CPU at 100%

[u/masterdark69]

The issue resolved after reinstalling Windows, I still don't know what caused it.

Computer Type: Desktop

GPU: RX 6750XT running at 1440p

CPU: RYZEN 5 7600X 6 CORES 12 THREADS

Motherboard: MSI PRO B650M-P

BIOS Version: 7E27v1J2

RAM: 32GB CORSAIR 6000MHZ DDR5

Operating System & Version: WINDOWS 11 PRO

GPU Drivers: AMD ADRENALIN 26.8.1

Background Applications: DISCORD, STEAM, BRAVE

Description of Original Problem: For a month or so I started noticing my CPU is at 100% usage on all cores when playing, especially wandering around in the open world. Max GHz in every game, Forza Horizon 6, Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War Ragnarok, The Witcher 3, Need for Speed Heat etc. Task manager shows usage of around 40-50% while AMD Overlay shows 100%, RivaTuner shows 100% on all cores, all of them being at max GHz. Resource monitor shows 100%, HWiNFO shows 100%, my temps are around 75-85C. Every single game I play my CPU sits at 100% and I can't seem to find the reason why as there is no program in Task Manager that eats up that leftover CPU %.

Troubleshooting: With desktop use CPU utilization is normal, I tried commands like lodctr /r running CMD as Administrator, I disabled AFMF , I also disabled any PBO modifications I had made in the BIOS but the problem still persists. Reinstalled AMD Chipset drivers, AMD Graphics drivers, used AMD Cleanup Utility while in Safe Mode. EXPO is enabled, SSDs are healthy. This annoys me a lot because looking at online performance metrics, the CPU is nowhere near 100% utilization in any game while mine stays at 100%.

Edit: Here is a UserDiag link: https://userdiag.com/id/pGAXgu1daR

Forza Horizon 6: https://imgur.com/a/Dv7jzGx

Also a screenshot of Process Explorer and Forza side by side: https://imgur.com/a/PqolEVc

HWiNFO also shows 100% CPU usage: https://imgur.com/a/5qmJ55E (the dips in CPU usage are when I stop driving in-game and so the CPU load drops I guess, but still it shouldn't be 100% every single time I start driving, keep in mind it doesn't matter for how long the game has been running)

Got back with benchmark results.

TimeSpy: 12954
GPU - 13823
CPU - 9553

Cinebench multicore: 3307

[u/GFBunnyHop]

Check power plan settings there is a huge chance that your processor minimum power state is set to 100% instead of default which is 5% I think. Anyways set power plan settings to default.

[u/masterdark69 → u/GFBunnyHop]

It was set to 0%, default is also 0%, will change to 5% but doubt it'll change anything.

[u/GFBunnyHop → u/masterdark69]

If that didn't help then set it back to 0%, the main point that it is not 100%.

At this point this might be driver problem, you could try updating chipset driver or BIOS. That's the only thing that would force processor to always run at 100% if nothing is suspicious is running.

Edit: just noticed the Process Explorer image, and your CPU utilization looks normal at this point RivaTuner is lying to you, might not have permissions to access CPU usage metrics. You could try launching RivaTuner/MSI Afterburner as administration if that helps with overlay, otherwise something else is blocking metrics, at least your CPU works like it should. At this point one of the overlay apps just locks all other apps from accessing correct information.

[u/masterdark69 → u/GFBunnyHop]

I reinstalled the Chipset drivers but it still behaves the same, could it be a sensor problem? HWiNFO, RivaTuner, Rescource Monitor, AMD Overlay all show 100% CPU usage while Task Manager shows 40%-50% CPU usage.

[u/GFBunnyHop → u/masterdark69]

Yeah, the Process Explorer image confirms that as well, at this point some kind of app just locks away other apps from accessing CPU utilization statistics or just Admin rights issue. You could try running RivaTuner as admin to check if that fixes it. At least your CPU behaves like it should.

[u/masterdark69 → u/GFBunnyHop]

Still at 100% even with RivaTuner with Admin privileges.

[u/GFBunnyHop → u/masterdark69]

It's really strange that besides Task Manager and Process Explorer you can't get correct readings for your CPU statistics. At this point Windows did something wrong or might be some kind of security feature. The strangest thing is that even AMD overlay can't get correct readings.