Microsoft has just released a new Windows update aimed at boosting gaming performance on the latest AMD CPUs, as well as Intel CPUs to a lesser extent, without having to update to a whole new preview build of Windows. The move comes after evidence emerged that AMD CPU frame rates were being held back by Windows 11’s thread director, with a fix coming in the forthcoming Windows 11 24H2 update. However, you can now apply this AMD Windows update to your existing Windows 11 23H2 installation.
While none of AMD’s new Ryzen 9000 CPUs were expected to challenge the Ryzen 7 7800X3D for the best gaming CPU title, some tests of the new CPUs showed gaming performance that was worse than expected, and it turned out that updating to the preview build of Windows 24H2 resulted in huge performance gains on the chips.
In fact, in Gears 5, the new AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is 35% quicker, with its average frame rate jumping from 188fps on Windows 11 23H2 to 254fps in the new 24H2 build. However, Windows 11 24H2 is currently a preview build, and while that’s fine if you’re a seasoned tech pro who’s happy to take the risk of running a preview build of Windows, installing it requires you to be signed up for the Windows Inside Program, and it can all be a bit daunting to non-techy users who just want a system they can be sure will be stable.
In this case, though, the new optional Windows update can be applied to your existing Windows 11 23H2 build. This update contains the branch prediction optimizations for AMD’s new CPUs (the part of the chip that works out which instructions are likely to be next in the queue). If the results from Hardware Unboxed using the Windows 11 24H2 preview build are representative, then this update should also improve performance on AMD 7000-series CPUs, as well as Intel CPUs.
If you want to grab the update for yourself, you just need to run Windows Update (type “update” in the Search bar in the Start menu), and click the circular arrows to check for updates. The new update is called Cumulative Update Preview KB5041587, and it appeared in the main update section when I just installed it, but you may need to click on Optional updates, under Additional options, if you don’t see it on the main screen.
As this is still technically a preview update, even though it’s not a whole new build, you’ll need to accept Microsoft’s warning before you can install it, but you’ll then be able to download and install the new update to your Windows 11 23H2 build, and hopefully enjoy a gaming performance boost on your CPU.
For more detail on what’s inside AMD’s latest CPUs, check out our AMD Zen 5 guide, which takes you through all the specs of the new chips.
Overall, this new Windows update from Microsoft is a welcome addition for gamers looking to optimize their AMD CPUs for better gaming performance. With the ability to apply the update to existing Windows 11 23H2 installations, users can enjoy the benefits without the need to switch to a preview build. By following simple steps to download and install the update, gamers can potentially see significant improvements in their CPU performance, making their gaming experience smoother and more enjoyable.
