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How to disable VBS in Windows 11 to improve gaming

Highlighting VBS is disabled in Windows 11.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Windows 11's Virtualization Based Security features have been shown to have some impact on gaming performance — even if it isn't drastic. While you will be putting your system more at risk, if you're looking to min-max your gaming PC's performance, you can always disable it. Just follow the steps below to disable VBS in Windows 11 with a few quick clicks.

Plus, later in this guide, we discuss if disabling VBS is really worth it, what you'd be losing if you choose to disable it, and other options for boosting your PCs gaming performance that don't necessarily involve messing with VBS.

Note: Digital Trends does not recommend disabling any security features on your devices and takes no responsibility for any security issues that arise if you do.

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Difficulty

Easy

Duration

5 minutes

What You Need

  • Windows 11 PC or laptop

How to disable VBS in Windows 11

Microsoft highlights several ways to disable VBS in Windows 11, but the quickest and easiest is using the Windows 11 Security center.

Step 1: Use the Windows search bar to look for "Windows Security" and select the security app.

Searching for Windows Security application.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 2: Select Device security from the left-hand menu.

Navigating the Windows 11 security center.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 3: Select Core isolation details underneath the Core isolation heading.

Windows 11 security menu.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 4: Use the toggle to turn Memory integrity to Off.

Disabling VBS in Windows 11.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 5: Restart your computer. When it boots up again, VBS should be disabled.

If you were looking to improve your game performance by disabling VBS, try playing one of them now to see what effect it had. Use these tips to track your frames per second.

How to check if VBS is disabled

You can check whether VBS is disabled on your system by looking in Windows 11's System Information pane.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + R keyboard shortcut to launch the Run dialog box.

Step 2: Type in "msinfo32" and select OK or press Enter.

Running MSinfo32 in Windows 11.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 3: In the System Information window that pops up, scroll down the right-hand pane until you find Virtualization-based security. If it's disabled, it will say Not enabled.

Highlighting VBS is disabled in Windows 11.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Should you disable VBS?

Unless you need absolutely every possible frame per second for your games, then no, you probably shouldn't. We've shown in our analysis that the impact on gaming performance with VBS enabled is minimal at best — less than 1% fps in most cases. VBS also serves an important security function by protecting verification process like validating drivers, and helps prevent malware from inserting itself into your applications.

Yes, if you disable memory integrity you may get a couple of extra fps in your games, but you really aren't going to notice that difference. You'd be better off optimizing Windows 11 for gaming, applying specific settings for your favorite games, or just saving up and buying a better graphics card.

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is a freelance evergreen writer and occasional section coordinator, covering how to guides, best-of lists, and…
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