Recently, AMD warned about compatible processors struggling with Windows 11. It additionally affirmed that it and Microsoft are looking for a fix to the problem. Now, users are beginning to run into those issues, unfortunately worsened by the October 12 Windows 11 Patch.
TechPowerUp reports that Windows 11 dramatically increases L3 cache latency. This impairs applications’ access to memory subsystems, with an estimated performance hit of 3-5%. In the outlet’s testing, it found that a Ryzen 7 2700X processor performed with a latency of 17ns, over an Windows 10 average of 10ns. After the patch, the latency jumped up to 31.9ns. More practically, this means that game and application performance can be significantly slowed. The second issue made the processor’s preferred core mechanism non-functional, which can impact CPU reliant tasks. The performance might worsen in eight-core processors above 65W TDP.
Fortunately, both AMD and Microsoft have promised fixes to the problem by the end of October. A Reddit post suggests the CPPC issues will resolve with a driver update, released on October 21st. The L3 latency issues will be fixed in a Windows 11 update on October 19th. These are of course just rumors, so actual dates and times may vary.
Despite the issues, Windows 11 does provide benefits for gamers looking to upgrade their rigs. Additionally, it is a free upgrade for anyone who owns Windows 10. Here is GameSpot’s guide to installing Windows 11, though you may want to wait until the operating system’s growing pains have slowed to install it.