NVIDIA responded to an issue of heightened CPU usage on specific systems with its latest driver update (version 531.18). In that update, one of the stated known issues by the company with CPU usage. Within a few days of installation, users were coming forward on the internet on several public social media platforms and the NVIDIA forums that their systems were experiencing higher-than-normal CPU usage issues. Today, the company issued a hotfix to fix the problem temporarily.

NVIDIA "hotfixes" heightened CPU usage issues with the newest driver update, warning users that it is a "beta" level fix and not finalized

NVIDIA wants users to understand that the current hotfix driver (version 531.26, the link will download the EXE file) is in its "beta" stages and is not considered a final fix by the company. With this new hotfix, the following issues have been addressed:

This hotfix addresses the following issues:

Higher CPU usage from NVIDIA Container might be observed after exiting a game [4007208][Notebook] Random bug check may be observed on certain laptops with GeForce GTX 10/MX250/350 series GPUs [4008527]

The company responded with an official statement in their NVIDIA forums about the higher CPU issue reported and a "random bug check" happening to certain NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10/MX250/350 series graphics cards.

A GeForce driver is an incredibly complex piece of software. We have an army of software engineers constantly adding features and fixing bugs. These changes are checked into the main driver branches, which are eventually run through a massive QA process and released.

Since we have so many changes being checked in, we usually try to align driver releases with significant game or product releases. This process has served us pretty well over the years but it has one significant weakness. Sometimes a change that is important to many users might end up sitting and waiting until we are able to release the driver.

The GeForce Hotfix driver is our way to trying to get some of these fixes out to you more quickly. These drivers are basically the same as the previous released version, with a small number of additional targeted fixes. The fixes that make it in are based in part on your feedback in the Driver Feedback threads and partly on how realistic it is for us to quickly address them. These fixes (and many more) will be incorporated into the next official driver release, at which time the Hotfix driver will be taken down.

To be sure, these Hotfix drivers are beta, optional and provided as-is. They are run through a much abbreviated QA process. The sole reason they exist is to get fixes out to you more quickly. The safest option is to wait for the next WHQL certified driver. But we know that many of you are willing to try these out.

These HotFix drivers represent a lot of additional work by our engineering teams, I hope they provide value for you. We’ll try it out and see if people like the idea and want us to continue.

As recommended by NVIDIA, it might be wise for users to wait for the official WHQL-certified driver than install this current hotfix from the company. However, as the reader, it is up to you how long you will wait. As we have stated numerous times before, if you choose to install this update, please ensure that you back up your system so that you do not lose data or render your system inoperable.

Here is the list of product compatibility for this update:

Driver Compatibility

DESKTOP

GeForce RTX 40: GeForce RTX 4090, GeForce RTX 4080, GeForce RTX 4070 TiNVIDIA TITAN: NVIDIA TITAN RTX, NVIDIA TITAN V, NVIDIA TITAN Xp, NVIDIA TITAN X (Pascal), GeForce GTX TITAN XGeForce RTX 30: GeForce RTX 3090 Ti, GeForce RTX 3090, GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, GeForce RTX 3080 (10GB/12GB), GeForce RTX 3070 Ti, GeForce RTX 3070, GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (GDDR6 & GDDR6X), GeForce RTX 3060 (12GB & 8GB), GeForce RTX 3050GeForce RTX 20: GeForce RTX 2080 Ti, GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2080, GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2070, GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2060 12GB, GeForce RTX 2060GeForce 16: GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER, GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER, GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, GeForce GTX 1660, GeForce GTX 1650GeForce 10: GeForce GTX 1080 Ti, GeForce GTX 1080, GeForce GTX 1070 Ti, GeForce GTX 1070, GeForce GTX 1060, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, GeForce GTX 1050, GeForce GT 1030, GeForce GT 1010GeForce 900: GeForce GTX 980 Ti, GeForce GTX 980, GeForce GTX 970, GeForce GTX 960, GeForce GTX 950GeForce 700: GeForce GTX 750 Ti, GeForce GTX 750, GeForce GTX 745 (All Maxwell GPUs)

MOBILE

GeForce RTX 40: GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPUGeForce RTX 30: GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3080 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3070 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPUGeForce RTX 20: GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2080, GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2070, GeForce RTX 2060GeForce MX: GeForce MX450, GeForce MX350, GeForce MX330, GeForce MX250, GeForce MX230, GeForce MX150, GeForce MX130, GeForce MX110GeForce GTX 16: GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, GeForce GTX 1650 Ti, GeForce GTX 1650GeForce 10: GeForce GTX 1080, GeForce GTX 1070, GeForce GTX 1060, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, GeForce GTX 1050GeForce 900M: GeForce GTX 980, GeForce GTX 980M, GeForce GTX 970M, GeForce GTX 965M, GeForce GTX 960M, GeForce GTX 950M, GeForce 945M, GeForce 940MX, GeForce 930MX, GeForce 920MX, GeForce 940M, GeForce 930MGeForce 800M: GeForce GTX 860M, GeForce GTX 850M, GeForce 845M, GeForce 840M, GeForce 830M

News Sources: VideoCardz, NVIDIA