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6. Q&A
DesktopXR is an OpenXR API layer that brings your Windows desktop directly into VR. When playing any OpenXR-compatible VR title using DirectX 11 or DirectX 12, you can instantly toggle your desktop into view for quick and convenient access without leaving the game.
Over time, DesktopXR has evolved to include a range of highly requested features. These include hot-swapping between multiple monitors, a full positioning system that allows you to move and tilt the desktop anywhere within VR space, and an integrated HUD that displays key performance metrics such as FPS, GPU usage, and CPU load.
DesktopXR also includes tools for content creators, such as OBS monitoring for recording and streaming, along with YouTube live chat integration for streamers. In addition, the VisionCore image processing system provides runtime field-of-view cropping, image adjustment controls such as brightness, contrast, and saturation, and adaptive sharpening for a clearer visual experience.
Configurator - The Configurator is the main DesktopXR control panel, giving you easy access to all of the app’s features through a simple GUI. You can set keybinds, control startup behaviour, resize and position both the desktop and heads-up display, and adjust options such as FOV cropping and VisionCore image settings.
Using the Stream Deck-style grid, you can move and position items in real time while inside VR. You can also save profiles, making it easy to switch to your preferred settings for different games.
Companion - The Companion App provides a simple way to launch an OpenXR session directly inside your VR headset, without needing to start a VR game first. It is ideal for desktop access, 2D gaming, and watching movies in VR.
You can exit the Companion App at any time by right-clicking the coloured VR headset icon in the Windows system tray, next to the clock.
DataBridge - DataBridge can be configured to start automatically with Windows by enabling the option in the Configurator app. During a DesktopXR session, it pulls in data from a range of sources for display in the heads-up display.
This currently includes performance information such as GPU, CPU, and RAM usage, as well as OBS and YouTube integration for content creators. It also provides audio-related details such as volume, the current audio output device, and the name of the song currently playing.
You can change a keybind in two ways. The easiest method is through the Configurator. Simply right-click any tile, select Reassign Keybind, then press the new key or key combination you want to assign.
You can also edit keybinds directly in the desktopxr.ini settings file.
FOV Cropping lets you reduce the rendered display area to improve GPU performance.
You can crop each side of the image independently using separate settings for Left, Right, Top, and Bottom. These settings can be used individually or combined, depending on how much of the view you want to remove.
For example, applying 20% Top cropping reduces the rendered area at the top of the image by 20%. Applying 20% Bottom cropping reduces the bottom area separately. The same applies to the Left and Right settings.
Because less of the image is rendered, GPU workload is reduced, which can improve performance.
This feature works with both DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 games.
FocusCore is a VR analysis engine that detects the real game views inside your VR headset, allowing foveated rendering to be applied accurately.
It analyzes each game and applies foveated rendering when it detects a suitable match. Some games need additional fine-tuning, so FocusCore uses per-game profiles to help target where foveated rendering should be applied. These profiles can also exclude areas such as loading screens, menus, and HUD elements to help ensure the effect is applied correctly.
VisionCore is a collection of image adjustment tools that lets you fine-tune the visual style to suit your preference. It includes controls such as brightness, exposure, contrast, saturation, and highlights, giving you precise control over how the image looks.
It also features an adaptive sharpening algorithm to help bring out crisp detail and improve overall image clarity.
Yes, VisionCore for DX12 is planned for the next release.
HDR to SDR tone mapping is currently under review for a future update. As HDR-compatible headsets become more widely adopted, a full HDR pipeline may be developed in the future.
Unfortunately, the curved feature has been left out of both the PimaxXR and SteamVR/OpenXR runtimes. I have only ever seen it available in the Oculus runtime.
If that feature is added in the future, I will absolutely bring it to DesktopXR. The XR runtime itself needs to support it before my API layer can make use of it.
Discord integration is something that has been considered. However, Discord’s localhost RPC route is currently in private beta and is not yet open to new developers. Once access becomes more widely available, support for this feature can be reviewed.
DesktopXR is built around bringing the Windows desktop into VR as a true OpenXR overlay. It captures the desktop, supports multi-monitor hot-swapping, includes a dedicated in-VR HUD, and provides a full positioning system so the desktop and HUD can be moved, resized, tilted, orbit-adjusted, and saved in VR space. It also adds runtime-level features such as FOV cropping, which works at the OpenXR view stage and applies regardless of whether the game is using DirectX 11 or DirectX 12, along with VisionCore image processing, which is currently a separate DX11-only processing path. OXRT is a broader OpenXR enhancement toolkit with some overlapping features such as CAS, post-processing, and swapchain-level image handling. The main difference is that DesktopXR is focused primarily on desktop-in-VR overlay functionality, while OXRT is focused more broadly on general OpenXR rendering enhancements.
The community owes a huge thank you to its creator, mbuccia — Matthieu Bucchianeri.