Intel Core i9 12900K "Alder Lake" Continues Moving In Right Direction With Linux 5.17

Written by Michael Larabel in Intel on 8 February 2022 at 03:41 PM EST. 9 Comments
INTEL
Linux 5.16 brought improvements/fixes for Alder Lake S to help the likes of the Core i9 12900K deliver better performance. With the in-development Linux 5.17, the i9-12900K is looking even better. And then on the horizon for Linux 5.18 is the possibility of even better performance thanks to Intel's Hardware Feedback Interface (HFI/EHFI) positioned to land.

Linux 5.16 has been running well for my Alder Lake testing on the Core i5 12400 / Core i5 12600K / Core i9 12900K desktop processors. Plus with Linux 5.16+ is the ADL-S graphics working out-of-the-box without having to use the "i915.force_probe" workaround. For those assembling an Alder Lake desktop this year, Linux 5.16 is a great place to be.
Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Since the Linux 5.17 merge window ended I've begun Alder Lake tests (as well as other hardware platforms) and things have been smooth there. So far I haven't encountered any scary Linux 5.17 performance regressions in my tests over the past two weeks and further testing on more hardware is still ongoing. Today are just some quick numbers for the Core i9 12900K on Linux 5.15/5.16/5.17 for those asking about the new kernel.
Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Linux 5.16 had fixes for better Intel hybrid processor handling and then for Linux 5.17 are some more evolutionary improvements over 5.16...
Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Improvements seen out of Linux 5.16 were maintained (or in some cases slightly improved) so far into Linux 5.17...
Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

While some workloads seeing some minor regressions on Linux 5.16 seem to be in better shape with Linux 5.17 from this recent testing.
Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

Alder Lake Linux 5.16 Linux 5.17 Benchmarks

See all the benchmarks here.


As is often the case for new hardware releases, the newer the kernel will yield the best experience from features to maximizing performance. Sadly for Ubuntu 22.04 LTS it's planning to use Linux 5.15 by default but there will be some vendors using HWE/OEM kernel options for newer alternatives. At least the Ubuntu Mainline Kernel PPA is available for those wanting a newer kernel among other third-party kernel builds. For Alder Lake S I would certainly recommend Linux 5.16+ or Linux 5.17+ once hitting stable in late March. And then it will be on to see how Alder Lake is looking with Linux 5.18 with Intel (E)HFI and whatever else may materialize for that next kernel.
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Michael Larabel is the principal author of Phoronix.com and founded the site in 2004 with a focus on enriching the Linux hardware experience. Michael has written more than 20,000 articles covering the state of Linux hardware support, Linux performance, graphics drivers, and other topics. Michael is also the lead developer of the Phoronix Test Suite, Phoromatic, and OpenBenchmarking.org automated benchmarking software. He can be followed via Twitter, LinkedIn, or contacted via MichaelLarabel.com.

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