DLSS5 Updater

DLSS5 Updater is a free Windows app that finds the PC games on your computer and installs or updates graphics mods in them: OptiScaler, NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Streamline, MFG Unlock, ReShade and a few add-ons. It downloads the files from their official sources, puts them in the right game folder and keeps a backup of everything it replaces. One click puts your original files back.

It is for people with an NVIDIA RTX card who play single-player games and want newer DLSS versions or the extra graphics options these mods offer, without copying DLL files around by hand.

It is an unofficial tool, not affiliated with or endorsed by NVIDIA or the mod authors (see Credits).

Formerly called DLSS Updater. Updating keeps your settings: the app moves %LocalAppData%\DLSSUpdater to %LocalAppData%\DLSS5Updater on first start.

Screenshots

The game list and one game's components. Badges show what each game has installed, and an arrow marks an outdated DLSS version.

Settings for one game. Anything you don't change here follows your global settings.

Settings for all games. Every option has a short explanation, and the help button next to it tells you more.

Features

• Finds games from Steam, Epic, GOG, EA, Ubisoft and Xbox. You can also add a single game folder or a whole library folder.
• Checks for new releases of every component and shows installed and latest versions side by side.
• Installs or updates the mods for one game, or for all managed games with Update all.
• Swaps only the DLSS files with DLSS only, without adding any other mod. You can pin an older DLSS version if a newer one looks worse in a game.
• Backs up every game file it replaces. Restore DLSS and Uninstall bring them back.
• Warns before touching a game that ships anti-cheat software.
• Lets you change the mods' settings in the app, as defaults for all games or for single games. Presets save a whole setup under a name. Every option has a short explanation, and the About page has a guide.
• Can set per-game NVIDIA driver profile options such as DLSS presets, Smooth Motion, RTX HDR, the FPS limiter and power mode. It never writes the global driver profile.
• Shows a short summary of what is new when a component gets a new release.

What it supports

Component	What it is	Where it comes from
OptiScaler F5	janblade's fork of OptiScaler with DLSS neural rendering (NR). The default build for new installs.	Downloaded from GitHub.
OptiScaler-NR	ShyVortex's fork of OptiScaler with DLSS neural rendering. Can be chosen in Settings instead of F5.	Downloaded from GitHub.
OptiScaler	Lets a game use DLSS, FSR or XeSS as its upscaler.	Parent project of the forks above.
NVIDIA DLSS	The DLSS runtime files for upscaling, ray reconstruction and frame generation.	Downloaded from NVIDIA's GitHub.
NVIDIA Streamline	The layer between a game and DLSS frame generation. Optional.	Downloaded from NVIDIA's GitHub.
MFG Unlock	A ReShade add-on that unlocks multi frame generation on RTX 40 cards.	Downloaded from GitHub.
ReShade	Post-processing and add-on loader.	Downloaded from reshade.me (the add-on build).
GITC Uplift	A ReShade add-on that runs DLSS neural rendering. Replaces the other neural rendering routes.	Downloaded from GitHub.
RenoDX DLSS add-on	ShortFuse's ReShade add-on for neural rendering.	You import the file yourself.
Lecram DLSS5 add-on	A ReShade add-on for neural rendering by Lecram.	You import it yourself. The builds are available to supporters on the author's Buy Me a Coffee.
Deep Fried Chicken	A neural rendering add-on. Its licence allows personal use only.	You import the extracted release folder (or a .zip) yourself. Every import is kept, and each game can use its own version.

The app only replaces files in a game with files from the sources above or files you imported. Which of these you use is up to you. Most people only need the OptiScaler mode or DLSS only.

Requirements

• Windows 10 or Windows 11, 64-bit.
• An NVIDIA RTX graphics card for DLSS. Some features need a newer card (frame generation needs RTX 40 or 50, for example). Each option's explanation in the app says so.
• An internet connection to download components. The app keeps what it has downloaded and works offline with that.
• A game in a folder you can write to. If a game sits in a protected folder, the app asks to restart with administrator rights.

You do not need to install .NET. The app brings what it needs.

Download and install

Get the latest version from the releases page. Each release has two programs, plus SHA256SUMS with their checksums:

• DLSS5Updater-Setup-<version>.exe is the installer. It installs for your user without administrator rights (or for all users if you choose), adds a Start menu entry, can add a desktop icon and has an uninstaller. To update the app, run a newer setup.
• DLSS5Updater.exe is the portable version. It is a single file. Put it anywhere and run it.

The app checks GitHub for a newer version of itself (at most every 6 hours, or with Check now in Settings) and shows Update to vX.Y.Z in the title bar. Updating downloads the setup or the portable exe, whichever you use, checks it against the release's SHA256SUMS and restarts the app. Install updates automatically (off by default) downloads in the background and installs when you close the app. It never updates while a task is running.

Both versions keep settings and downloads in %LocalAppData%\DLSS5Updater, so you can switch between them without losing anything.

First run

On a fresh install a short setup opens over the window: a welcome, the default install mode (OptiScaler F5 or OptiScaler-NR, or ReShade + add-ons with one NR add-on), and update and download choices. Skip or Esc on any step keeps the defaults; Enter goes to the next step. Nothing is written until you finish. People upgrading from 1.x don't see it, but Settings → General → Run setup again opens it any time.

1. Start the app. It scans your game libraries and lists the games it finds. To add a game it missed, use Add game (one game folder) or Add library (a folder whose subfolders are games) at the bottom of the list.
2. Add nvngx_dlssnr.dll if you want to use neural rendering. This file belongs to NVIDIA, and its licence does not allow other people to share it, so this app does not include it and never downloads it. You supply your own copy. Put it next to DLSS5Updater.exe before the first start, or open Settings and import it under Local components. The app stores it in %LocalAppData%\DLSS5Updater\components. You can keep several versions side by side and pick a default.
3. You can skip step 2 if you only want newer DLSS files. DLSS only does not need it.
4. ReShade is downloaded the first time an install needs it. If you prefer your own ReShade64.dll, import it under Local components. Use download switches back.

Everyday use

1. Pick a game in the list. The filters at the top (All, DLSS, Installed, Updates) help you find games.
2. Choose how to install:
   • OptiScaler is the default (the F5 build unless you pick OptiScaler-NR under OptiScaler build in Settings). It installs OptiScaler as a proxy DLL (dxgi.dll unless you change it), plus ReShade, MFG Unlock and the DLSS files.
   • ReShade + add-ons installs ReShade itself as the proxy, with MFG Unlock and the DLSS and Streamline updates, and without OptiScaler.
   • You can set the default mode in Settings and change it for a single game.
3. Press Install. The button reads Update when a newer release is available and Reinstall when the game is current.
4. Press DLSS only if you just want the game's DLSS files replaced and nothing else added.
5. After a new release or a game patch, press Update all at the top to re-apply everything to every managed game.
6. Change settings in the game's own tab, or in Settings for all games. Tabs in Settings cover General, Keybinds, ReShade add-ons, OptiScaler-NR and Advanced. Hover the info icons or open the guide on the About page when you are unsure what an option does.
7. In the game, the OptiScaler menu opens with the Insert key by default (the Recommended preset uses Delete), and the ReShade overlay with Home. Both can be changed in the Keybinds tab.

Existing config files are handled in the way you choose under Existing game configs: keep the game's values (the default), apply your app settings over them, or start from a fresh config.

Safety, backups and restore

• Before the app replaces or removes a game file, it saves the original in a .dlssupdater\backup folder next to the game's exe. A record in that folder lists every file the app added or changed.
• Restore DLSS puts the original DLSS and Streamline files back.
• Uninstall removes everything the app installed in that game and restores the original files.
• The app only changes files inside the game's own folder. It checks its own records before restoring so a damaged record cannot make it touch files elsewhere.
• Games that ship anti-cheat software are marked with an AC badge. Before installing a mod into one, the app shows a warning and asks you to confirm.

Do not use these mods in online games with anti-cheat. Replacing or injecting DLL files can get your account banned, and many online modes refuse to start. The app recognises common anti-cheat systems (Easy Anti-Cheat, BattlEye, EA Javelin, GameGuard, XIGNCODE3, PunkBuster, Vanguard and others), but no check is complete. If you are unsure, do not install. DLSS only swaps the DLSS files without injecting anything and does not ask for this confirmation, but changing game files is never risk-free. For online games, use the DLSS override in the NVIDIA app instead.

Troubleshooting

A game is missing from the list. Press Rescan. If it is still missing, add its folder with Add game, or its library folder with Add library.

The app says Windows blocked access to a game folder. Close the game and anything that may be using its files, such as overlays or a running antivirus scan, then try again. If the game is in a protected folder, choose Restart as admin when asked.

A game crashes or looks wrong after installing. Press Uninstall for that game to restore the original files. Then try the ReShade + add-ons mode, a different proxy DLL name (Settings, General) or a different DLSS version.

There are no OptiScaler updates. The OptiScaler-NR fork publishes pre-releases only. Keep Include pre-releases turned on in Settings.

The app cannot reach GitHub. It uses what it already downloaded and shows an OFFLINE label. Try again later with Check for updates.

Where are the logs? Open the log panel in the app. Data, cache and the log file are in %LocalAppData%\DLSS5Updater.

Uninstall

Use Uninstall on each game first if you want the original game files back. Then remove the app through Windows Settings, Apps (installer version) or delete DLSS5Updater.exe (portable version). The uninstaller keeps %LocalAppData%\DLSS5Updater. Delete that folder yourself if you want the settings and downloads gone as well.

Build from source

You need the .NET 8 SDK on Windows.

dotnet build -warnaserror
dotnet test
dotnet publish src/DLSSUpdater -c Release -o publish

The last command makes the portable publish\DLSS5Updater.exe. The installer needs Inno Setup 6:

iscc /DAppVersion=2.2.0 installer\DLSSUpdater.iss

Pushing a tag like v2.0.0 that matches the version in the project file builds both files on GitHub Actions and attaches them to a release. If docs/releases/v<version>.md exists, it becomes the release text. Setting DLSSU_INTEGRATION=1 turns on a test that downloads the real releases and installs them into a temporary folder.

DLSS5Updater.exe --demo starts the app on a made-up game library in a temporary folder. It never scans your launchers, downloads anything or touches your games, so it is a safe way to look around. --demo --screenshots <folder> saves the screenshots used in this README to that folder and exits. Setting DLSSU_DEMO_ONBOARDING=1 opens the first-run setup in the demo, which it otherwise leaves out.

Credits

DLSS5 Updater installs the work of these projects and their authors. It downloads their files as released and does not change them.

• OptiScaler, the OptiScaler F5 fork by janblade and the OptiScaler-NR fork by ShyVortex.
• MFG Unlock by mavismmg.
• ReShade by crosire.
• RenoDX and openNR by ShortFuse.
• GITC Uplift by ghostinthecamera.
• The DLSS5 add-on by Lecram and Deep Fried Chicken by its author.
• NVIDIA DLSS and NVIDIA Streamline by NVIDIA.

DLSS5 Updater is released under the MIT License. The files it downloads and installs, and your own nvngx_dlssnr.dll, keep their own licences.

DLSS5 Updater is an unofficial tool. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by NVIDIA or by the authors of the projects above. NVIDIA, DLSS and Streamline belong to NVIDIA Corporation. OptiScaler, ReShade and the other projects belong to their authors. Their names are used here only to say what the app works with.

Support

DLSS5 Updater is free. If it is useful to you, you can leave a tip on Ko-fi. Bug reports and ideas are welcome on the issues page.