Streaming also aim to maximize texture quality while reducing wasted bandwidth for assets you never see up close.

For PC gamers, enabling DirectStorage helps future-proof your system to leverage these cutting-edge storage technologies fully. The days of lengthy load screens may soon be antiquated as DirectStorage paves the way for the next evolution in gaming.

Enjoy Quicker Game Launches with DirectStorage

With DirectStorage fully enabled and optimized on your compatible Windows 11 gaming PC, you can finally say goodbye to excessively long load times dragging you away from the fun. This game-changing technology fully unleashes the latent performance of your NVMe SSD and GPU to slash wait times across supported games.

DirectStorage is poised to revolutionize game loading and asset streaming completely. Thanks to intelligent Windows integration with your high-end hardware, you can be one of the first gamers to experience light-speed game launches and seamless open-world streaming. Get in the game faster than ever before!