Performance Drop After a Windows Update
Windows updates re-enable settings you turned off and occasionally install a driver you did not want. Both are reversible.
The short answer
Performance regressions following a Windows update are commonly caused by security features such as memory integrity being re-enabled, graphics drivers being replaced automatically, or power plan settings reverting to defaults. Checking whether memory integrity has been switched back on is the single most productive first step, as it carries a measurable performance cost in games. Each of these is reversible without rolling back the update itself.
Verified and last updated August 12, 2026.
- Time needed
- 13 min
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Read time
- 3 min
The pattern is familiar: everything was fine, Windows updated overnight, and now frame rate is noticeably worse.
Three things cause nearly all of it and none require rolling back the update.
Memory integrity gets re-enabled
Windows turns it back on across updates even when you previously disabled it. The performance cost is measurable and this is the most common single cause of a post-update regression.
Step 1: Check whether memory integrity was re-enabled
Check the setting 3 minutes
Open Windows Security, then Device Security, then Core Isolation Details. Look at Memory Integrity. If it is on and you previously turned it off, the update re-enabled it. Turning it off again requires a restart to take effect.
Be clear about the trade. This is a real security feature that isolates parts of the operating system using virtualisation, and that isolation costs performance in operations games perform constantly.
Plenty of people disable it on a dedicated gaming machine and keep it on elsewhere. Make that decision deliberately rather than treating it as a routine tweak.
Step 2: Check whether your graphics driver was replaced
Windows Update distributes graphics drivers and will install its own version over one you installed manually, often an older or more generic build.
Check your driver version against the vendor's current release. If it changed, reinstall the vendor driver and disable automatic driver updates, or the cycle repeats. The driver rollback guide covers doing that cleanly.
Step 3: Re-apply power and game settings
Feature updates in particular revert several settings silently:
- Power plan. Check it is still on your chosen plan rather than balanced.
- Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling. In graphics settings; state can change.
- Game Mode. Usually beneficial, occasionally toggled.
- Startup applications. Updates sometimes re-enable things you disabled.
- Xbox Game Bar and background capture. Frequently reactivated.
The Windows gaming settings guide covers the full list worth verifying after any significant update.
The one that is not a fault
Immediately after a large update, Windows performs indexing, storage maintenance and sometimes shader recompilation for games. Disk activity is elevated and performance suffers.
That resolves itself within a few hours of idle time. Before troubleshooting anything, check whether the machine is simply busy. The background apps guide covers identifying what is consuming resources.
Give it a day before concluding the update broke something.
What works
What doesn't
Key takeaways
Frequently asked questions
What is memory integrity and why does it cost performance?
It is a virtualisation-based security feature that isolates parts of the operating system, and that isolation adds overhead to operations games perform frequently. The cost varies by system and title but is measurable. Windows updates re-enable it regularly even when it was previously turned off, which is why performance can drop without any other change.
Should I disable memory integrity?
It is a genuine security feature and disabling it is a real trade rather than a free optimisation. For a gaming machine where the performance cost is significant, many people accept the trade. For a machine handling sensitive work, the calculation is different. Make the decision knowingly rather than treating it as a routine tweak.
Why did Windows change my graphics driver?
Windows Update distributes graphics drivers and will install its own version over a manually installed one, typically an older or generic build. The result can be a noticeable performance regression. Reinstalling the vendor's driver and disabling automatic driver updates prevents the cycle repeating.
Can I roll back a Windows update?
Within a limited window after installation, yes, through recovery options. It is rarely the right answer because the underlying causes are individually reversible and rolling back leaves you without security fixes. Address the specific setting rather than reverting the whole update.
About the author
PC Hardware & Performance Editor
Marcus has been building, breaking and repairing gaming PCs since 2011, first as a weekend favour for friends and then for eight years as a bench technician at an independent repair shop in Portland, where roughly a third of the job was diagnosing machines that "ran fine yesterday".
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