Nvidia NVENC (short for Nvidia Encoder)[1] is a feature in Nvidia graphics cards that performs video encoding, offloading this compute-intensive task from the CPU to a dedicated part of the GPU. It was introduced with the Kepler-based GeForce 600 series in March 2012 (GT 610, GT620 and GT630 is Fermi Architecture).[2][3]
The encoder is supported in many livestreaming and recording programs, such as vMix, Wirecast, Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) and Bandicam, as well as video editing apps, such as Adobe Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve. It also works with Share game capture, which is included in Nvidia's GeForce Experience software.[4][5][6]
Until March 2023 consumer-targeted GeForce graphics cards officially support no more than three simultaneously encoding video streams, regardless of the count of the cards installed, but this restriction can be circumvented on Linux and Windows systems by applying an unofficial patch to the drivers. Doing so also unlocks NVIDIA Frame Buffer Capture (NVFBC), a fast desktop capture API that uses the capabilities of the GPU and its driver to accelerate capture.[7] Professional cards support between three and unrestricted simultaneous streams per card, depending on card model and compression quality,[2] the restrictions were loosened in 2023 allowing up to 5 simultaneously encoding video streams.[8] From January 2024 onwards, eight simultaneous encoding video streams became the baseline.[9]
Nvidia chips also feature an onboard decoder, NVDEC (short for Nvidia Decoder), to offload video decoding from the CPU to a dedicated part of the GPU.[2]