As the first reviews of the Ryzen 9 9900X and Ryzen 9 9950X processors based on the Zen 5 architecture showed, there is practically no increase in gaming performance compared to the previous generation models Ryzen 9 7900X and Ryzen 9 7950X based on the Zen 4 architecture. YouTube channel HardwareUnboxed suggests that the reason for this may be a bug in the Windows 11 operating system.
Image Source: HardwareUnboxed
As part of our own testing of processors in different conditions (with and without reinstalling the OS) and on different hardware configurations, HardwareUnboxed found that in general the performance of Ryzen 9000 processors differs from case to case, even within seemingly identical PC configurations. As a result, the YouTube channel decided to hold back the release of its review of the chips and turned to AMD for comments. They confirmed that the experts carried out the tests correctly, but the performance increase, especially in gaming, should be higher. After the publication of the first reviews by other media and further communication between HardwareUnboxed and AMD, a rather interesting pattern was revealed.
As it turned out, the gaming performance of AMD processors for some reason depends on the privileges of the Windows user account. It may be lower if the Windows user account has insufficient rights. So, when installing the Window 11 operating system, a local user account is created. However, the OS also includes a hidden system administrator account. For some reason, it is the local scientific record that is experiencing performance degradation. At the same time, the administrator account gets processor performance exactly as AMD expects. To enable the administrator account you must:
- Open command line;
- Enter the command: “net.exe user administrator /active:yes” (without quotes), press “Enter”;
- Close the command line, click “Start”, log out (local account);
- Select the administrator account in the lower left corner of the screen.
Since the user will actually log into a new account, all application settings will be reset and will have to be installed again.
HardwareUnboxed notes that performance degradation when using a local account is only observed in games. There is no performance degradation in regular work applications and programs. The fact that the problem lies with the Windows operating system itself, and not with AMD processors, is hinted at by changes in performance for Ryzen 7000 processors.
Across 13 1080p gaming tests of the Ryzen 7 9700X on a PC with a GeForce RTX 4090, the average performance difference between local and admin accounts was 3.8%, compared to 2.6% for the Ryzen 7 7700X.
But this is not all the oddities associated with the Ryzen 9000. Earlier it became known that AMD sent recommendations to specialized media for testing new chips, indicating the following:
«Unfortunately, sometimes Windows does not apply the settings correctly when replacing a processor. In this case, you can try reinstalling the AMD chipset driver for the motherboard. However, a fresh installation of Windows is the most preferable option. After installing the new processor and starting Windows, wait until the new hardware initializes (until the system enters standby mode). For review purposes, we highly recommend performing a fresh installation of Windows to ensure that the new CPU initializes correctly. In this case, provisioning time can be saved by installing the Windows operating system on two separate SSDs for the 9950X/9900X and 9700X/9600X processors. This way, you won’t need to reinstall Windows every time when replacing processors with one CCD chiplet (lower models – editor’s note) with chips with two CCD chiplets (older models – editor’s note) to conduct tests. We also recommend using the Cyberpunk 2077 benchmark to verify the installation is correct. In this test, using the RTX 4090 graphics card and the 9950X processor, the result should be about 210 FPS, and with the 9900X – about 200 FPS,” an AMD representative explained to HardwareLuxx editor Andreas Schilling.
Speaking to HardwareUnboxed, an AMD spokesperson also stated that the account issue will be fixed in a future Windows update. However, the company did not specify when exactly this update should be expected.