PCIe Resizable BAR (Base Address Memory) lets the video memory on your graphics card communicate with your processor more efficiently, potentially increasing gaming performance, but it’s a relatively recent development. Nvidia cards only started supporting ReBAR with the GeForce RTX 30 series. A new mod has enabled slightly older cards, those in the RTX 20 and GTX 16 series, to get access to this performance boost.
The “NvStrapsReBar” tool on GitHub is a modification to recent UEFI/BIOS systems (the stuff that shows up on your boot screen before Windows), allowing ReBAR to run on these slightly outdated cards. It’s based on another popular mod, ReBarUEFI, bringing support for ReBar to processors as far back as 2011.
Further reading: Why PC gamers shouldn’t waste money on a PCIe 5.0 SSD
The new mod is a little tricky, but should be doable for anyone with enough tech savvy to edit registry files. Sadly the support is a bit more narrow than the mod on which it’s based, with the extremely popular GTX 10 series left out in the cold (as noted by VideoCardz.com).
Still, the GTX 1650 and RTX 2060 are the #2 and #3 GPUs for gamers according to the latest Steam hardware survey, so this mod could add a little extra oomph for a lot of users.
If you’re looking for a new GPU, be sure to check out our roundup of the best graphics cards for PC gaming.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.