> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://techbytefix.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How to Fix “DirectX Function GetDeviceRemovedReason Failed” - URL: https://techbytefix.com/directx-getdeviceremovedreason-failed/ - Published: 2026-10-26T00:28:23.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-26T00:28:23.000Z - Author: Jake Whitman - Tags: Troubleshooting, Windows “DirectX Function GetDeviceRemovedReason Failed” means Windows or the graphics driver stopped giving the game access to the GPU; it does not usually mean DirectX is missing. Return the GPU, CPU, and system memory to stock settings, disable overlays, update or clean-install the driver, verify the game files, and then test temperature, power, VRAM, and hardware stability in that order. ## What the error actually means and what to check first ```text DirectX Function GetDeviceRemovedReason Failed ``` Error This appears after a Direct3D application calls `GetDeviceRemovedReason()` because the graphics device has become unavailable. Windows may have reset the GPU after a timeout, the driver may have crashed, the game may have submitted invalid or excessively demanding work, or the hardware may have become unstable. The exact reason is often recorded in the game’s crash report, log file, or a debugger-generated error. Common DXGI results include: - `DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED` (`0x887A0005`): Windows or the driver removed or reset the device. - `DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG` (`0x887A0006`): the GPU stopped completing work, often because of a driver, game, or unstable overclock. - `DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_RESET` (`0x887A0007`): the device was reset and the application must recreate its graphics resources. - `DXGI_ERROR_DRIVER_INTERNAL_ERROR` (`0x887A0020`): the driver reported an internal failure. Record the game version, Windows version, GPU model, driver version, and exact crash time. Look for logs in the game’s installation folder, its `Saved`, `Logs`, or `CrashReports` folders, and under `%LOCALAPPDATA%` or `%APPDATA%` using the game or publisher name. Search for `DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED`, `DEVICE_HUNG`, `Reason`, or a hexadecimal code. The exact message varies by game. Windows may also record `Display`, `nvlddmkm`, `amdwddmg`, or `amdkmdag` events in Event Viewer. A `DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG` result can come from software or unstable hardware, so the code narrows the investigation but does not prove the cause. A crash in one title points first toward that game, its settings, or its shader cache. Crashes across several 3D applications point more strongly toward the driver, temperature, power, memory, or GPU hardware. ![A gaming PC with a graphics card installed beside a monitor showing a crashed game scene.](https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?q=gaming%20PC%20graphics%20card%20crash%20monitor&w=624&h=352&c=7) ## Is this one game, every game, or your whole graphics system? This applies to DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 games and applications on supported Windows systems, regardless of whether the GPU is from NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel. Most steps require an Administrator account; ordinary game-file verification usually does not. Driver installation, Windows updates, and some Event Viewer checks may request elevation. Save open work before restarting, and back up important game saves if they are stored locally. Before changing anything, run a different 3D game or benchmark that normally works and note whether it also crashes. Then run the affected game with its graphics settings reset or reduced, if it can start. Do not install several driver utilities or registry cleaners while diagnosing the problem. Use this pattern to choose the next branch: | Pattern | More likely starting point | | ----------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------ | | One game crashes, other games work | Game files, shader cache, settings, or a game bug | | Several games crash after a driver update | Driver regression or installation problem | | Crashes under every 3D workload | Temperature, power, unstable tuning, memory, or GPU hardware | | Crashes only after minutes of play | Heat, power delivery, or sustained GPU/VRAM load | | Crashes immediately after launching | Driver, overlay, corrupted files, or an incompatible setting | If the issue began after changing a GPU overclock, undervolt, memory profile, fan curve, overlay, or monitoring tool, undo that change before testing anything else. If the game fails only with ray tracing, a high texture setting, or a particular API mode, treat that as a reproducible workload clue rather than immediately assuming the GPU is defective. ## Fix “GetDeviceRemovedReason Failed” in the safest order Close the game before changing driver, tuning, or overlay settings. Keep every GPU clock, voltage, power-limit, and fan setting at its manufacturer default during diagnosis. 1. Disable GPU overclocks and undervolts, including profiles applied by NVIDIA App, AMD Software, Intel software, MSI Afterburner, or the motherboard utility. Disable CPU overclocks and memory profiles temporarily as well. Restart Windows and try the same game scene again. The expected result is a crash-free repeat of that scene. If the crash stops, the previous tuning was not stable for that workload. 2. Turn off overlays and injectors. Disable the Steam, Discord, Xbox Game Bar, NVIDIA, AMD, recording, RGB, frame limiter, and monitoring overlays. Close hardware-monitoring or frame-tuning tools for the test. Reboot and launch the game without them. If the game works, re-enable one feature at a time; the feature that brings the crash back is the likely conflict. 3. Install pending Windows updates. ```text Settings > Windows Update > Check for updates ``` Settings path Restart even if Windows does not immediately require it, then repeat the same game scene. The expected result is that Windows reports no pending updates and the crash does not recur in the test. If Windows cannot complete an update, fix that separately before relying on this result. 1. Repair the GPU driver. First use the manufacturer’s official software or support page for the exact GPU model and try a normal driver update. Choose a clean-install or factory-reset option only if the installer offers it and you are prepared to restore custom settings. Restart after installation. The expected result is a new driver version in Device Manager or the GPU control panel and no immediate device-removed event. If the normal installation fails, use the manufacturer’s official cleanup option or a reputable driver-removal procedure in Windows Safe Mode, then install a known stable driver. If the crash began immediately after a new driver, test the previous known-good version instead. 1. Verify the game’s files in its launcher. Steam, Epic Games Store, Xbox, and other launchers use different labels, but the operation is usually called `Verify`, `Repair`, or `Verify integrity`. Wait for it to finish, allow it to replace damaged files, and restart the launcher. The expected result is a completed verification and a successful repeat of the affected scene. If no files are repaired and only this game still crashes, reset that game’s graphics configuration or shader cache according to the publisher’s instructions. If the launcher reports an error, resolve that error before treating the test as complete. 1. Repair the required DirectX components and runtimes. Use the game’s supplied redistributable folder or Microsoft’s official DirectX End-User Runtime installer. This is different from DirectX 12 built into Windows: older games may need legacy side-by-side components. Restart and retest the same scene. If the installer reports that the components are already installed, do not repeatedly reinstall them; move to the next test. A successful installation that does not change the crash points toward the driver, game, settings, or hardware instead. 1. Lower the settings that increase GPU or VRAM pressure. Start with ray tracing, texture quality, resolution scale, shadows, view distance, and frame rate. Cap the frame rate below the monitor’s maximum, and test another graphics API such as DirectX 11 if the game provides that option. The expected result is a stable repeat of the previously failing workload. Stability at lower settings points to a workload, VRAM, driver, or tuning limit; it does not by itself prove the GPU is failing. 1. Check temperature and physical power conditions while reproducing the crash. Use a trusted monitoring tool and watch GPU temperature, hotspot temperature when available, GPU memory usage, clock behavior, and power draw. Clean dust from the case and confirm that all GPU power connectors are fully seated. On desktop systems, use separate power cables from the power supply where the GPU manufacturer recommends them. On laptops, test with the original power adapter connected and the appropriate performance mode selected. If temperatures climb abnormally, clocks collapse, the display briefly goes black, or the system reboots under load, stop increasing the workload. Improve cooling or power delivery before continuing. If temperatures and power remain normal but several games still fail at stock settings, the driver, system memory, power supply, or GPU becomes more suspect. ## How to verify the crash is really gone A repair is not confirmed merely because the game reaches its menu. Reproduce the workload that previously failed: use the same save, level, benchmark scene, resolution, graphics API, and approximate play duration. Change one variable at a time after the first successful test. After each major change, record the driver version, settings, and result. Use this verification sequence: 1. Restart Windows after the driver or system change. 2. Launch the affected game with overlays and tuning disabled. 3. Load the same scene or run the same repeatable benchmark. 4. Continue for at least as long as it took the original crash to appear. 5. Repeat once after closing and reopening the game. The expected result is a complete run without a device-removed message, black screen, driver reset, application freeze, or unexpected reboot. If the game still crashes, inspect the new log rather than guessing. Check Reliability Monitor by opening Start and searching for `View reliability history`. Look for a red application failure or hardware error at the crash time. Event Viewer provides more detail: ```text Event Viewer > Windows Logs > System ``` Settings path Inspect entries around the failure from `Display`, `nvlddmkm`, `amdwddmg`, `amdkmdag`, or `Kernel-Power`. A display-driver recovery event supports a driver or GPU-reset theory. `Kernel-Power` commonly records an unexpected restart but does not identify its original cause. Compare each timestamp with the game’s own log and the device-removed code. If no new event appears after repeated successful runs, the change likely addressed the trigger, although only extended normal use can confirm that conclusively. ## What to do if the error keeps coming back If the error survives a stock configuration, clean driver installation, file verification, and reduced settings, test the components that can destabilize a GPU under sustained load. Check VRAM usage rather than relying only on the game’s preset. Very high texture quality, ray tracing, large resolutions, high-resolution texture packs, and multiple monitors can push a card beyond its available video memory. Lower textures first and watch for improvement. System RAM can also cause graphics crashes, especially if the system is unstable with a memory profile enabled; return the memory to its default setting and run a reputable memory test from a bootable environment or Windows-based tester. Use a clean boot to isolate background software. Disable non-Microsoft startup items and services temporarily, restart, and test only the game and its launcher. If the crash disappears, restore items in small groups until the conflicting overlay, capture tool, security product, RGB utility, or hardware monitor is identified. If the current driver fails, test a different stable release from the GPU manufacturer and record the version. Test another demanding 3D application as well. A GPU that crashes across multiple workloads at default settings, shows artifacting, loses the display, or fails in another known-good computer is more likely to have a hardware or power problem. A failing power supply, loose connector, inadequate laptop adapter, or motherboard slot can produce the same symptom, so inspect those before replacing the GPU. Do not increase the Windows TDR timeout as a first fix. TDR is the watchdog that lets Windows recover when the GPU stops responding; changing values such as `TdrDelay` can make the system wait longer without correcting an unstable driver, overheated GPU, bad power delivery, or broken game workload. It can also hide the point at which the failure occurs. Consider such a change only for a documented application-specific workload, with a backup and a clear rollback plan, not as a general remedy. If failures continue at stock settings across several applications after these checks, stop repeated stress testing and arrange hardware diagnosis or warranty service. ## Conclusion Keep the system at stock settings and use the same reproducible scene to test each change. If several games still trigger device removal after a clean driver installation, verified files, normal temperatures, and no overlays, arrange power or hardware diagnosis rather than repeatedly reinstalling DirectX. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Is GetDeviceRemovedReason a DirectX installation problem? Usually not. It is a Direct3D call that reports why Windows or the driver no longer gives the application access to the GPU. Missing legacy runtime files can affect some games, but driver resets, unstable settings, heat, power, and game bugs are more common causes. ### Can an overclock cause this error even if other games work? Yes. Different games stress shader units, VRAM, power delivery, and the driver in different ways. Return the GPU, CPU, and system memory to default settings before deciding that the hardware is defective. ### Should I edit TdrDelay or another TDR registry value? No, not as a first fix. A longer timeout may delay the reset but does not repair the underlying driver, game, temperature, power, or hardware problem. Use it only for a specific, documented workload and keep a rollback plan. ### How can I tell if the GPU is failing? The suspicion becomes stronger when crashes occur across several 3D applications at default settings, temperatures are reasonable, drivers are cleanly installed, and the system shows artifacting, black screens, repeated driver resets, or failures in another known-good system. Check power delivery and system memory before replacing the card.