Documentation / Dashboard & Monitoring

Dashboard & Monitoring

Real-time system performance tracking with millisecond precision. Monitor CPU, GPU, RAM, temperatures, and more from a unified dashboard.

Dashboard Overview

The Frameshift dashboard is your command center for monitoring system performance. It provides real-time metrics, performance graphs, process monitoring, and event detection all in one view.

Full dashboard view showing CPU/GPU/RAM metrics, performance graph, and system info header
The main Frameshift dashboard with all monitoring features visible

System Header

The header displays critical system information at a glance:

System Information

  • Computer Name: Your system's hostname
  • CPU Model: Processor name and specifications
  • GPU Name: Graphics card model and details
  • Total RAM: System memory capacity (formatted)
  • Storage: Drive type (NVMe/SSD/HDD) and capacity
  • Current Time & Date: Live clock display
Learn More: How System Information is Collected

Frameshift uses native Windows APIs and WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation) to gather system information:

  • CPU information from Win32_Processor WMI class
  • GPU details from DirectX and GPU vendor drivers
  • Memory information from system memory APIs
  • Storage type detected via SMART data and bus interface

All information is read-only and does not modify system settings.

Real-Time Metric Cards

Three large metric cards display live performance data with color-coded accents:

CPU Card (Cyan)

  • Current CPU usage percentage
  • CPU temperature (Celsius)
  • Current clock speed (GHz)
  • Visual progress bar

GPU Card (Magenta)

  • Current GPU usage percentage
  • GPU temperature (Celsius)
  • VRAM usage (GB)
  • Visual progress bar

Memory Card (Green)

  • Current RAM usage percentage
  • Memory used (GB)
  • Total memory (GB)
  • Visual progress bar
Update Frequency
Metric cards update every 250 milliseconds for smooth, accurate monitoring without impacting system performance.

Performance Graphs

The interactive performance graph visualizes system metrics over time with historical data tracking up to 15 minutes (900 data points at 1-second intervals).

Performance graph with multiple data visualization modes (CPU/GPU/RAM tabs)
Switch between different graph views to focus on specific metrics

Graph Modes

Toggle between four different visualization modes:

Mode What it Shows
Performance All three metrics (CPU, GPU, RAM) on one graph with color-coded lines
CPU CPU usage only with detailed view and larger scale
GPU GPU usage only with detailed view and larger scale
RAM Memory usage only with detailed view and larger scale
Advanced: Interpreting Performance Graphs

Use performance graphs to identify system bottlenecks:

  • Flat lines at 100%: Component is maxed out, potential bottleneck
  • Spikes: Sudden load from specific processes or tasks
  • Consistent high usage: Background processes may be consuming resources
  • Low GPU with high CPU: CPU-bound workload, GPU optimization won't help
  • Low CPU with high GPU: GPU-bound workload, ideal for gaming

For best gaming performance, aim for balanced usage across all components.

Event Detection System

Frameshift automatically detects and alerts you to important system events based on real-time monitoring.

Event Types

CPU Spike

Triggered when CPU usage exceeds 90% for sustained periods. Indicates high processor load.

GPU Spike

Triggered when GPU usage exceeds 95%. Normal during gaming or rendering tasks.

RAM Critical

Triggered when RAM usage exceeds 90%. System may start using slower swap/page file.

VRAM Critical

Triggered when video memory exceeds 85%. May cause texture quality reduction in games.

Game Detected

Triggered when a supported game is launched. Enables automatic game optimizations.

Optimization Complete

Triggered when system optimizations are successfully applied.

Event Display Limit
The dashboard displays up to 5 events simultaneously. Older events are automatically removed as new ones occur. Events are color-coded by severity: low (blue), medium (yellow), high (red).

Process Monitoring

Track which applications are consuming system resources with real-time process monitoring.

Top processes list with CPU/Memory usage and kill buttons
Process monitor showing top CPU and memory consumers

Process Lists

Two separate lists display resource usage:

Top CPU Processes

Shows processes consuming the most CPU time. Each entry displays process name, icon, and current CPU percentage.

Top Memory Processes

Shows processes using the most RAM. Each entry displays process name, icon, and memory usage in MB/GB.

Process Actions

Hover over any process to reveal action buttons:

  • Kill Process: Immediately terminate the selected process (requires confirmation)
  • Set Priority: Change process priority from -2 (lowest) to 3 (highest)
Be Careful When Killing Processes
Terminating system processes can cause instability or crashes. Only kill processes you recognize and know are safe to end. When in doubt, don't kill it.

System Tray Integration

Frameshift can run in the background with system tray integration for quick access to metrics.

Tray Features

  • Live Tooltip: Hover over the tray icon to see current CPU, GPU, and Memory usage
  • Quick Toggle: Left-click to show/hide the main window
  • Context Menu: Right-click for quick actions and current stats
  • Run in Background: Enable in settings to keep monitoring even when window is closed
Learn More: How Metrics are Collected

Frameshift uses a native C++ module compiled with node-gyp for high-performance, low-overhead metrics collection:

  • CPU Metrics: Windows Performance Data Helper (PDH) API for accurate CPU usage
  • GPU Metrics: Vendor-specific APIs (NVML for NVIDIA, ADL for AMD, Intel GPU SDK)
  • Temperature Data: Hardware sensors via WMI and vendor SDKs
  • Memory Metrics: GlobalMemoryStatusEx API for real-time RAM usage
  • Process Data: Windows Task Manager APIs and PSAPI

All monitoring runs on separate threads to avoid impacting system performance. Typical CPU overhead is less than 1%.

Customization Options

Customize the dashboard to suit your preferences:

  • Metric Update Rate: Adjust polling frequency in settings (default: 250ms)
  • Graph History Length: Configure data points to display (default: 900 points = 15 minutes)
  • Event Notifications: Choose which events trigger notifications
  • Process List Size: Configure number of processes to display
Pro Tip
Keep the dashboard open on a second monitor while gaming to track performance in real-time. Switch to the specific metric view (CPU, GPU, or RAM) to focus on your bottleneck.
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