Windows 10: Windows 11 - "Best Performance" mode slower than "Balanced" mode on battery

This issue started after I upgrade from Windows 10 to 11. I was just using my PC normally the other day and noticed things were slower than usual. I checked Task Manager and everything was normal. I then tried to install the latest Intel driver to see if it makes things better, but to no avail. I then immediately tried switching Power mode to "Balanced" in windows' settings app, and the slowdown issue was fixed. I don't know if this is a recurring bug in Windows 11 that was left undiscovered, but it doesn't happen when my PC is plugged on AC power.

:)

 

Windows 11 - 'Best Performance' power mode way slower than 'Balanced' on battery + general excessive CPU throttling on battery

Windows 11 is behaving very oddly for me on battery when power mode is 'Best performance'

Problem description

I mostly use my laptop plugged and it works fine, but the other day needed to do some work on the field and it was really slow, to the point of being almost unusable. Applications opened really slowly and everything was jerky, mouse pointer not smooth etc. Just slooow.

I checked task manager and noticed CPU frequency not going beyond 2Ghz, mostly below that.

My laptop is quite high end: i7-11800H with 32Gb of RAM and SSD (HP ZBook Power G8) so this was very frustrating.

I had no such issues on Windows 10 (recently upgraded) so it must be a Windows 11 issue or something went wrong during the upgrade.

A basic test I did is to have no applications open and just open file explorer. When I'm plugged in, it opens up instantly, but on battery and 'Best performance' it takes about 2-3 seconds.

During such tests the odd thing is while CPU frequency is throttled, CPU usage is still very low (20% max). RAM usages also low at about 30-40% and low disk usage too, basically zero.

Discoveries

1. I then switched power mode to balanced and the problem partially went away. CPU frequency now goes up to 3Ghz but still nowhere near peak performance as when plugged in, where it reaches 4Ghz+.

Again, in Windows 10 no issue.

2. I then turned off Intel power management in the BIOS and, while in Best Performance power mode, it had the same/similar effect as using Balanced power mode with Intel power management ON in the BIOS, meaning better but still not peak performance.

3. Changing power plan settings like min processor state had no effect whatsoever.

I suspect this is a power management configuration / CPU throttling issue but I don't have enough deep technical knowledge about how Windows manages these things to find a solution to my problem. Perhaps some of you do

Additional info

All drivers are up to date, latest BIOS installed, all recent Windows 11 updates installed
Everything 'default' in BIOS except for the tests I did explained above.

Full specs

HP ZBook Power G8 15"
Processor 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-11800H @ 2.30GHz 2.30 GHz

32.0 GB RAM

64-bit Windows 11 Pro

1TB SSD with plenty of space

Disclaimer

While I appreciate people who want to help by giving instructions on how to run trouble shooters, SFC and DISM checks and other such "standard" initial procedures, please refrain as I already know how to do these things having worked in IT admin for many years and, besides that, I've already run all of those without any benefit.

Additionally, I would really like to understand the root cause of the issue rather than hoping some tool will automagically fix it. For one I'm just curious and secondly it will be very valuable knowledge in my line of work.

If anyone has experienced this before or can give me some pointers would appreciate it.

Will be happy to answer any questions or provide additional info.

Thanks for any help

 

Balanced performance mode causes games to stutter.

I've been having a power issue for a while with my laptop. I dont know what i did, but this started a month ago I'd say. So basically, my laptop tends to heat up when the balanced power mode (Settings>System> Power & Battery) is set to best performance, and i dont want it to heat up, like the laptop's cpu runs at 60 degrees celsius when i simply turn the laptop on, but when its on balanced, it cools down and it's not as hot which is what im going for. But theres an issue, when i run games like Ghostrunner or Call of Duty, performance is significantly worse than if the power mode is set to best performance. The games stutter, FPS drop by 30%, maybe even 50% in some cases. I dont know if i deleted a special power plan my laptop used or something, but this didnt happen before. I'd say its the cpu usage that drops, which I'd say is the cause for these stutters, so is there anyone that knows a fix to this problem?

 

DPC Issue In Balanced Power Mode

Hi Corey,

Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.

What is the issue that you are facing with the sound?

The difference between Balanced Mode and Power Saver Mode is that Balanced Mode automatically increases the CPU's speed when the computer needs it and reduces it when it is not necessary. The Power Saver Mode will attempt to save power by reducing CPU's
speed all the time and lowering the screen brightness with the intention of increasing battery life.

Also, we have another mode, i.e., High Performance Mode and this mode does not lower the CPU's speed when it is being used and also increases the screen brightness.

For the DPC issue, put your computer in Balanced Mode, follow the below methods, and check if this helps.

Method 1: Disable Dynamic Ticking.

Step 1: Click on the Start Menu and search for
Command Prompt > Right-click on Command Prompt > Click on
Run As Administrator.

Step 2: In the Command Prompt window, type the following command and hit
Enter.

bcdedit /set disabledynamictick yes

Step 3: Once the command is executed successfully, you should see
Operation completed successfully message, so exit from Command Prompt and check for the issue.

Method 2: Update Graphics Card.

I suggest you to follow the steps mentioned in Update drivers in Windows 10 and update your Display
adapters drivers and check for the issue.

Method 3: Tampering with Network Devices.

Step 1: Click on the Start Menu and search for
Device Manager and hit Enter.

Step 2: Expand Network adapters and locate the Wireless and Ethernet adapters (they should be at the top of the list and carry a bran's name such as Intel) >
Right-click on each one and click on Properties > Go to
Advanced tab > Locate Energy Ethernet and disable it by choosing the option under
Value and choosing Off.

Step 3: Then, go to Power Management tab and
uncheck the box next to Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power (make sure you repeat the process for all suitable devices that you apply the changes and check for the DPC issue).

Method 4: Disable Firewall/Antivirus.

If you have installed any third-party security software, I suggest you to temporarily disable them and check for the DPC issue.

Note: Software helps protecting your computer against viruses and other security threats. In most cases, you shouldn't disable your antivirus software. If you have to temporarily disable it to install other software and\or troubleshoot any
pertinent issue, you should re-enable it as soon as you're done. If you are connected to the Internet or a network while your antivirus software is disabled, your computer is vulnerable to malware attacks.

Method 5: Finding The Device That Is Causing The DPC Issue.

The common problematic devices that may cause the DPC issue are Network/WiFi adapters, card readers, sound devices that are not in use, Bluetooth adapters, and graphics card.

To narrow down which device is causing the issue, try disabling the above device one by one from Device Manager and then run the DPC test again. If DPC test is successful, then enable each device and run the test again to see exactly
which device is causing the issue. If you find the device that is causing the issue, then uninstall that device from your computer, go to the manufactures website, and install the latest drivers for that device, else get back to us to help you further.

Give it a shot and let us know of any changes.

Hope it helps.