Linux 7.3 Scheduler Improvements Result in Notable FPS Boost for Low-Power PC Hardware

Linux gaming is once again getting gaming performance improvements, this time thanks to scheduler changes scheduled to launch with Linux Kernel 7.3. The merge request noted in a kernel mailing list archive post note several changes to the scheduler that make it more efficient, improve latency, and add support for asymmetric CPU architectures, like Intel's modern mix of P-Cores and E-Cores.

The result of the changes is that low-power PC hardware should see notable improvements to average game FPS, 1% and 0.1% low FPS, and to frame time consistency, all of which should make gaming feel more fluid. In the Shadows Awakening benchmark running via GOG and GE-Proton 10-34 on an Intel Core i7-2600K and AMD Radeon RX 580, average frame rates were improved by 25%, while average frame times were 50% better than before, and minimum FPS jumped from 4.0 to 29.0—a 7.25× boost. Read full story