"Prefer maximum performance" does nothing on NVIDIA 610.88 through 616.92
This is a bug NVIDIA has acknowledged, not something wrong with your PC. The release notes for 610.88, 616.56, 616.64 and 616.92 all carry "Prefer Maximum Performance Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly" under Open Issues. In the 617.14 notes of 22 September 2026 it is gone — but NVIDIA does not list it as fixed either, and says that list is "only a subset" of what changed, so we cannot call it fixed. Update to 617.14 and check whether the setting now holds. If it still does not, check Windows' own power mode, which overrides more than the NVIDIA setting does.
Start here
NVIDIA publishes this issue in the release-notes PDF that accompanies each driver, where almost nobody reads it. That is why the obvious response - assume the install is broken, run a driver cleaner, downgrade - is so common, and why it does not work here. It is also why the status in 617.14 is worth stating carefully: the entry simply stopped appearing, which is not the same as NVIDIA saying it fixed it.
Symptoms
- Power management mode is set to Prefer maximum performance in the NVIDIA Control Panel, but the GPU still drops to lower clock states.
- The setting does not appear to hold, or applying it makes no measurable difference.
- You are running GeForce driver 610.88, 616.56, 616.64, the 616.86 hotfix, or 616.92.
Why this happens
An open issue NVIDIA has carried across two driver branches
NVIDIA's release notes list "Prefer Maximum Performance Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly [6007998]" as an open issue in 610.88 (28 July 2026), 616.56 (26 August 2026), 616.64 (3 September 2026) and 616.92 (9 September 2026). The bug number is identical in all four, so this is one long-running issue rather than a fresh regression. Version 616.64 fixed nothing at all - both its fixed-gaming-bugs and fixed-general-bugs sections read N/A - and the 616.86 hotfix of 4 September addresses only browser flicker, virtual displays and Remote Desktop black screens. In the 617.14 notes of 22 September 2026 the bug number does not appear anywhere: not under Open Issues, and not under Fixed Issues. NVIDIA prefaces its fixed list by saying it "is only a subset of the total number of changes made in this driver version", so a quiet fix is possible - but so is an entry that was simply dropped. NVIDIA has still published no workaround.
Confirm which driver you are running · Re-apply the setting the way NVIDIA documents, and check that it sticks
Windows' own power mode, which the NVIDIA setting does not override
Windows keeps a power mode of its own at Settings > System > Power & battery, with three options: Best power efficiency, Balanced, and Best performance. It is set independently of the NVIDIA Control Panel. Microsoft also notes that the power mode cannot be changed at all when a custom power plan is selected. If this is set for efficiency, the NVIDIA preference is not the thing holding your clocks down.
Fixes
Confirm which driver you are running
about 2 minThe versions NVIDIA has listed this against are specific, and knowing yours decides whether the rest of this page is about your machine at all.
Applies to: Windows 10, Windows 11
- Find the driver version you have installed. The NVIDIA Control Panel reports it under System Information, reachable from its Help menu, and the NVIDIA App shows it on its Drivers page.
- If it reads 610.88, 616.56, 616.64 or 616.92, you are on a driver whose release notes carry this as an open issue. If it reads 616.86, you are on the hotfix, whose page lists three unrelated fixes. If it reads 617.14 or later, NVIDIA no longer lists the issue - see the next step.
- If you are on some other version, NVIDIA has not listed the issue for your driver. Read your own driver's release notes before assuming it applies - the Open Issues section is short, and the entry names the bug number 6007998.
Confirmed by the vendor.
Update to 617.14 and check whether the setting holds
about 15 minThe bug entry disappeared from NVIDIA's notes at this release. That is not a published fix, but it is the cheapest thing to test and costs you nothing you would want to keep.
Applies to: Windows 10, Windows 11
- Install Game Ready 617.14 or later from NVIDIA's driver downloads, or via the NVIDIA app's Drivers tab.
- Set Power management mode to Prefer maximum performance again after the update, using the Global Settings tab as described below.
- Close the NVIDIA Control Panel, reopen it, and confirm the value is still there. Then put the GPU under load and check that clocks stay up.
- Be clear about what a pass means: NVIDIA has not stated that it fixed bug 6007998, so a machine where the setting now holds is encouraging rather than conclusive. If it still does not hold, nothing is lost - carry on with the checks below.
Re-apply the setting the way NVIDIA documents, and check that it sticks
about 3 minA value that was never committed looks exactly like one the bug dropped. Applying it on the tab NVIDIA documents, then reopening the panel, tells the two apart.
Applies to: Windows 10, Windows 11
- Open the NVIDIA Control Panel, then click Manage 3D Settings from the navigation pane.
- Click the Global Settings tab, scroll to the Power management mode feature, click the corresponding list arrow, select Prefer maximum performance, then click Apply. The Apply step is easy to skip and is part of NVIDIA's own documented procedure.
- Close the NVIDIA Control Panel, reopen it, and look at the value again. If it has gone back to Adaptive, or reads as set while the GPU still clocks down under load, that is the behaviour NVIDIA has listed as an open issue and there is nothing further you can do in the panel.
Source: NVIDIA
Check Windows' own power mode
about 3 minWindows sets a power mode independently of the NVIDIA Control Panel, and it is the more likely explanation if your clocks are low but the NVIDIA setting is holding its value.
Applies to: Windows 10, Windows 11
- Select Start > Settings > System > Power & battery. Under Power mode, choose the option you want: Best performance maximizes performance, Balanced balances performance and battery, and Best power efficiency saves battery life.
- You can also select the Battery icon on the taskbar and drag the slider to the power mode you want. Microsoft notes this slider is not available on all Windows 10 PCs, depending on your hardware and manufacturer.
- If the power mode cannot be changed at all, a custom power plan might be selected. Open Control Panel, go to Power Options, select Balanced, and then set the power mode again.
Confirmed by the vendor.
Source: Microsoft
Known issues
NVIDIA lists "Prefer Maximum Performance Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly [6007998]" as an open issue in 610.88 of 28 July 2026, 616.56 of 26 August, 616.64 of 3 September and 616.92 of 9 September 2026. Version 616.64 lists no fixed bugs at all. Across six weeks and four drivers NVIDIA published no workaround and no fix.
Affects 610.88, 616.56, 616.64, 616.92 · Status: open
The three display regressions 616.56 introduced — browser flicker, virtual displays that could not be created, and Remote Desktop black screens — were fixed first in the 616.86 hotfix of 4 September 2026 and then in WHQL driver 616.92 of 9 September. The power management issue is not among either set of fixes, so updating to the current driver does not resolve it.
Affects 616.86, 616.92 · Status: open
In the 617.14 release notes of 22 September 2026, bug 6007998 appears nowhere - neither under Open Issues nor under Fixed Issues. NVIDIA says the fixed list "is only a subset of the total number of changes made in this driver version", so the disappearance is not a published fix. Treat 617.14 as worth trying and unconfirmed until NVIDIA states otherwise.
Affects 617.14 · Status: unknown
If none of this worked
"Prefer maximum performance" is a preference, not a guarantee. A card that is CPU-bound, or that is hitting a thermal or power limit, will clock below its maximum whatever this setting says, and that is not the bug described here. If your actual complaint is stuttering in the hours after a driver update rather than a setting that will not hold, see Game Stuttering After an NVIDIA Driver Update. If a game is running on the wrong GPU entirely, see Game runs on integrated GPU instead of NVIDIA. And if you are on a driver outside the versions listed above, check your own release notes before assuming this applies to you.
Common questions
- Will rolling back to an older driver fix this?
- There is no older version we can point you to that is free of it. NVIDIA lists the same issue, under the same bug number 6007998, in 610.88 from 28 July 2026 as well as in 616.56, 616.64 and 616.92. Downgrading would cost you the fixes in the newer drivers and, on the evidence in NVIDIA's own release notes, would not remove this problem. If you are going to change driver over this, go forward to 617.14 rather than back.
- Does the 616.86 hotfix, 616.92 or 617.14 fix it?
- Not as far as NVIDIA has said. The hotfix page lists exactly three fixes - browser flicker, virtual displays, and Remote Desktop black screens - and Game Ready 616.92 carries those same three into the WHQL branch while still showing this issue under Open Issues. 617.14 is the interesting one: the bug number vanished from the notes entirely, without appearing under Fixed Issues. Since NVIDIA describes that list as only a subset of its changes, the honest answer is that 617.14 might have fixed it and we cannot show that it did. Try it and see.
- If I downgrade anyway, what is the right way to do it?
- NVIDIA says not to use the Windows rollback feature, because it will not reliably restore all the previous driver files. It also says uninstalling the driver through Windows Device Manager may not remove associated files or applications, and that Microsoft has confirmed that behaviour is by design. The supported route is to remove the current driver through Windows Add and Remove programs, then install the older driver by running its setup.exe. Download the installer you intend to use before removing the current driver.
- Is my graphics card faulty?
- Nothing on this page points that way. NVIDIA lists the behaviour as an open issue in its own release notes, which means it reproduces on working hardware.
Did this fix work?
If a step is wrong, outdated, or did not help, telling us is the fastest way to get it corrected. Reports are reviewed before new articles.
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Sources
NVIDIA · Release notes · checked Sep 23, 2026
- NVIDIA bug number 6007998 appears nowhere in the 617.14 release notes — neither under Open Issues in Version 617.14 WHQL nor under Fixed Issues in Version 617.14 WHQL
- NVIDIA states of its changes and fixed issues chapter: 'This list is only a subset of the total number of changes made in this driver version'
- The 617.14 release notes are dated September 22, 2026
NVIDIA · Release notes · checked Sep 23, 2026
- Lists "Prefer Maximum Performance" Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly [6007998] as an open issue in version 616.64 WHQL, dated 3 September 2026.
- Lists no fixed gaming bugs and no fixed general bugs in version 616.64 - both sections read N/A.
- Documents the click path for the setting: open the NVIDIA Control Panel, click Manage 3D Settings, click the Global Settings tab, scroll to Power management mode, select Prefer maximum performance, then click Apply.
- States that to reinstall an older driver you should not use the Windows rollback feature because it will not reliably restore all the previous driver files, and that you should instead remove the current driver with Windows Add and Remove programs and install the older driver using setup.exe.
- States that uninstalling the NVIDIA driver using Windows Device Manager may not remove associated files or applications, and that Microsoft has confirmed this behaviour is by design.
- States the driver belongs to the Release 615 family, versions 615.xx to 619.xx.
NVIDIA · Release notes · checked Sep 23, 2026
- Lists "Prefer Maximum Performance" Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly [6007998] as an open issue in version 616.56 WHQL, dated 26 August 2026.
- Its open-issues list for 616.56 contains only that one entry, and does not include the browser flicker issue that first appears in the 616.64 notes.
NVIDIA · Release notes · checked Sep 23, 2026
- Lists the same open issue, "Prefer Maximum Performance" Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly [6007998], in version 610.88 WHQL dated 28 July 2026, which places the issue in the Release 610 branch as well as Release 615.
NVIDIA · Support page · checked Sep 23, 2026
- Lists the three issues fixed by hotfix 616.86, updated 4 September 2026: intermittent flicker in browsers when navigating to certain websites, virtual displays that could not be created after updating to 616.56, and Remote Desktop Protocol sessions displaying a black screen after updating to 616.56.
- Does not list the "Prefer Maximum Performance" power management issue among the fixes in hotfix 616.86.
- States that hotfix drivers are basically the same as the previous released version with a small number of additional targeted fixes, that they are beta, optional and provided as-is with a much abbreviated QA process, and that the safest option is to wait for the next WHQL certified driver.
Microsoft · Support page · checked Sep 23, 2026
- Documents the path Start > Settings > System > Power & battery, and the Power mode options: Best power efficiency saves battery life, Balanced balances performance and battery, and Best performance maximizes performance.
- States that if the power mode cannot be changed, a custom power plan might be selected, and directs the reader to Control Panel Power Options.
- States that the taskbar battery slider is not available on all Windows 10 PCs and depends on the PC hardware and manufacturer.
NVIDIA · Release notes · checked Sep 23, 2026
- Game Ready driver 616.92, released 9 September 2026, still lists "“Prefer Maximum Performance” Power Management Mode may not be applied correctly [6007998]" under Open Issues in Version 616.92 WHQL.
- 616.92 fixes browser flicker [6673430], virtual displays that could not be created after 616.56 [6674464] and Remote Desktop black screens [6687328] — the power management bug is not among its fixed bugs.