Facepalm: Nvidia GPU users who have recently noticed abnormally high CPU usage after exiting games should know the company is aware of the issue and is developing a hotfix. Those seriously impacted by the problem should consider temporarily rolling back the driver.
Nvidia updated its list of known issues for GeForce driver 531.18 to acknowledge user reports of high CPU usage after exiting games. Developers are working on a hotfix, which will arrive on Tuesday.
Some users reported noticing CPU usage increased by up to 15 percent after closing out of a game. Checking the Process tab revealed that the Nvidia Container was the culprit. To be more precise, the latest version of the Nvidia Game Session Telemetry Plugin seems to be the source of the issue.
FYI - we'll be posting a hotfix driver tomorrow with a fix
--- Sean Pelletier (@PellyNV) March 6, 2023
Most users probably shouldn't mess with Nvidia driver files, as neutralizing the DLL file requires deleting or moving it with administrator privileges. However, for those who feel comfortable doing so, blocking or removing the plugin's DLL file can fix the issue. Some Redditors posted instructions for doing this if you're up to it.
An extra 10-15 percent of CPU usage might not bother some, but it could impact CPU-intensive tasks. Those who need an immediate solution and don't want to mess with internal files should reboot their PCs after exiting a game or roll back to an earlier driver until the hotfix arrives.
Nvidia also added a few other known issues to the notes for 531.18. It may sometimes cause Adobe Premiere Pro and Assassin's Creed Origins to crash. Additionally, laptop users with GeForce GTX 10 series, MX250, or MX350 GPUs might see a random bugcheck.
While the issue may inconvenience some, Nvidia's driver problems have been mild compared to those AMD experienced recently. After users of most Radeon GPUs had to wait two months for new drivers, February's Adrenalin 23.2.1 release bricked some Windows installations, albeit in extremely rare cases. Team Red is working on an official solution to the problem, but unchecking the "Factory Reset" box when installing the drivers should prevent it from emerging.