Windows 11 Insider Build 29695 enables Intel APX to double CPU registers

Microsoft is experimenting with a new performance feature for Windows 11, which will improve the performance of your code on Intel CPUs. With the latest update, Windows 11 is now compatible with Intel's Advanced Performance Extensions. This will enable developers to optimize their software for better efficiency.

New toggle in Windows 11 allows developers to enable Intel APX

Now, this is important because fewer operations would be carried out by your CPU. This can result in faster application response time.

The Advanced Performance Extension performance feature is currently being tested on Windows 11 Insider Build 29695. Microsoft offers a convenient option to activate the Advanced Performance Extensions with a simple toggle switch within the interface. So, this will give developers access to a broader set of general-purpose registers, which are key in processing data for calculations.

According to Intel, this architectural improvement makes it possible to double the general-purpose registers from 16 to 32. Moreover, Intel's experiment with this feature involved using the SPEC CPU 2017 benchmark suite. Based on their simulations, this update brings about a 10 percent decrease in the load operations and more than 20 percent decrease in the store operations.

Furthermore, there is a 10 percent decrease in total instructions. So, your CPU has to do less work to get the same job done.

Developers can now compile code to benefit from these enhancements with GCC 15. In other words, the goal is to optimize performance without overhauling the existing structures of software. This means that for users who perform intensive computational tasks, there may be an increase in efficiency as more apps switch to the new standard.

We have seen similar themes of stability in recent Windows 11 updates, especially with the latest Windows 11 update, which ensured legacy compatibility. So, Microsoft is constantly improving the OS to meet modern performance demands while making sure it is still backward compatible. We can see from this experimental stage that these performance extensions will be introduced in the next major versions.