A new native NVMe storage driver introduced in Windows Server 2025 can significantly improve SSD performance, and users have found a way to enable it on Windows 11 as well. The method relies on manually toggling feature flags in the Windows registry. While Microsoft does not officially support this on consumer versions of Windows, early testing shows measurable gains under certain conditions.
The driver is designed to reduce CPU overhead and improve IOPS performance for NVMe SSDs. According to Microsoft, the Server 2025 implementation can deliver up to 80 percent higher IOPS and cut CPU usage by roughly 45 percent. Those figures apply to server workloads and do not translate directly t…
A new native NVMe storage driver introduced in Windows Server 2025 can significantly improve SSD performance, and users have found a way to enable it on Windows 11 as well. The method relies on manually toggling feature flags in the Windows registry. While Microsoft does not officially support this on consumer versions of Windows, early testing shows measurable gains under certain conditions.
The driver is designed to reduce CPU overhead and improve IOPS performance for NVMe SSDs. According to Microsoft, the Server 2025 implementation can deliver up to 80 percent higher IOPS and cut CPU usage by roughly 45 percent. Those figures apply to server workloads and do not translate directly to desktop usage.
Community testing on Windows 11 version 25H2 shows more modest results. Real-world benchmarks reported by third-party testers indicate performance improvements closer to 10-15 percent. That still represents a meaningful gain for storage-heavy workloads, but it falls well short of Microsoft’s server-side claims.
The feature is not exposed through standard Windows settings. Enabling it requires editing the registry to activate internal feature overrides that switch Windows 11 to the newer NVMe driver. After activation, NVMe drives appear under "Storage Media" instead of "Devices" in Device Manager, confirming the driver change.
How the registry change works
Warning: Editing the registry can cause system instability. Back up the registry or create a restore point before proceeding.
- Press Win + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
- Navigate to:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Policies\Microsoft\FeatureManagement\Overrides
- Create the following DWORD (32-bit) values and set each to 1:
- 735209102
- 1853569164
- 156965516
- Restart the system.
After rebooting, Windows 11 loads the newer NVMe driver if the SSD and system configuration are compatible.
Known issues and rollback
Some users report compatibility problems with SSD management utilities, including Samsung Magician, after enabling the driver. Device monitoring features or firmware tools may fail to detect drives correctly.
To roll back the change, delete the added DWORD entries from the same registry location and restart the system. Windows will revert to the default NVMe driver automatically.
This tweak is best viewed as an experimental optimization rather than a guaranteed upgrade. Gains vary by workload, and the lack of official support means updates or future builds could disable the behavior without notice.
Summary
Article Name
This Registry Hack Unlocks a Faster NVMe Driver in Windows 11
Description
A hidden registry tweak can enable Windows Server’s newer NVMe driver in Windows 11, offering modest SSD performance gains but potential compatibility issues and no official support.
Author
Arthur K
Publisher
Ghacks Technology News
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