Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025 Does Not Support Built-In Intel® Arc™ Pro GPU Memory, and May Display a “retain mode” Error Message

When using Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025, the Built-In Intel® Arc™ Pro GPU shared graphics memory is not recognized, and a “retain mode” error may appear. This affects an ISV certification pass result, and Autodesk* has resolved this in Autodesk AutoCAD* 2026. Other than this GPU not running with retain mode enabled, no impact to raw graphics performance or functionality is expected.

This error does not appear when using Autodesk AutoCAD* with discrete Intel® Arc™ Pro GPUs with pre-defined amounts of dedicated memory on the graphics boards. The full range of dedicated Intel® Arc™ Pro GPUs are Autodesk certified for Autodesk AutoCAD* backward to the 2021 version.

The “retain mode” function error remains a known issue in Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025, and the Autodesk AutoCAD* development team have provided a fix in the 2026 version. However, a fix will not be made available by Autodesk* for the 2025 and prior versions. 

Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025 requires 8 GB (basic) up to 32 GB (Autodesk* recommended) of dedicated graphics memory for the “retain mode” to function correctly. As Built-in Intel® Arc™ Pro Graphics on Intel® Core™ Ultra H-series Processors [Series 1 and 2] have dynamic memory allocations by the Operating System (OS), Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025 currently recognizes these graphics capabilities differently to a discrete GPU and only sees 0 MBs or 128 MBs of memory. However, Built-In Intel® Arc™ Pro GPUs can access 57% of the host system memory (for example, in a 32 GB host system, the Built-In Intel® Arc™ Pro GPU can see up to 18.24 GB of memory, or 9.12 GB on a 16 GB system.)

This issue means "retain mode" may produce an error message and turn off for the user. This AutoCAD* function enhances visibility, color, linetype, and lineweight properties.

Autodesk AutoCAD*’s 2025 current design for the management of integrated graphics prevents a full Autodesk* certification pass for the Built-In Intel® Arc™ Pro GPU and relevant graphics drivers. Despite this limitation, users should have the same functionality experience as previous-generation integrated graphics solutions. Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025 currently has no way to force the software to recognize these extended graphics memory capabilities. Autodesk is aware of this, and a fix is now provided in the 2026 version.

Further information on Autodesk AutoCAD* 2025 System Requirements can be found at AutoCAD 2025 Help | System Requirements | Autodesk.

You can read more about Intel® Built-In graphics memory allocations at Intel® | Support Articles | Intel® Graphics Memory.

The latest ISV certifications can be found at Intel® | Support Articles | Certified Graphics Hardware and Drivers.

Contact Intel Customer Support should you need more information.