Lightweight always-on-top hardware monitor overlay for Windows. Real-time FPS, GPU/CPU usage, temperatures, power draw, clocks and RAM — right on your screen while gaming or working.
- Real-time sensor data via MSI Afterburner shared memory (MAHM)
- Always-on-top, frameless overlay — never steals focus from your game (
WS_EX_NOACTIVATE) - Smooth animations — splash screen on startup, slide-in/out via tray, hover fade, open & close transitions
- Fully customizable — per-sensor colors, opacity, hover opacity, poll rate, theme
- Drag to reposition or lock in place
- System tray integration with right-click context menu
- Auto-update — silently checks GitHub Releases on startup and installs updates (the installer is only run when its published SHA256 matches; an unverifiable release is refused)
- Windows startup support via registry
- Dark & Light themes with Windows High Contrast accessibility support
- Rotating logs + crash handler with detailed reports
| Sensor | Unit | Source |
|---|---|---|
| FPS / FPS 1% Low | fps | MSI Afterburner |
| GPU Usage / GPU2 Usage | % | MSI Afterburner |
| GPU Temp / GPU Hotspot | °C | MSI Afterburner |
| GPU Power | W | MSI Afterburner |
| GPU Clock / GPU Fan | MHz / % | MSI Afterburner |
| VRAM Usage | MB | MSI Afterburner |
| CPU Usage | % | MSI Afterburner |
| CPU Temp | °C | MSI Afterburner |
| CPU Power / CPU Clock | W / MHz | MSI Afterburner |
| RAM Usage | % | Windows API |
| Ping | ms | TCP probe |
- Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit)
- MSI Afterburner with hardware monitoring enabled
Istari reads sensor data from MSI Afterburner's shared memory. Afterburner must be running in the background.
- Go to Releases
- Download
Istari_Setup.exe. Releases up to v1.0.22 published it asPalantir_Setup.exe, the app's former name. - Run the installer
Upgrading from the old Palantir build? The installer uses a new application identity, so it does not replace an existing Palantir installation: uninstall Palantir from Add or remove programs first, otherwise two overlays can end up running side by side.
Windows SmartScreen warning: You may see "Windows protected your PC" on first run. Click More info → Run anyway. This is normal for unsigned open-source apps.
- Move — click and drag the overlay
- Lock — right-click → Lock (prevents accidental moving)
- Hide / Show — left-click the system tray icon (slides in/out with animation)
- Settings — click the
⋮button on the overlay or right-click tray → Settings - Quit — right-click tray → Quit (or right-click overlay → Quit)
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Opacity | Overlay opacity when idle (20–100%) |
| Hover Opacity | Opacity when mouse is over the overlay (5–80%) |
| Update Interval | Sensor polling rate (500 ms – 5 s) |
| Theme | Dark or Light |
| Always on Top | Keep overlay above all windows |
| Launch at startup | Start with Windows |
| Sensor colors | Click any colored dot to change that sensor's color |
| Add / Remove sensors | Customize which sensors are displayed |
git clone https://github.com/thealps01-netizen/istari.git
cd istari
pip install -r requirements.txt
python istari.pypip install -r requirements-dev.txt
pytest tests/Requires PyInstaller and Inno Setup 6.
build.batbuild.bat creates its own pinned virtual environment at
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Istari\build-venv (outside the repository) instead of installing build
dependencies into your global Python, and produces installer/Istari_Setup.exe — a
self-contained Windows installer.
| File | Description |
|---|---|
istari.py |
Main UI widget, splash screen, animations, entry point |
hw.py |
Hardware data sources — MAHM shared memory + Windows API |
cfg.py |
Sensor catalog, settings persistence, startup registry |
themes.py |
QSS theme builders — dark, light, high contrast |
dialogs.py |
Settings dialog, welcome screen |
updater.py |
GitHub Releases update checker and auto-installer |
logger.py |
Rotating file logger |
crash_handler.py |
Global exception handler with crash reports |
version.py |
Single source of truth for version |
build.bat |
Build automation (PyInstaller → Inno Setup) |
istari.iss |
Inno Setup installer configuration |
Stored in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Istari\logs\:
| File | Description |
|---|---|
istari.log |
Application log — 1 MB rotating, 2 backups |
crash_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.log |
Crash reports with full traceback |
MIT © 2026 thealps01-netizen