H.264 hardware decoding and encoding is supported on models with dedicated video encoder - these are models which also supports AirPlay Mirroring. Newer models also support hardware accelerated HEVC decoding.
There is one caveat - on older macs only one transcoding session can be hardware accelerated, so if you transcode multiple streams (or another software is using the hardware) Air Video Server HD will fallback to software transcoding.
The computer must have Intel Core CPU with Intel HD Graphics 2000 or newer. That means 2nd generation and newer Intel Core CPUs are supported.
You can check if your CPU supports QuickSync here.
Accelerated transcoding on computers that only have integrated Intel HD GPU (HD2000 or newer) and no external GPU should work without any complications. Make sure that you have latest Intel drivers installed.
Here the situation is bit more complicated. In order for this to work, you need Intel HD4000 or newer and be running Windows 8 or newer.
1. Make sure that Integrated GPU is enabled in your PC BIOS setup
Check your BIOS Setup manual for instructions on how to do this. After this has been successfully done, you should see both the Integrated and External GPU in your Device Manager
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2. Install latest Intel Drivers
The drivers can be obtained here
3. Windows 8.0 seems to require "fake" display for the Intel GPU
3.1 Go to Screen Resolution
Right click on your desktop and chose "Screen Resolution"
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Click the "Detect" button
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Selected detected display for Intel HD graphics and select "Try to select anyway on: VGA
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Click on "Apply"
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Extend displays: Chose your main display, for Multiple Displays select "Extend these displays" and click on "Apply".
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