Windows 7 automatically switching to basic (non-aero) theme. I need a way to disable that behaviour.

Anonymous
2009-11-15T23:07:02+00:00

This is very similar to what is described here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/939423

As well as here: http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/vistaperformance/thread/c7b869e1-5138-48a3-b09d-419f76e2f728

However, this is for Windows 7, not Vista.

Scenario:

On a 3 screen (1920x1080 each) setup ran on an ATI HD4890 (1gb RAM, running 2 screens) + HD 3450 (256mb RAM, running 1 screen), whenever anything graphic intensive is put onto the screen hosted by the HD3450, Windows will complain "The color scheme has been changed to Windows Basic - The current color scheme has exceeded its allowed memory so the color scheme has been automatically changed to improve performance. Click to see more information." and change my theme to Windows Basic.

However, it is to be noted that the 3450 is not being stressed at all (all the load is being put onto the 4890 according to GPU-Z).

It should not be a problem with system RAM (6gb, on Win7 x64) nor processing power (i7 920).

Is there a way to disable Windows automatically "improving performance" by switching my theme?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Music, photos, and video

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2011-02-14T09:27:12+00:00

Run menu > sysdm.cpl > Advanced Tab > performance > select adjust for best performance > make sure you do not allow Windows to choose for you because your computer does not know whats best --- Make sure Enable Aero Peek is checked

---- OR ---

Right click my computer > properties > Advanced System settings > performance > select adjust for best performance > make sure you do not allow Windows to choose for you because your computer does not know whats best --- Make sure Enable Aero Peek is checked

Was this answer helpful?

100+ people found this answer helpful.
0 comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2009-11-16T20:35:40+00:00

Hi whsper,

Welcome to Microsoft Answers Community Forums.

The aero theme is basically enabled depending on video card.

Windows Display Driver Modelis the graphic driver architecture for video card drivers running Microsoft Windows versions beginning with Windows Vista.

WDDM driver model version 1.0 is that it does not support multiple drivers in a multi-adapter, multi-monitor setup, the latest version is 2.0 is introduced.

Windows will disable the Desktop Window Manager (DWM) that controls the transparent glass effect or other effects of the Aero theme. The DWM manages the desktop and the primary display settings in Windows.

I would suggest you to check with your manufacturer for latest drivers to support your hardware configuration.

Hope this information helped you.

Regards

Yaaser - Microsoft Support Engineer                                          

Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

Was this answer helpful?

50+ people found this answer helpful.
0 comments

138 additional answers

Sort by: Newest
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2012-05-04T07:57:24+00:00

    I had the exact same problem when recording a video and I had to stop recording and try to figure out how to fix it. When I had it I didn't have it again though.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2012-05-03T17:05:31+00:00

    I have only one graphics card (Radeon HD6800) and I still have the same problem. I have 2 monitors connected tho (1 dvi lcd and 1 hdmi HDTV). I also get the problem with only the hdtv enabled. 8GB ram, i7-2600, win7x64.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2012-03-07T00:27:58+00:00

    To everyone having this issue - this is NOT a program specific issue, it will occur with anything that uses your graphics card for hardware acceleration  on any monitor that is not connected to your primary graphics card. The workarounds people have posted have all been for specific applications and all involve disabling GPU acceleration. In general this leads to a loss of performance and is not ideal. The problem is with Windows and not with the specific program you are running. It also seems likely that this is not dependent on who made your graphics card.

    The only workarounds for this problem are either to not use GPU accelerated applications on your secondary monitors or to connect them directly to your primary graphics card.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments