I7-6700-HQ . Games randomly started using only one core by default (despite showing all cores allowed in affinity setting)

[idata]

Hello,

A strange issue appeared out of nowhere on my laptop.

I am using Windows 10 and my CPU is a I7-6700-HQ

It appears that whenever I run a game, the core 0 always works at 100% capacity, causing stuttering in the game (probably due to clogging), when the other cores are not used that much (general CPU usage around 20% in the last test).

The strange part is:

When I go to the task manager and go to details>set affinity for this game, it shows that all cores are allowed, and if I validate (without changing any option, still allowing all cores to be used), then the CPU repartition goes back to something expected and the stuttering stops.

Any idea of what is happening and how to fix it ? This has been tested on several games (namely For Honor and Tales of Berseria) with the same results, when said games were working fine 3 days ago.

I didn't touch any configuration or option regarding CPU usage prior to the problem happening.

[idata]

Hello Djebeo,

It is expected that one core runs hotter that the others, see here;/thread/21417 https://communities.intel.com/thread/21417 post # 1, I am pretty sure that this will give you a better understanding. The stuttering may be related to other aspects, like maybe the graphics driver; let's check yours in order to make sure you are up to date. Use the steps below to check the version;

Please go to Device Manger> Display adapters> Intel(R) HD Graphics right click on Properties and then go to Driver, you will be able to see the version installed.

Regards,

Amy.

[idata]

Hello Amy,

The problem is not the core temperature, The problem is the core usage. In this case, core 0 is used 100% while the others have low usage, for programs that are designed to use all cores; They were working fine a few days ago and they go back to normal behavior as soon as I reset the affinity in the task manager.

All my GPU drivers are up to date

[idata]

If core 0 works with a higher usage than the other cores it's also expected, but at some point the usage should be shared with the other cores. If the program is designed to use all the cores the processor will behave as requested, but the program has to be designed like this and only developer can confirm it.

When the game starts to stutter you open the Task manager, open the affinity and what do you see? Do you see all the check marks on the boxes?

When the games worked fine; were you aware of the affinity that was set?

Regards,

Amy.

[idata]

Quote from the initial post:

"

The strange part is:

When I go to the task manager and go to details>set affinity for this game, it shows that all cores are allowed, and if I validate (without changing any option, still allowing all cores to be used), then the CPU repartition goes back to something expected and the stuttering stops. "

The set affinity when the game was working fine was also all cores.enabled. Plus, this issue affects multiple games with the exact same behaviour

[idata]

Thanks for the quote. I saw that, but I wanted to double check it since it was unclear. Let me share with you what I understand from that quote, my understanding is that if you open Task manager, then open the affinity for the game and validate(I guess you click Ok) without changing any of the boxes; this fixes the issue. I am trying to understand how the opening Task manager fixes the stutter when you are not actually changing anything.

Regards,

Amy.

[idata]

Your understanding is correct.

To summarize:

Everytime I launch a game core 0 invariably indicates that it is working at 100% and the game stutters

task manager>details>set affinity shows that all cores are enabled for this program

clicking "Ok" in the set affinity box entirely fixes the issue: core 0 oscillates between 50-80% usage, and the stuttering stops immediately.

My interpretation (that might be wrong as I am no expert) is that when I launch the game, only core 0 is used despite all cores being enabled for this program. Clicking "Ok" in the set affinity box resets the affinity, effectively allowing all cores to be used.

[idata]

Thanks for the clarification.

I agree on your interpretation. I would like to check if you can play the game in Safe Mode, if this can be replicated there this could be operating system related.

Regards,

Amy.

[idata]

/message/471166?tstart=0 Djebeo, I am following up your thread, and I wanted to know the results from the suggestion mentioned above. I also have a couple of suggestions that you can find below;

• I would like you to run a diagnose using our https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/19792/Intel-Processor-Diagnostic-Tool Download Intel® Processor Diagnostic Tool, this tool will help us to check the integrity of your processor.
• I know that this happens with certain games, so I would like to request a test where you use any desktop app and see if the issue can be replicated.

Regards,

Amy.

[idata]

/message/471166?tstart=0# 471166 Djebeo, if you need further assistance let us know.

Regards,

Amy C.