Zwift crash since Windows 11

Yesterday I had 2 crashes during a workout. And I have to say since I have a new laptop (Dell XPS 13 9310 2021 model) with Windows 11 I had more crashes in one month than ever before. I have attached my crash log for the first crash. The second one I cannot see the issue, but in both cases, Zwift just freezes and I have to manually shut it down at start back up again. Especially during a workout where there is no save it can be really annoying.
The obvious culprit would be Windows 11 and Zwift not running in a stable mode with this OS. Because I am running the same setup (Wahoo Kickr Core with Ant+ dongle) which ran smoothly with Windows 10 and my old laptop.
I hope someone can give me tips to improve stability in Windows 11, or maybe there is a setting I need to adjust. Please let me know, and thanks in advance.

https://zwiftalizer.com/public/c6d0864b-e1b4-4d2c-b9dc-51c89c483a57

I would guess that you’ve hit the issue with 10th/11th gen integrated Intel graphics. There’s a workaround for Windows 10, which may have been why you were ok before (driver version), but unfortunately that workaround isn’t available on Win 11.

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Hi @Barry_van_Zutphen , welcome to the Forums!

I’m sorry to say that this does seem like the app crash issue having to do with 10th/11th Gen CPUs with the integrated GPU. There are a number of different Forums threads having to do with this known issue such as this one for example.

I’m also not aware of a workaround for Windows 11.

You can try lowering the Game Resolution setting to the “Low” value. This is not a guaranteed fix, but might help alleviate the app crashes or freezes.

You can find more information about in-game settings in this article​.

Thank you for replying @Steve_Hammatt / @Steven_D. Seems like there is no real fix just yet if you use Windows 11 on a 11th gen CPU/GPU. I guess I have to use my old laptop then.
Spring is on the horizon, so Zwift season is almost over. But when I come back in Sept/Oct, is this fixed by then?

To be honest - I don’t believe it. It is a known issue for a longer time now and it is not (only) Zwift to blame - iGPUs 10th/11th gen seem to be a problem. Win 10 users can downgrade the driver, not possible using Win 11.

It is good then I did not get rid of my old laptop. Gonna use it then for Zwift only.

Tough to say, @Barry_van_Zutphen but we remain hopeful for a fix.

Speaking purely from personal experience, I’ve had a lot of trouble with Windows 11 when running games in general, Barry. I tried Windows 11 for about a month and I kept getting app crashes on various graphics intensive gaming apps (not just Zwift).

I use a fairly high end gaming laptop that’s only about 16 months old, and has a powerful discreet NVIDIA graphics card. It initially had Windows 10 installed on it, but I upgraded to Windows 11 earlier this year.

While running game apps, my entire computer was freezing to the point where all I could do was force restart it. It got so bad that the boot sector was toast following multiple crashes. The system restore efforts and attempts to fix the boot sector were not successful, so I lost my patience and just factory reset the whole laptop, which reverted it back to Windows 10. I’ve had absolutely no issues with the laptop since going back to Windows 10.

While I’m sure there are some Zwifters out there who are running Zwift on Windows 11 without issues, I have not had a positive experience with that operating system. I’m confident that as time goes on things will improve where it concerns Windows 11, but for now I’m more confident using Windows 10 with my current setup.

Zwift crashed on me 1 minute before the start of the final WTRL race and I could t rehoot in time so join the race. Youve no idea how mad I was. To be told there is no solution is even more maddening.

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Thanks for the feedback everyone. I am in outdoor mode, so it gives me time to choose the right setup for next fall/winter. Maybe tablet or my old laptop if there is no fix for this issue.
You would think a new and better laptop should always be better, but unfortunately, that is not always the case.

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I have experienced the same freezing with Windows 11. I just started using a new laptop with a clean install of Windows 11 22H2 and Zwift froze on me twice the first time I tried it. Everything is up-to-date in regard to drivers and Windows Updates. I never had an issue with my previous Windows 10 laptop.

KT

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Yes, I also got already several crashes since started to Zwift on Windows 11 laptop.
12th gen CPU - i5-1240P using Intel Graphics.

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