Intel continues working to fix Raptor Lake issues

Intel believes it has identified the root cause of the issues affecting its Raptor Lake processors. And while Intel’s efforts to address these issues are still ongoing, they now appear to be coming to an end.

The Raptor Lake hybrid architecture was first commercialized in October 2022, when Intel launched the initial wave of its 13th generation processors. It was then repurposed for Intel’s iterative 14th Gen CPUs, which were released 12 months later. In February 2024, reports began to emerge of select models from both generations experiencing consistent failures in certain scenarios. Intel acknowledged these reports and soon after launched a thorough investigation into the cause of the instability issues.

Intel confirms root cause of Raptor Lake CPU issues

Intel now believes it has found the root cause of the Raptor Lake crash issues, as it said in a late September 2024 update. Specifically, the company’s research confirmed that a phenomenon known as “Vmin shift instability” was responsible for the accidents. wrote Thomas Hannaford, director of communications at Intel. For reference, “Vmin” means “minimum operating voltage.” The problem occurs because a part of the internal clock system of the affected CPU is subjected to high voltage and temperature over time. This finding aligns with the fact that some users have previously managed to get around instability issues by reducing the voltage and/or throttling of their Raptor Lake desktop CPUs.

Intel research has identified four specific scenarios that can cause Vmin-related instability on Raptor Lake CPUs. Two of them have already been fixed with microcode updates 0x125 and 0x129, which were implemented in June 2024 and August 2024, respectively. Another issue is caused by the motherboard’s power delivery settings exceeding Intel’s power guide, which can be resolved by simply resetting the affected processor to its default settings.

Scenarios that may cause Intel Raptor Lake CPU instability

• The motherboard power supply configuration exceeds Intel’s power guide.

  • Mitigation: Intel default configuration recommendations for 13th and 14th generation Intel Core desktop processors.

• eTVB microcode algorithm that allowed 13th and 14th generation Intel Core i9 desktop processors to operate in higher performance states even at high temperatures.

  • Mitigation– Microcode 0x125 (June 2024) fixes the eTVB algorithm issue.

• SVID microcode algorithm that requests high voltages at a frequency and duration that can cause a change in Vmin.

  • Mitigation– Microcode 0x129 (Aug 2024) addresses high voltages requested by the processor.

• Microcode and BIOS code requests high core voltages which can cause Vmin to shift, especially during periods of inactivity and/or light activity.

  • Mitigation: Intel is releasing microcode 0x12B, which covers microcode updates 0x125 and 0x129 and addresses high voltage requests from the processor during periods of idle and/or light activity.

The final scenario arises from core high voltage requests made during light or idle activity. This particular issue will be fixed with another microcode update, identified by version number 0x12B. The critical BIOS patch will be released shortly, Intel said, noting that it is already in the process of working with its motherboard partners on its implementation. However, the semiconductor manufacturer has not committed to setting a more specific time frame for the launch.

Based on the company’s recent testing, the 0x12B update will not have a significant impact on performance in a variety of common applications, including games. Raptor Lake mobile processors used in laptops and notebooks are not affected by any Vmin-related instability issues, the chipmaker confirmed. Future Intel CPUs will also not be affected by the issue.