Last week, Microsoft released the KB5041585 cumulative update for Windows 11, which brought a collection of improvements and security patches, including a fix for the BitLocker BSOD issue. Unfortunately, this update has also introduced severe problems, continuing a worrying trend of problematic patches this year.
The KB5041585 update can drastically slow down Windows 11 PCs due to a sudden increase in CPU usage. In some cases, the update fails to install entirely, leaving users frustrated. Complaints have surfaced across social media, particularly on Reddit. Windows Latest highlighted the experience of one user whose applications, such as Adobe Photoshop and games like Diablo, began crashing immediately after the update. Despite Task Manager reporting low memory usage and ample disk space, the user received error messages stating that their system was out of memory.
The update has also been linked to consistently high CPU usage, with some systems stuck at 100%, causing severe slowdowns and frequent timeouts. These performance issues have made the update a significant problem for many users.
Solutions for Affected Users
To fix these issues, the best course of action is to uninstall the update. Head to Settings > Windows Update > Update history, then scroll down, click Uninstall updates, and remove the KB5041585 update. Keep in mind that this update includes important security patches, so uninstalling it is not without risk.
Alternatively, you can try disabling Control Flow Guard (CFG). Open Windows Security, go to App & browser control, scroll to Exploit protection, and turn off the CFG setting. This is a temporary measure, as disabling CFG reduces your system’s defenses against certain types of attacks. Make sure to turn it back on once Microsoft releases a proper fix.
Microsoft is reportedly aware of these problems and is working on a solution, although their official support page still claims there are no known issues with this update.