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[winjer]

Windows 11 24H2 Update Has Auto HDR Bug - Impacting Game Colors and Stability

The Windows 11 24H2 update has introduced a significant bug affecting the Auto HDR feature, which is impacting the visual quality and stability of games and other applications.

www.guru3d.com

The Windows 11 24H2 update has introduced a significant bug affecting the Auto HDR feature, which is impacting the visual quality and stability of games and other applications. Users have reported that colors in games appear inaccurately, and some applications are crashing unexpectedly. Disabling the automatic color management system has been found to reduce these color issues, indicating that the problem may be related to how colors are managed by the operating system’s settings. Auto HDR is designed to enhance gaming visuals by converting standard dynamic range (SDR) content to high dynamic range (HDR), aiming to improve color vibrancy and overall image quality without requiring manual adjustments. This feature was introduced to provide gamers with a better visual experience by automatically enhancing the colors and contrast of games.

However, with the 24H2 update, this feature is causing unintended color distortions and application crashes. Several popular games, including Call of Duty Infinite Warfare, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Origins, Far Cry, and Need for Speed Unbound, have been reported to fail to load properly or crash entirely when Auto HDR is enabled, disrupting the gaming experience for users.

In response to these issues, Microsoft has advised users to turn off the Auto HDR feature or postpone installing the 24H2 update until a fix is released. The company has proactively blocked the update on systems where Auto HDR is active to prevent further problems. Additionally, users are recommended not to manually install the update using Media Creation tools or Windows 11 ISOs unless Auto HDR is disabled. To address the current problem, Microsoft is actively working on a patch that will resolve the Auto HDR issues and plans to release it in the near future. In the meantime, affected users can disable Auto HDR by navigating to Settings, selecting System, then Display, and turning off the Auto HDR option either globally for all games or specifically for individual applications. Furthermore, the 24H2 update has been associated with other issues, such as the mouse cursor disappearing, decreased system performance, and problems with the File Explorer interface appearing outside the window, indicating broader stability concerns with this Windows 11 version.

Microsoft just keeps on delivering with 24H2...

 

[spons]

I've only heard problems with HDR in Windows. I don't understand why Android boxes, smartphones, gaming consoles, etc. all do it well, yet on PC it just doesn't work.

 

[G-DannY]

24H2 here and no problem with HDR, autoHDR or whatsoever else

 

[Zathalus]

I have it disabled as I find RTX HDR to be better. Microsoft just keeps demonstrating how proper QA actually matters.

 

[winjer]

I've only heard problems with HDR in Windows. I don't understand why Android boxes, smartphones, gaming consoles, etc. all do it well, yet on PC it just doesn't work.

The answer is simple: Microsoft

 

[GymWolf]

Never used it even when it was good tbh.

 

[Astray]

I've only heard problems with HDR in Windows. I don't understand why Android boxes, smartphones, gaming consoles, etc. all do it well, yet on PC it just doesn't work.

Because Windows has been behind the times and thoroughly declining in quality for a while now.

Like I said before, I await Nvidia drivers on Linux so I can completely excise that abortion of an OS from my gaming life.

 

[mcmanic]

no problems here, use it all the time

 

[StereoVsn]

Why pay for QA department when customers will do it for free, am I right?

Microsoft release quality just keeps getting worse and worse. Can’t wait for Gaben and Valve to release a more widespread version of Steam OS.

I am already off Windows for non gaming related tasks on the personal side (work still has some software I need it for).

 

[StereoVsn]

The answer is simple: Microsoft

Yep, cut QA, churn through contractors at rapid pace so they don’t have to pay benefits, outsource a bunch to India and don’t pay for proper integrations and world wide team management and much more.

That’s ok, the answer to everything is Co-Pilot, Azure and 365. Or better yet Co-Pilot in Azure and 365.

 

[seb85]

Auto HDR in windows has been broken since like forever , it interfere with games that has native HDR support and apply its own HDR I keep it off all the time

 

[Gaiff]

I have it disabled as I find RTX HDR to be better. Microsoft just keeps demonstrating how proper QA actually matters.

RTX HDR has a significant performance cost though.

 

[Zathalus]

RTX HDR has a significant performance cost though.

Oh yes, but luckily most of the games I find it benefits are older or less demanding titles. The only recent demanding title I used it in was Black Myth. But I find the added HDR is often worth the performance penalty.

 

[Spukc]

Hdr
Dolby vision
Dolby atmos
Streaming

All fucked

 

[Doctor Hades]

HDR is a complete mess on PC in my experience having been using it since the start of this year when I bought my first HD monitor, a 27" Alienware AW2725DF QD-OLED.

I already had experience with HDR on consoles from using them with my 55" LG OLED TVs (B9 then C3) where they worked pretty much seamlessly, auto-activating when a game is using HDR and turning off when it isn't. HDR on 4K UHD Blu-ray discs was even more seamless. I was impressed and obviously expected the same kind of experience on PC.

Wrong!!!

On PC, HDR not only requires the user to enable and disable it manually - thankfully there is a keyboard shortcut to do this (Ctrl + Alt + B) - but you also have to enable/disable the HDR setting in the game. Some games even get confused if you previously played the game with HDR but then load it up again with HDR disabled but the in-game HDR setting still enabled, requiring a settings change and a game restart. It's far from user-friendly and a huge disappointment considering I am using Windows 11. I expected better.

I have tried the Auto-HDR setting but quickly disabled it as it is not quite the "one-size-fits-all" setting that I was expecting, and caused issues with some games, plus forces HDR in some games that actually don't support HDR so they look "wrong".

Needless to say, after a short spell of trying out HDR in PC games and only being impressed by a few - DiRT 5 is one game that I thought looked amazing with HDR - I have basically gone back to just playing games in SDR as QD-OLED offers vibrant colours and deep blacks anyway that often looks better in games with SDR than it does with HDR. Star Wars Outlaws on PC looks washed out with HDR due to a raised black floor that cannot be corrected via the in-game settings, and actually looks better in SDR.

 

[Black_Stride]

24H2 here and no problem with HDR, autoHDR or whatsoever else

no problems here, use it all the time

What games are you playing with AutoHDR.
And type "winver" into your terminal to make sure you are actually using 24H2


And can you compare it to the games Native HDR or RTX HDR and report back.
Cuz Windows HDR in general is bad, but AutoHDR is atrocious.

Tested it in Octopath Traveler vs RTX HDR and its a fucking nightmare.
Tested it in Forza Horizon 5 vs Native and might as well play in SDR.

Using an RTX 4080 so the perf cost of RTX HDR is a none issue as the most taxing games I play usually have a Native HDR solution.

 

[Spukc]

how hard is HDR on the steam deck?
linux based?

 

[GHG]

Hdr
Dolby vision
Dolby atmos
Streaming

All fucked

Atmos on windows has a mind of it's own. There's no telling when it will work correctly vs when it won't.

Maybe there's an emotional AI driver running things in the background for it.

how hard is HDR on the steam deck?
linux based?

Turns itself on when there's a game running that uses it, turns itself off in all other scenarios.

Works as it should.

 

[proandrad]

Save us steam os.

 

[GHG]

no problems here, use it all the time

Why is there always one? And why is it always some old account with barely any posts?

 

[Spukc]

Atmos on windows has a mind of it's own. There's no telling when it will work correctly vs when it won't.

Maybe there's an emotional AI driver running things in the background for it.



Turns itself on when there's a game running that uses it, turns itself off in all other scenarios.

Works as it should.

i had such a fucking headache to get dolby atmos really working.
same for HDR

meanwhile on LG tv's

turn on tv
sign in netflix,

works

 

[Gamezone]

RTX HDR has a significant performance cost though.

Not significant.

 

[Gaiff]

Not significant.

I've seen up to 10% on a 4090. That's certainly significant.

 

[Gamezone]

how hard is HDR on the steam deck?
linux based?

I guess you have to use in-game HDR. That's completely different from. Auto HDR.

 

[ResilientBanana]

the only time I have issues with Auto HDR is when I switch to a different window from a fullscreen game. Switch windows enough times and it works again.

 

[Magic Carpet]

I need an old computer I can use as a sacrificial Windows 11 try by fire machine.
My old computer is unable to run windows 11, and I've turned off all updates on my main computer just because.
I think when the RTX 5000 series launches I'm going to just build an entirely new PC just so I'll have 2.

Anyone want an old Win 10 machine with a 3770 and a GTX 1080ti?

 

[Bojji]

I have 24H2 installed already in this build from image (1.5 months ago?), just tried auto hdr with Persona 3 Reload and it works great.

It looks the same like when I played it one year ago on 23H2 (with A-HDR).

 

[CompleteGlobalSaturation]

Never ever upgrade to a new 'feature update' until 12 months later.

 

[Black_Stride]

I've seen up to 10% on a 4090. That's certainly significant.

So instead of 110fps you are getting 99fps?


Mate that aint significant.

On my 4080 its closer 5% than it is to 10%

 

[Sanepar]

RTX HDR has a significant performance cost though.

Performance cost?

 

[Katatonic]

It's a broken OS.

 

[RagnarokIV]

HDR is a complete mess on PC in my experience having been using it since the start of this year when I bought my first HD monitor, a 27" Alienware AW2725DF QD-OLED.

I already had experience with HDR on consoles from using them with my 55" LG OLED TVs (B9 then C3) where they worked pretty much seamlessly, auto-activating when a game is using HDR and turning off when it isn't. HDR on 4K UHD Blu-ray discs was even more seamless. I was impressed and obviously expected the same kind of experience on PC.

Wrong!!!

On PC, HDR not only requires the user to enable and disable it manually - thankfully there is a keyboard shortcut to do this (Ctrl + Alt + B) - but you also have to enable/disable the HDR setting in the game. Some games even get confused if you previously played the game with HDR but then load it up again with HDR disabled but the in-game HDR setting still enabled, requiring a settings change and a game restart. It's far from user-friendly and a huge disappointment considering I am using Windows 11. I expected better.

I have tried the Auto-HDR setting but quickly disabled it as it is not quite the "one-size-fits-all" setting that I was expecting, and caused issues with some games, plus forces HDR in some games that actually don't support HDR so they look "wrong".

Needless to say, after a short spell of trying out HDR in PC games and only being impressed by a few - DiRT 5 is one game that I thought looked amazing with HDR - I have basically gone back to just playing games in SDR as QD-OLED offers vibrant colours and deep blacks anyway that often looks better in games with SDR than it does with HDR. Star Wars Outlaws on PC looks washed out with HDR due to a raised black floor that cannot be corrected via the in-game settings, and actually looks better in SDR.

This mirrors my experience with HDR on Windows.
I now basically make a mental note to manually enable HDR before playing a HDR game.

 

[Kataploom]

This mirrors my experience with HDR on Windows.
I now basically make a mental note to manually enable HDR before playing a HDR game.

I just don't use it, is way too dark and dim, can't see how it is any better in games than sdr

 

[winjer]

It's a broken OS.

Always has been. But it just keeps getting worse and worse.