How to update DirectX

Before you can update DirectX, you need to find out which version is installed in your system at the moment. In order to find out the version of DirectX installed, you need to run the diagnostics utility.

Learn the version

We call the "Run" window. This can be done in two ways.

The first way: we click on the "Start" menu, and there we find the "Run" item.

The second way: we press the key combination "Windows + R".

In the window that appears, enter the command "dxdiag" and press Enter or OK. In the new window that appears, the version of your DirectX will be listed below. If it is old, you can update it.

When should I update:

• The version is deprecated;

• Some games are not started due to the absence of any libraries (files ending in .dll);

• Applications do not start (for the same reason).

If you are doing well, then before you update DirectX, you need to know what it is for. After all, everything works for you, and you can not even see the difference after the update.

What is DirectX ?

If to speak the language of a simple user, then this is a set of some special programs that are needed to speed up games and various applications.

In the programmer's language, this is a set of different drivers that form the connection between software and hardware.

If you approach the issue from the point of view of Microsoft developers, then this is a set of low-level interfaces required for the operation of various games and multimedia applications. Moreover, DirectX supports 2D-3D graphics, sound and different input devices.

In other words, if there is no DirectX on the computer, then you will not be able to play normally in weak games. Strong (requiring a lot of resources) games simply will not start. There will also be difficulties with multimedia applications and 3D graphics.

Installation

Imagine a situation where you just installed the operating system. You need to install the DirectX package. It can be downloaded on the Internet without difficulty. Just type in the query in the search engine and download. Also it can be downloaded from the official Microsoft website. This method will be described later.

How to install (how to update) DirectX 9

We go to the download center from Microsoft: DirectX technology. Choose the latest version from the list. To do this, click on the desired link and go to the download page. Then click "Download". Now run the file direct_XXXX_redist.exe. Instead of xxxx there is written version. Most often this is the month and year of release.

After that, in the opened window you will be offered to agree with the license agreement. If you want, you can read and then agree. But it's better to just press the "Ok" or "Yes" button. Then you will be prompted to select a temporary folder to extract the installation files there. You can select it by clicking the "Browse" button. Click "Ok" to extract. At the end of the unzipping process, open the folder that you specified earlier. We find there the file DXSETUP.exe. Now the Microsoft DirectX installer window will open. Again, we agree with the license agreement. We are waiting for the installation to finish. We reboot the computer and enjoy the new version or just installed the package of drivers and libraries.

How to update DirectX 11

In theory, for Windows the official package from Microsoft versions above 9 is not available. But there are sets of libraries and drivers versions 10 and 11, which can somehow help with the compatibility of new games and various programs for XP.

Officially, DirectX 10 and 11 are packages for Windows Vista and 7. That is, if you have Windows XP and the game requires any libraries that are not in version 9, then the update in the above way will not work for you.

Download on the Internet on extraneous resources. Enter into the search engine, something like DirectX 10 for Xp.

You install everything the same way, instead of downloading from a resource from Microsoft, you download the file from another site. Then everything will be exactly the same. There are no differences. But, depending on the assembly, it happens that after installation on the desktop there are special additional files for some games.