Solved! Odd FPS drops in Windows 10 Pro in certain windows/apps

[Korporativ]

All,

I've posted about a similar issue in the past, but am once again experiencing weird FPS drops in certain windows.

Specifically, I see my FPS drop from 120fps down to ~30fps (sometimes as low as 5, and sometimes as high as 60) when opening specific apps in Windows.

I can consistently recreate the issue in the following:
Private Internet Access Client (Server Select)
Final Fantasy XIV Launcher (Login Screen)
Malware Bytes (Parent Screen)
Origin (only some screens... initial screen when the client needs an update consistently)

When seeing the lowered FPS, it only seems to happen when the app has focus (is highlighted / selected). If I click another window, or even the desktop, my FPS increases until I select the app again. Some windows seem fine (inconsistently... some will load fine, some seem to settle) until I mouse over an "activate" button that changes state/color. For example, the "connect" power button in the Private Internet Access GUI, and the "Login" button in the FFXIV client, or the "Scan Now" button in Malware Bytes.

System:
Windows 10 Professional
AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
ASRock X470 Taichi Ultimate
NVIDIA 2070 Super
16G Patriot Viper PC3600
Samsung 960 Pro

I've enabled the FPS tracker in my monitor to limit the number of background apps and interactions possibly happening.

I've checked Task Manager, and Event Viewer with and without the problem, and see no inconsistencies.
I've checked Event Viewer for errors/warnings, but see nothing happening.
I've run LatencyMon - only thing that pops up as high latency is nvlddmkm.sys - NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver. However, this pops up any time i launch a new app, even ones that don't cause this weird frame drop.
I've run SFC /scannow (found nothing)
I've made sure that the drives are all freshly Trimmed
I've tried launching apps in a number of compatibility modes, changing DPI settings, disabled fullscreen optimizations
I've tried changing between optimize for programs and background tasks
I've uninstalled and reinstalled the problematic apps.
I've changed various mouse pointer settings that have given me hell in virtual machines in the past
I've tried all the options in "Visual Effects". One thing I note is that when I un-check all of the boxes, the windows that are problematic seem unaffected by these changes. Are they a different window/container type?
I've enabled and disabled G-Sync
I've swapped out keyboard and mouse.
I've done a clean install of my video drivers.
I've updated AMD Chipset drivers
I've flashed my bios
I've under clocked and overclocked my RAM

Not sure what else to check or try for troubleshooting at this point... it seems really odd to me. Is there a system call they are maybe making to an older DirectX, or .NET Framework or something?

The situation is liveable; more an annoyance than anything, but makes me wonder what else is going wrong under the hood.

Suggestions much appreciated!

Thanks,

Korporativ

 

[Shmee]

You could try chkdsk /f. If you have not already, be sure to back up any important data. Also, how old is this Windows install? It may just be a weird windows issue. You may want to make an image backup and try a fresh install to see if that fixes the issue. Then you know its something in software.

 

[Korporativ]

Shmee,

Good suggestion. I hadn't thought to check for bad sectors. Unfortunately, Check Disk found no errors or bad sectors. The install isn't terribly old; I just reinstalled around November of this year.

Is there a good tool for catching windows API calls, or the such? I'd almost like to try to inspect the element, and see if there is a common call that seems problematic.

 

[Furious_Styles]

Uninstall PIA and malawarebytes, see if issue is still there.

 

[Muadib]

Uninstall PIA and malawarebytes, see if issue is still there.

No need to uninstall, he can turn them off and see. I use PIA, and some of their servers do slow your connection. PIA was just bought, and they may have loss some of the quality they once had.

 

[Furious_Styles]

No need to uninstall, he can turn them off and see. I use PIA, and some of their servers do slow your connection. PIA was just bought, and they may have loss some of the quality they once had.

After reading his post again he could just be getting bad data. You would notice I think if you were getting 5 fps because your mouse will get really laggy.

 

[Korporativ]

With PIA running and up, but not in the foreground, the frame drop doesn't occur at all. Same with other apps. However, I seem to have stumbled onto a resolution that I swear I had already explored.

Trying to fix a G-Sync issue in another game (5 fps when it first starts, going full screen then back to windowed fixes it), I decided to turn off fullscreen G-Sync again. Lo and behold, that seems to resolve this very odd issue again. All apps run nominally without reducing my refresh rate. (good call, by the way... the way I first noticed it was a stuttery mouse)

G-Sync has definitely bit me more than a few times over the years... thinking I'll skip the added cost and frustration with my next monitor setup.

Thank you all for your input and efforts!

-- Korp