Performance Tips¶
Intel GPUs¶
- Keep the system updated with the latest kernel and Mesa versions. 
- Ensure SoC firmware is up-to-date. These firmware updates currently require installing the Windows graphics driver; firmware updates via fwupd are in progress. 
- Use Wayland where possible, as it supports additional modifiers for better performance. 
- For MTL and newer integrated GPUs, disable VT-d if virtualization is not needed. 
- For discrete GPUs: 
Software rendering¶
- Turn off smooth shading when you don’t need it (glShadeModel) 
- Turn off depth buffering when you don’t need it. 
- Turn off dithering when not needed. 
- Use double buffering as it’s often faster than single buffering 
- Compile in the X Shared Memory extension option if it’s supported on your system by adding -DSHM to CFLAGS and -lXext to XLIBS for your system in the Make-config file. 
- Recompile Mesa with more optimization if possible. 
- Try to maximize the amount of drawing done between glBegin/glEnd pairs. 
- Use the MESA_BACK_BUFFER variable to find best performance in double buffered mode. (X users only) 
- Optimized polygon rasterizers are employed when: rendering into back buffer which is an XImage RGB mode, not grayscale, not monochrome depth buffering is GL_LESS, or disabled flat or smooth shading dithered or non-dithered no other rasterization operations enabled (blending, stencil, etc) 
- Optimized line drawing is employed when: rendering into back buffer which is an XImage RGB mode, not grayscale, not monochrome depth buffering is GL_LESS or disabled flat shading dithered or non-dithered no other rasterization operations enabled (blending, stencil, etc) 
- Textured polygons are fastest when: using a 3-component (RGB), 2-D texture minification and magnification filters are GL_NEAREST texture coordinate wrap modes for S and T are GL_REPEAT GL_DECAL environment mode glHint( GL_PERSPECTIVE_CORRECTION_HINT, GL_FASTEST ) depth buffering is GL_LESS or disabled 
- Lighting is fastest when: Two-sided lighting is disabled GL_LIGHT_MODEL_LOCAL_VIEWER is false GL_COLOR_MATERIAL is disabled No spot lights are used (all GL_SPOT_CUTOFFs are 180.0) No local lights are used (all position W’s are 0.0) All material and light coefficients are >= zero 
- XFree86 users: if you want to use 24-bit color try starting your X server in 32-bit per pixel mode for better performance. That is, start your X server with startx – -bpp 32 instead of startx – -bpp 24 
- Try disabling dithering with the MESA_NO_DITHER environment variable. If this environment variable is defined Mesa will disable dithering and the command glEnable(GL_DITHER) will be ignored.