Intel Disables DirectX 12 Support on 4th Generation Processors

In short: Those using Intel 4th Generation Core processor should be aware that you will not be able to run DirectX 12 based applications starting with graphics driver version 15.40.44.5107. It looks like there is a potential security vulnerability that could allow attackers to elevate privileges on specified processors.

4th Generation Intel Core processors, also known as Haswell, released more than eight years ago, received an update less than a year later. Although they are relatively old, Intel still supports them in legacy mode.

Following the discovery of a potential security issue affecting several 4th Gen Intel processors, the semiconductor company announced it would disable DirectX 12 API support to mitigate the risks starting with graphics driver version 15.40.44.5107. Affected processors include most of the 4th Gen Intel Core processor lineup, including fan favorites like the i7-4790K and i5-4690K. The complete list includes:

• 4th Generation Intel Core Processors with Intel Iris Pro Graphics 5200
• 4th Generation Intel Core Processors with Intel Iris Graphics 5100
• 4th Generation Intel Core Processors with Intel HD Graphics 5000/4600/4400/4200
• Intel Pentium and Celeron processors with Intel HD Graphics based on 4th Gen Intel Core

Those using a dedicated GPU need not worry, but if you want to run DirectX 12-based applications and games using these processors’ iGPUs, Intel says you will have to upgrade to graphics driver 15.40.42.5063 or older…

All of these processors feature iGPUs based on Intel’s Gen7 GPU architecture, but the problem seems to be elsewhere. Some of Intel’s 3rd Generation Core processors also use iGPUs based on the same architecture, but they are not listed.