How to Optimize Windows 11 for Gaming

Windows 10 is the preferred operating system in 2021.
We recommend Windows 10 Home for most people instead of Pro.
However, both versions come with unnecessary applications so be prepared to do some cleaning.
Install Windows 10 with the latest major update for maximum security, compatibility, and features for the latest games and patches.
We advise against using insider and preview builds as they are not optimized and may contain bugs.
Avoid using unlicensed versions of Window as they are prone to viruses and other vulnerabilities
Microsoft no longer maintains windows 7, and therefore it's not recommended to use for any application in 2021.

Download the latest available release of Windows to ensure up-to-date security and the best possible DirectX support in games.

Disconnect ethernet to avoid unnecessary driver installation and registration during setup.
To create a local account during the installation, you should unplug the PC from your network.
Use a local account to limit the amount of Telemetry data that is synchronized back to Microsoft and may interfere with performance.

In Windows 2004 it's possible to use internet recovery to download a fresh installation of Windows
Avoid any bloatware installed by the OEM if you purchase a system from any of the major computer brands like Dell and HP.

Use the High-Performance Plan.
Set the highest possible setting to let the hardware draw enough power.

The most important option to set is the one to allow your CPU to run at full speed all the time.
Disable “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” for USB hosts and Network adapters.

Telemetry is data and information that gets sent from your PC to a server for analysis and diagnostics.
Unfortunately, this will interfere with performance and should be limited.
Network activity running in the background to report usage, update online apps, and pinging servers for updates to the system.

We are not involved in the politics of privacy, but the performance hit such tools have on our hardware.
Privacy features are usually a connected service that runs in the background.
Pings servers and scans files and may interfere with running apps and games.

Services are running in the background to enable various features such as printing etc.
Limit the number of running services to avoid stutter and interruptions in Windows.
Set unneeded services to manual.
Stuff like printer and file sharing can be disabled to improve performance and lag

Use Antivirus inside Router to offload CPU if possible.
Requires Untangle or similar

Update Windows and other applications to avoid vulnerabilities that may compromise your system and interfere with performance.
Stay up to date with security threats such as crypto mining scripts etc.

Tasks are processes running in the background to keep the system up to date.

Most apps installed with Windows are paid ads in the form of apps from the Store.
Remove using a script or a third-party application for best efficiency.

Exit any background applications when you launch a game. They are stealing resources from the CPU and your RAM which may cause stutter and increased input-lag

Link to article from Microsoft and Windows 11 specific reference here.

Enabling Game Mode will improve your performance by shutting down background applications while gaming.