What is hsmgr.exe?

[Qu9ke]

I know that the hsmgr.exe (in SysWOW64) and hsmgr64.exe (in SysWOW) processes are related to my Xonar Essense STX sound card that I recently installed, but I don't know what they do or which one I should choose. My pc keeps asking me if I want to run either or both of them on start up, so I've just been running both of them since I don't know any better hah. I am currently running on a 64 bit machine, but I also know 64 bit machines can run 32 bit processes and programs. I tried finding help at certain other site where I felt this was more relevant, but I've had the worst luck over there. I have not had a single answer to 3 or so threads I made. I thought I'd try my luck here and hope people would know what I'm talking about. Any help is appreciated.

 

[ronbo613]

Looks like it has something to do with the DS Audio Center. You can temporarily disable it(rename it hsmgr64.exe.xxx) and see what happens. Since you have a 64 bit system, try disabling the 32 bit file first, although it may be used with 32 bit applications.

 

[Qu9ke]

Looks like it has something to do with the DS Audio Center. You can temporarily disable it(rename it hsmgr64.exe.xxx) and see what happens. Since you have a 64 bit system, try disabling the 32 bit file first, although it may be used with 32 bit applications.

I found this bit of information from ASUSTeK forums. I'll leave it here in case other people might find use for it. This is from a user on the forums so I can't guarantee it's 100% accurate, but I'm willing to believe it is until proven otherwise. Seeing as how I don't use GX in the audio center anyway, I'll probably just continue to ignore the hsmgr processes.

"HsMgr.exe is required to utilize the "GX mode" feature of your soundcard. "GX mode" is used to emulete EAX and OpenAL sound extensions from certain games. It's also used for the VoiceFX feature of your soundcard. If you disable HsMgr.exe, your "GX mode" will no longer function, that's it. You can still access all features of your soundcard including Dolby Headphone and 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter 3D sound.

The first thing I would do is make sure GX mode is disabled. Open your Xonar Audio Center and make sure the GX button is depressed/dimmed."

 

[lenjack]

Any time you see something like that, which is unidentified, Google it, and you will find the answer.