A Microsoft engineer finally gives Windows 11 a proper, unofficial GPU monitor

Published Nov 6, 2026, 2:26 AM EST Simon is a Computer Science BSc graduate who has been writing about technology since 2014, and using Windows machines since 3.1. After working for an indie game studio and acting as the family's go-to technician for all computer issues, he found his passion for writing and decided to use his skill set to write about all things tech. Since beginning his writing career, he has written for many different publications such as WorldStart, Listverse, and MakeTechEasier. However, after finding his home at MakeUseOf in February 2019, he would eventually move on to its sister site, XDA, to bring the latest and greatest in Windows, Linux, and DIY electronics. Sign in to your XDA account Summary gputaskman offers granular GPU usage per model/process for Windows, Linux (WSL), and macOS. It fixes Task Manager's vagueness and shows what's using GPU memory, such as LLMs, browsers, the compositor, and renderers. Download from GitHub as a portable build; no install needed. Windows 11 has the basic tools to figure out what's happening with your PC, but if you really want to get into the fine details, you have to rely on third-party apps. But what if said app came from a Microsoft engineer in the first place? This is the story of gputaskman, created by the current VP and Member of Technical Staff at Microsoft and GitHub to help you get the most out of your GPU. gputaskman is a Microsoft employee's answer to Windows 11's lack of GPU monitoring It looks really sleek, too Credit: Scott Hanselman As spotted by Neowin, Scott Hanselman of Microsoft has released their gputaskman app. As you might imagine, it's mainly designed to work on Windows, with support for both Nvidia and AMD cards. However, it also works with Nvidia GPUs on Linux or WSL, and with Apple Silicon on macOS. So, what does it do? Well, it aims to solve a common grievance with how Windows 11 reports GPU usage: "Task Manager says "15 GB used." This tries to answer: by what? Model weights? KV cache? Your browser? The desktop compositor? And why is so much GPU memory in system RAM?" Granular GPU usage tracking has become even more important in the world of locally run LLMs, so Hanselman puts it front and center. You can use gputaskman to take a peek at how each individual model is faring and what it's working on. If you're not running an LLM, gputaskman can still let you know what's asking for graphics or video rendering, and how much it's taking up. If you want to try it for yourself, head on over to the gputaskman GitHub repository and download the version that suits your PC best. There are portable downloads available, so you don't even need to install a thing.