AMD Adrenalin 26.11.1 fixes excessive SSD writes on Radeon PCs
AMD released an optional Windows driver, Adrenalin Edition 26.11.1, on Thursday, November 12, to fix excessive writes to the system drive on PCs with Radeon RX 7000 and RX 9000 series graphics. AMD's support article on the problem tells anyone affected to install it.
What the driver fixes
The release notes list only 2 fixed issues, and both involve the system drive. The first is excessive writes while the PC sits idle, which AMD says affects Radeon RX 7000 series graphics and newer. The second is excessive writes while you move or resize application windows.
AMD also published a support article on the idle problem. It describes "excessive SSD write activity" on Radeon RX 7000 and RX 9000 series graphics while the system is idle, says the issue is resolved and recommends version 26.11.1 as the solution.
Neither page says which earlier drivers introduced the bug or how much data they wrote.
Known issues to check first
The driver lists 9 known issues, most of them game-specific. Among them:
- Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced may crash or time out the driver on Radeon RX 7000 series cards.
- War Thunder may time out the driver on Radeon RX 5000 series cards. AMD recommends using Adrenalin 26.9.1 if that happens.
- AMD Smart Access Memory may turn off after installing the driver on Windows 10.
- Phantom Blade Zero may show corrupted character hair on RX 9000 series cards. AMD suggests turning off the game's High-Quality Hair setting.
If you need to go back to an older driver, AMD recommends running its AMD Cleanup Utility first.
Which PCs it supports
The driver supports Windows 11 version 21H2 and later and 64-bit Windows 10 version 21H2 and later. It covers desktop Radeon RX 5000, 6000, 7000 and 9000 series cards, Radeon PRO workstation cards and Ryzen processors with Radeon graphics. For laptops and all-in-ones, AMD recommends the drivers from the PC maker, which are tuned for those systems.
What it means for you
If you have a Radeon RX 7000 or RX 9000 series card and see your system drive busy while the PC does nothing, install 26.11.1 from AMD's release notes page.
AMD labels this an optional driver. Read the known issues before you install, especially if you play War Thunder on an RX 5000 card or use Smart Access Memory on Windows 10.
AMD's idle-write fix names only RX 7000 and newer cards, but the fix for writes while moving or resizing windows isn't tied to a card series. If you run an older Radeon card and haven't noticed unusual drive activity, waiting for a later driver is a reasonable choice.