AMD Warns CPUs May Run Slower On Windows 11, Promises Patch

The chipmaker says one issue for Windows 11 users is causing the L3 cache latency of its CPUs to roughly triple, slowing down latency-sensitive applications by 3-5 percent. For PC games that are commonly played for esports activities, the performance impact can be much worse: a 10-15 percent reduction.

AMD is warning that its CPUs may take a significant performance hit when running certain games and applications on Windows 11, but the chipmaker said patches are on the way to address the issues.

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company issued the warning on its website, saying it determined with Microsoft that compatible AMD CPUs can suffer from latency and thread scheduling issues on Windows 11, which officially launched this week.

[Related: Microsoft Exec: Windows 11 CPU Requirements Allow Key Security Features To Run ‘By Default’]

In the notice, AMD said one issue is causing the L3 cache latency to roughly triple, slowing down latency-sensitive applications by 3-5 percent. For PC games that are commonly used for esports, the performance impact can be much worse: a 10-15 percent reduction.

The chipmaker said the other issue revolves around the CPU not assigning threads to the fastest core, which is hurting performance for single- and multi-threaded applications. The company added that CPUs with eight or more cores may have more of a noticeable impact, but it did not say how much of a performance hit the thread scheduling issue is causing any compatible AMD CPU.

AMD said patches expected later this month will address these issues and suggested that impacted customers “may continue to use a supported version of Windows 10.”

Randy Copeland, CEO of Velocity Micro, a Richmond, Va.-based system builder that sells gaming PCs and professional workstations, told CRN that he isn’t surprised that CPU performance issues are being reported in the early days of Windows 11.

“We believe it’s going to be a pretty small blip,” he said. “We think it’ll be over in a month or two, long before a lot of people get a chance to upgrade to Windows 11. And that’s mostly not going to be noticeable unless you’re benchmarking.”

Copeland thinks Windows 11 will have a slower rollout than Windows 10, which launched in 2015 and has an end-of-life set for 2025, because of “incrementally fewer benefits” for the new operating system.

“I think that with a new user experience, anytime they start messing with the GUI, people start getting a little whacked out,” he said. “I think it‘s just going to take some time for people to say, ‘OK, I get it now.’”