The Gaming Bottleneck
Windows 11 ships with several advanced enterprise-grade security features enabled by default. One of the heaviest is Virtualization-Based Security (VBS), specifically a feature called Memory Integrity (or Core Isolation). VBS creates a secure, hardware-isolated subsystem in memory to prevent malicious code from hijacking the Windows kernel. While excellent for corporate laptops, VBS introduces significant overhead to the CPU. For PC gamers running high-end graphics cards, having the CPU constantly bounce between standard processes and the virtualized security sandbox can cause severe frame rate drops and stuttering in heavy games. If you prioritize raw gaming performance over enterprise security, you must disable VBS.
How to Turn Off Memory Integrity (VBS)
You can permanently shut down the virtualization sandbox via the Windows Security dashboard.
- Click the Start Menu, type Windows Security, and press Enter.
- In the left-hand sidebar, click on Device security.
- Under the “Core isolation” section at the top, click the Core isolation details link.
- Locate the master toggle switch labeled Memory integrity.
- Toggle this switch to the Off position.
- A User Account Control (UAC) prompt will appear; click Yes to confirm.
- Crucial Step: You must restart your computer completely for the virtualization engine to shut down.
Raw Hardware Access
Upon reboot, the change takes effect. Windows 11 will completely terminate the Hyper-V based security sandbox. Your CPU is now freed from the overhead of continuously validating kernel memory through a virtualized layer. While this technically lowers your defense against sophisticated rootkits, it restores direct, unimpeded hardware access to your processor, frequently resulting in a noticeable boost in average frame rates and smoother 1% lows during intensive gaming sessions.