Intel has once again released a microcode update for the motherboard BIOS. With this move, the chip giant aims to prevent 13th and 14th generation desktop Raptor Lake processors from crashing and becoming permanently damaged due to overheating.
The problems of the troubled chip giant, which may be split up or perhaps even acquired, are beginning to pile up. It appears that Intel has been having problems with its 13th and 14th generation Raptor Lake processors for desktops for several months now.
Gamers complained that their Intel Core i9 Raptor Lake desktop processors were crashing and becoming permanently damaged in the process. Core i5 and Core i7 processors from this architecture series were also said to be possibly experiencing glitches.
The root of the problem is overheating due to the processors receiving too much electrical voltage. This causes them to age and deteriorate in quality very quickly, resulting in crashes.
Also read: No, Qualcomm is not going to take over Intel
New microcode update for BIOS
There is no immediate fix for this rather critical problem yet, but the chip giant has now released a new microcode update for the motherboard BIOS that should prevent one of the causes of the problem. This 0x12B update prevents Intel CPUs from demanding too much power when in idle mode or performing light tasks.
Previous micro-code updates for the BIOS, 0x125 from June this year and 0x129 from August already solved other possible causes. Also, Intel has extended the warranty for the relevant generations of Core i9 Raptor Lake desktop processors with two years. The same goes for their less crunchy brothers Core i5 and -i7 Raptor Lake.
Rollout and specifications update
Intel indicates that the BIOS microcode update will be validated and rolled out gradually by motherboard manufacturers over the next few weeks. Users can check for themselves if they are eligible for these updates. These apply to:
- Processor: Intel Core i9-14900K, Motherboard: Intel Raptor Lake Reference Board (M40919), Memory: 64GB DDR5 at 5200MT/s, Storage: ADATA* SU360, Graphics: Intel UHD Graphics 770, Graphics Driver Version: 32.0.101.5768, Display Resolution: 1280×800, Operating System: Windows 11 Pro (version 26100.712).
- Processor: Intel Core i9-14900K, Motherboard: Intel Raptor Lake Reference Board (RVP SR19), Memory: 32GB DDR5 at 5600MT/s, Storage: Samsung* 990 Pro 1TB, Graphics: MSI* RTX 4090 Suprim X, Graphics Driver Version: NVIDIA* v555.99, Resolution: 1920×1080, Operating System: Windows 11 (version 22631.4169)
It is unknown whether the crashes also affect Intel Raptor Lake laptop processors. According to The Verge, there are several reports of exactly this happening, unfortunately.