If you have been eagerly anticipating the performance enhancements promised by Windows 11’s 24H2 update for your Zen 3, Zen 4, or Zen 5 CPUs, your wait may be over. AMD has confirmed that optimizations for branch prediction, which are expected to boost performance, have been backported to the Windows 11 23H2 update. This update, identified as KB5041587, is accessible through Windows Update > Advanced options > Optional updates.
Performance Insights
An AMD spokesperson shared insights with Tom’s Hardware, stating, “We expect the performance uplift to be very similar between 24H2 and 23H2 with KB5041587 installed.” Currently, Windows 11 24H2 is in the Release Preview phase as part of the Windows Insider program. Early reviewers have reported noticeable performance improvements in several games, although some titles have experienced regressions.
While the performance enhancements are expected to benefit Zen 3 users, the spotlight is particularly on AMD’s new Ryzen 9000 series processors. The Ryzen 9 9950X, for instance, has faced criticism due to its inability to meet AMD’s performance uplift claims. Factors contributing to this discrepancy include instability issues with Intel’s 13th and 14th Gen Core processors and the use of a Windows “admin” profile instead of a standard user account during testing.
As noted by Tom’s Hardware managing editor Paul Alcorn, “[The Ryzen 9 9950X] lags behind competing chips in gaming, and the generational gains are small enough in some productivity workloads that the previous-gen Ryzen 9 7950X is an attractive alternative.” However, if the branch prediction enhancements in both Windows 11 24H2 and 23H2 deliver the expected performance boosts, they could revitalize AMD’s latest processors in gaming and specific productivity tasks.
AMD has labeled this branch prediction optimization as “AMD-specific,” raising questions about whether a similar version exists for Intel processors. As Ryzen owners await the potential benefits of this update, further testing will be essential to gauge the true impact on performance.
