Changing the processor performance boost mode on a laptop via the registry

Question

I want to adjust the default power scheme on a laptop to specifically change the processor performance boost option from Aggressive to just Enabled via the registry.

I know I can enable the ability to see and change this by changing the Attribute data value to 2 in the registry key;

Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\PowerSettings\54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00\be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7

but I then can only find details of how to change the actual setting using the GUI interface,.

I need to change the boost mode for both On battery and Plugged in from the default of Aggressive to just Enabled.

I need to be able to do this via the .reg file so that I can add it to our powershell setup file that we run after installing Windows 11 Education onto a laptop. We have a great many laptops to do and we are always having to re-install them, so changing these settings on each install manually is a pain.

I have tried the following in a .reg file and ran it and rebooted. On checking the settings in control panel it still shows aggressive for both On battery and Plugged in

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\PowerSettings\54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00\be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7]

"Attributes"=dword:00000002

"BoostValue"=dword:00000001

This same .reg file has all the descriptions and friendly name bits for the registry keys 0 to 6 and then the DefaultPowerSchemeValues, which each have AcSettingIndex &"DcSettingIndex and I can change these with this .reg file, but this makes no difference to the settings in control panel. They are still both set to Aggressive.

Can someone please let me know the registry entry I need to use. Thank you.

Answer 1

Hello Stephen Edgington,

Thank you for posting this and for following up with your results.

You were looking for a reliable way to set Processor performance boost mode to Enabled (instead of the default Aggressive) for both battery and plugged-in states across multiple Windows 11 Education laptops. Because the devices are locked down and you needed this applied consistently after installation, you were exploring options that could be included in an automated post-install PowerShell script.

The commands you used are the correct and supported method:

powercfg /SETACVALUEINDEX SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_PROCESSOR PERFBOOSTMODE 1

powercfg /SETDCVALUEINDEX SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_PROCESSOR PERFBOOSTMODE 1

These commands directly update the ACSettingIndex and DCSettingIndex values for the active power scheme, which is why Control Panel now correctly reflects “Enabled”. This approach is more reliable for scripted deployments than editing the definition key in the registry.

As an optional improvement for your script, you can also run the following command once to make the setting visible in Advanced Power Settings (in case it needs to be checked manually later):

powercfg -attributes SUB_PROCESSOR PERFBOOSTMODE -ATTRIB_HIDE

Thank you for testing this and sharing the working commands. Your experience will be helpful to others who need to apply the same change in automated deployments or managed environments.

Answer 2

The example script in 1. above does not work. The syntax requires 3 GUIDs.

I did not use a .reg file in the end as PowerShell can do it quite adequately. I used the below and it worked fine and changed the Aggressive to Enabled for the current scheme. As the machines are all locked down, the user(s) cannot change the scheme, so this works fine;

powercfg /SETACVALUEINDEX SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_PROCESSOR PERFBOOSTMODE 1
powercfg /SETDCVALUEINDEX SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_PROCESSOR PERFBOOSTMODE 1

Answer 3

PERFBOOSTMODE is a hidden power setting that controls how the processor selects boost performance levels. It is not configured by a simple BoostValue registry value under the setting definition key; instead, it must be set per power scheme and per AC/DC condition using the standard power setting value mechanism (or via powercfg).

Key facts from the setting definition:

• Setting GUID: be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7
• Subgroup (Processor power management) GUID: 54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00
• PowerCfg alias: PERFBOOSTMODE
• Hidden: Yes
• Values (index):
  • 0 = Disabled
  • 1 = Enabled
  • 2 = Aggressive
  • 3 = Same as 1
  • 4 = Same as 2

To change from Aggressive to Enabled for both On battery (DC) and Plugged in (AC), the setting index must be set to 1 for each active power scheme.

There are two reliable approaches:

1. Use powercfg in the setup script (recommended) For each power scheme that should be modified (for example, the active one), run in the PowerShell setup script:

      # Get active scheme GUID
      $scheme = (powercfg /getactivescheme) -replace '.*GUID\s+([a-f0-9-]+).*','$1'
      
      # Set PERFBOOSTMODE to Enabled (1) for AC and DC
      powercfg /setacvalueindex $scheme 54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00 be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7 1
      powercfg /setdcvalueindex $scheme 54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00 be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7 1
      
      # Apply the scheme
      powercfg /S $scheme
   

   This directly writes the correct AC/DC setting indices for PERFBOOSTMODE in the active plan and ensures Control Panel shows “Enabled” instead of “Aggressive”.
2. Use registry edits per scheme (if schemes are known in advance) Each power scheme has its own key under: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\User\PowerSchemes\{SCHEME-GUID}\54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00\be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7 Under that key, the values are:
   • ACSettingIndex (REG_DWORD)
   • DCSettingIndex (REG_DWORD)
   To set both to Enabled, for each scheme GUID to be customized:

      Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
      
      [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\User\PowerSchemes\{SCHEME-GUID}\54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b740d00\be337238-0d82-4146-a960-4f3749d470c7]
      "ACSettingIndex"=dword:00000001
      "DCSettingIndex"=dword:00000001
   

   Replace {SCHEME-GUID} with the GUID of the power plan being deployed or used as default. After importing the .reg file, either re-activate the scheme with powercfg /S {SCHEME-GUID} or log off/on to ensure the values are applied.

The Attributes value under the setting definition key only controls visibility of the setting in the UI; it does not change the active AC/DC values. The BoostValue value is not part of the documented configuration for PERFBOOSTMODE and will not affect the Control Panel setting.

For large-scale deployment on Windows 11 Education, embedding the powercfg /setacvalueindex and /setdcvalueindex commands in the post-install PowerShell script is the most robust method.

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References:

• PERFBOOSTMODE
• Fine-Tune a Custom Power Plan