DirectX
DirectX is Microsoft's collection of multimedia and graphics APIs for Windows, covering Direct3D for 3D rendering, DirectCompute for GPU compute, and DXGI for display output. Direct3D 12, released with Windows 10 in 2015, introduced explicit, low-overhead GPU control comparable to Vulkan, giving games, simulations, and CAD applications direct access to command queues, memory heaps, and pipeline state objects. DirectX is the dominant graphics API on Windows workstations and is supported by all major GPU vendors.
Why it matters
While OpenGL dominated CAD workstation rendering through the 2000s, the Windows platform's shift to DirectX 11 and 12 forced CAD vendors to maintain dual rendering backends — OpenGL for legacy workflows and DirectX for modern Windows performance. CATIA V6, NX, and Creo all added DirectX rendering paths to extract performance from modern NVIDIA and AMD GPUs on Windows. Understanding the OpenGL-to-DirectX transition is essential context for evaluating graphics card certification matrices in any PLM vendor's hardware support documentation.
External References
This term appears in
Cite this definition
Finocchiaro, Michael. “DirectX.” DemystifyingPLM PLM Glossary, 2026, https://www.demystifyingplm.com/glossary/directx