Windows 10: High CPU usage at idle caused by system interrupts on MacBook laptop

Hi All,

I have an issue with a clean Windows 10 1909 installation running on my MacBook laptop.


In Windows Task Manager I see a constant 7-8% "System interrupts" usage and CPU0 is 100% busy when the machine is idle:













In Process Explorer I see that ACPI.sys is putting the CPU under load:




Hardware:
MacBook Pro Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014
Model: A1398 EMC 2876
ID: MacBookPro11,2
CPU: 2.2 GHz Core i7 I7-4770HQ 4 cores, 8 logical processors
RAM: 16 GB
Video Card: Intel Iris Pro 5200
Storage: 256 GB SSD

Software:
BIOS Version/Date: 159.0.0.0.0, 2020-02-05
macOS version: 10.15.4 19E287
Windows version: Windows 10 Pro 1909 Build 18363, 64 bit, English


If I put the computer to sleep and wake it, CPU0 goes down to 0%, but after a restart it goes back to 100%.


Uninstalling the Intel Graphics Driver also fixes the issue, but this is not a permanent solution as I can only use my external monitor with the Intel driver.


I tried several Intel Drivers, but the issue persists with all of them:
1. 10.18.10.3345 Oct 31, 2013 this one gets installed with Windows
2. 10.18.15.4240 Jun 16, 2015 this one gets installed with the Apple Boot Camp Support Software
3. 20.19.15.4531 Sep 29, 2016 this one gets installed with Windows Update
4. 20.19.15.5126 Jan 21, 2020 this one is the latest on Intel's website

Can someone please advise how to get this fixed?


Thank you!

:)

 

High CPU usage when idle - System and System interrupts

I've been trying to find a solution for a while and decided to ask here for more help. I've noticed that my CPU usage is pretty high when idle, even after a cold reboot of the computer:

Task Manager View showing "System" and "System interrupts" causing a high CPU load:




I've tried to dig deeper and used Processor Explorer to get more information, which, strangely enough, shows that "System interrupts" uses up more % of the CPU than the "System" process:

Process Explorer showing that "Interrupts" is taking up 20% of the CPU load:




Next I've tried to narrow down the causes of the interrupts by using the Windows Performance Recorder and analyze the graph using the Windows Performance Analyzer (can't post the screenshot due to not having enough rep, but it looks like hal.dll is causing the most interrupts, but less than the 20% seen with Process Explorer)

Any suggestions how to proceed?

Information about my computer:

• Windows 10
  
• Intel Core i5-4790k
  
• AMD R390 GPU
  
• 8 GB Ram
  

I've updated the GPU and sound drivers and Windows is up to date.

 

High Idle CPU Usage System Interrupts

I know EVERYONE asks "wait, what is this process, how come I'm idling with high CPU usage?!" but I have exhausted all internet solutions I can find here, and I work in IT.

My server at home is an old Lenovo E32 with an i5 4590S, 12GB of DDR3 1600, an EVGA 500W G3 PSU, a GTX 1060 and a decent bit o storage crammed in (2x3tb drives, 1x8TB
drive, a 256GB boot SSD and a 1TB game storage SSD.

It functions as a remote fileserver, Parsec game streaming PC, Plex server and Minecraft server.

Yet lately when I remote in I have noticed that my overall CPU usage is sitting at about 30%, yet I am doing nothing on the system. I know the 4590S isn't that fast, but I don't know what is going on. The
only process consuming any CPU usage is System Interrupts, sitting pretty at about 22%. I ran a recommended latency testing tool and it seems like DirectX is the thing causing all the interrupts. Is this normal? I have never seen idle CPU usage like this out
of a healthy system under no load.

Thanks!

Rowan

 

System Interrupts Causing High CPU Usage?

What Is System Interrupts ? And How To Fix High CPU Usage Problem