DirectX 9 on Windows 10

Question

I currently have Windows 10 installed on my laptop and I decided to install some old game from 2007 but during the instalation process the game installer asks me to install DirectX 9c or later on my system to be able to continue installing. I checked dxdiag command from run and I have 11.2 version of DirectX.

As far as I know directX comes preinstalled on Windows 10 and I don't need to install anything. Do I have to install older version or downgrade my DirectX to be able to play this old game (Fifa 07)?

Answer 1

[EDIT: underscore and bold added for those who posted later and seem to have missed the main points and download links.

This DX9 error is common with games that require Direct Play to be activated, so there is really no need to stuff

around reinstalling DirectX . I had Direct Play activated from day one Win10, so missed this erroneous error message. ]

DX 11.2 indicates the DX 'Feature level' your graphics card is capable of running.

• It's a common misconception that Win7/8/8.1 has only DX 11, and Win10 has only DX12.

Win7/8/8.1/10 all have  of DX - 9,10 and 11.

• The following is a list of the Direct X .dll's you will have when the files are up to date.

Go to the Windows / System 32 folder, (and SysWOW64 if you have 64bit).  

They are in alphabetical order and will start with d3dx9 - 24 > 43 . Then d3dx10 - 33 > 43 & finally d3dx11 - 42 > 43.

There should also be - d3d9, d3d10 and d3d11 (among others).

These come before the D3Dcompilers-33>43+47.

• Win10 currently has only two d3d 12 files. One in System 32,and SysWOW64 .
• There are more DX files, but these are most of the graphics related Direct X  .dll's
• When using a 'clean' Windows 10 (7 or 8) install it's advisable to run the DirectX Web Installer to 'update' DX.

Note that the Web Installer only installs 'missing' files and does not overwrite corrupt files as does

the full DX Redist installer.

Download here:

Download DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer from Official Microsoft Download Center

@ People posting below who are still banging on about DX9.0c ... Read ...

• Another common misconception is that you need to install DX 9.0c to run older DX9 games. Not so.

This version has been superseded by the DX Redist (June 2010) which has all of the DX9.0c files, and more.

This installer is the best option if DirectX files are corrupted.

Download here:

Download Details - Microsoft Download Center - DirectX Redist (June 2010)

Note - This is a two step process. The installer download unpacks files to a location of your choice.

You then open the folder and find the DXSETP.exe  and run that to reinstall DirectX.

Once the reinstall is complete you can delete the folder the files were unpacked to.

• Another reason for DirectX errors is if your graphics processor/accelerator (either Integrated graphics or graphics card)

does not meet the specifications of the game.

• Outdated audio drivers can also cause DirectX errors in some cases.

However.... (If you are using a disk based version of FIFA 07)

FIFA '07 may be a victim of a malware that MS has built into Win10. This game uses SafeDisk copy protection,

which uses a driver titled secdrv.sys  which is being blocked by MS.

I'm not sure, but this game may use a version of SafeDisk that does not rely on the secdrv.sys driver.

You can read more details in my post at  --this thread--

.

Answer 2

Hi Salam,

Please answer the questions below to assist you better.

• Does this happen with all the games? Did you check with other games?
• What is the exact error message?

I would like to inform that the games which were working in previous Operating System may or may not work in Windows 10 due to compatibility issues. I suggest you to check for the latest version of the games which are not working, check compatibility with Windows 10 and install. If the latest version is not available or if the games are not compatible, suggest you to install the games in compatibility mode by following the steps provided below:

1. Download the setup files for the game nd save it on your local disk.
2. Right click on the setup file of the game and select “Properties”.
3. Select “Compatibility” Tab.
4. Place a check mark next to**“Run this program in Compatibility mode”** and select operating system from the drop down list.
5. Let the game install and then check thefunctionality.

Let us know the status of the issue in regards with games. Your reply is important to assist you further.

Regards,

Guru Kiran

Answer 3

No no compatibility mode on Windows 10 or at least in Europe I think Europe don't allow this ? Where are you ?

Answer 4

Yes, technically Compatibility Mode applies to the option to run a virtual XP on Win7 Pro, but

mode, settings, options are terms frequently used to reference the Compatibility tab as well.

I believe the Compatibility options available on executables are universal on all versions of Windows

(well, since XP at least ). However, there are some rare executables that don't have a Compatibility Tab.

This, I believe, would have been done by the software developer.

Steam also use a unique type shortcut ( "Web Document" ) that has no Compatibility settings tab,

but most of the games will have a Compatibility settings option on the main .exe.

• To access the Compatibility tab (settings/mode/options), R/click on the  .exe (executable ) in question, and click on Properties. Click on the Compatibility Tab.

In theory installing a software using compatibility for an older Windows, as suggested by Guru Kiran G,

is more likely to be helpful than enabling a compatibility for an older version of Windows after installing the software.

I have setup compatibility prior to installing with a few games that have a known affinity with an older Windows 

(eg- GTA4 w/ Vista sp1 or XP sp3), but it seems to work as well if enabled after installing in most cases.

• In practice using compatibility for an older version of Windows is rarely helpful, but always worth a try as a starting

point in troubleshooting problems with a game launching (If a game crashes after loading the game play

the problem is very unlikely to do with compatibility with Win10.

Games downloaded from Steam, etc are less likely to need or benefit from using Compatibility for an older Windows.

EDIT: Underscore and bold added to help those who don't read closely

GTA-San Andreas will not run if Direct Play is not enabled in Programs and Features > Turn Windows Features on or off > Legacy Components - Direct Play.

Note that this should not be a problem if running the 1709 update as you will get a message from Windows that you need to 'install'

Direct Play if you have disabled it.

.

Answer 5

I currently have Windows 10 installed on my laptop and I decided to install some old game but during the instalation process the game installer asks me to install DirectX 9c or later on my system to be able to continue installing. I checked dxdiag command from run and I have 11.2 version of DirectX.

As far as I know directX comes preinstalled on Windows 10 and I don't need to install anything. Do I have to install older version or downgrade my DirectX to be able to play this old game (GTA SA

)?