I’m seeing high CPU load - on Norton Service (Norton Antivirus) and Norton Antivirus Engine Server processes - during a Windows Store / Xbox app game download.
Games downloaded from the Windows store or Xbox app on PC can be around 100GB in size and so, even with 300Mb/s fibre, take some time to download, and during this time I see high CPU load on those processes - even though there’s only around 40MB/s of data to be examined.
I mentioned this same issue last year, but there’s been no resolution after Norton or Windows updates - a previous thread got sidetracked into discussions about PC specs and sandboxes without focussing on why the Norton client has such high CPU load during a Windows app download/install.
This is on Windows 11 downloading to a fast SSD, the CPU is 9800x3D
Norton kikker på den nu de kender fejlen nu har de mere info om fejlen de fixer den nok som en hotfix da det ikke er en god fejl de vidste godt det med high cpu load nu har de mere info plus din pc der er flere på siden der har den fejl jo mere info jo letter er det at fix
If you are downloading any software that has a 100GB the entire download contents will be examined during that process. Where the 40MB of data come into play confused me, most programs have executables that are far larger in todays environment. Are you sure that value should have been 40GB? Most games that update on my steam account in the library download content in the GB range. I don’t see excessing CPU usage during that time.
Do you have any screenshots that would give us some idea of what you are seeing? TIA.
With example 300Mb/s fibre it’s 40MB per second of data to be examined - the point being that amount doesn’t really seem enough to justify such high CPU load. The issue isn’t seen with Steam or any other client - it’s with Windows store / Xbox app downloads - it’s typically games that are large enough to take long enough to download for this to be noticeable - easy enough to reproduce for anyone with game pass.
I’d mentioned the exact same issue 6 months ago - and as nothing’s been resolved even after the recent client update I thought I’d mention it again - after all this is a product retailing at up to £90 a year.
There are more things to consider then a fast CPU, SSD and fiber internet. With 300/300 internet there could be bottlenecks in the download and offload of files being installed. Take into consideration XBox apps are considered a part of the OS. Norton is designed primarily and focuses itself on protection of the OS above all else.
AI Overview:
Yes, core Xbox apps are considered part of the Xbox operating system (OS), which is based on Windows 10/11
These pre-installed apps are deeply integrated into the system’s dashboard, allowing for functionality like managing games, social features, and storefront access. They are built on the Universal Windows Platform (UWP).
Key details regarding Xbox apps and the OS:
System Integration: On consoles, applications such as the Dashboard, Store, and Game Bar are essential components of the operating system’s UI and functionality.
PC Pre-installation: On Windows 10/11 PCs, the Xbox app is pre-installed as a core component for gaming.
Modification: Some Xbox-related apps in Windows, like the Game Bar, are integral parts of the OS and cannot be easily removed without using advanced methods like PowerShell.
Architecture: The Xbox system software uses a shared partition for running multiple applications alongside the main operating system, which is a modified version of Windows.
While users can download additional third-party apps, the foundational apps that define the Xbox experience are part of the system software.
Windows store app have a similar context:
AI Overview:
Windows Store apps (now Microsoft Store apps) arenot core, inseparable components of the Windows operating system itself, but they are tightly integrated, sandboxed applications built on the Universal Windows Platform (UWP) or packaged as MSIX. While they function as part of the modern Windows ecosystem, they act as user-level applications rather than essential kernel-level OS files.
Key details:
Integration: The Microsoft Store app is pre-installed in Windows 10/11 and acts as a central hub for distributing, updating, and managing both modern apps and traditional desktop apps.
Structure: These apps are often sandboxed, meaning they run with specific permissions granted by the OS, which separates them from the core operating system files.
Removal: While some pre-installed Microsoft Store apps (like the Store itself) are discouraged from being removed, they are generally not technically part of the essential core OS boot files.
Location: Store apps are typically installed in a hidden system folder: C:\Program Files\WindowsApps.
Types: The store distributes UWP, PWAs (Progressive Web Apps), and traditional Win32 desktop apps.
While some system-level apps (like Calculator or Settings) are considered system components, the broader category of “Store apps” are better defined as integrated applications rather than the OS itself.
Although I don’t do games from the WS, I use Steam religiously. With 1GB FIOS I get high CPU usage with game updates periodically, but not always.
I also failed to ask whether you are also using a VPN during these downloads.
Some factors that might impact the work AV has to do here - a) the quantity of data to be examined (in this example 40MB/s) and b) the nature of the data being downloaded in a Windows app update - it might be compressed, subject to DRM, needs certain privileges to be accessed, and so on (not plain files sitting around on a disk easy to AV scan).
Ideally there wouldn’t be any noticeable CPU impact of running Norton - in the past performance has been one of the reasons some have been unwilling to use AV products.
But if someone familiar with its implementation feels this impact is inevitable with a) the amount of data being analysed (anything with streaming needs to ‘keep up’ just like when watching a streamed movie - whereas a disk scan can run slowly) and b) the proprietary nature of Windows app downloads demanding extra CPU work - then fine, it’s just CPU load and fan noise for the duration of an update more than some actual error.
So just in case it is something that can be improved, I’ll endeavour to pass debug logs to development on next occasion.