Announcing Native NVMe in Windows Server 2025

THEBOSS619 · Dec 22, 2025

neves said:
Quite the opposite from what i notice. Had the tweaks applied, booted in Safe Mood - to clean the previous iGPU driver with DDU - and didn't notice any issues/difference after restart. Latter on - i noticed that Storage Disks - was missing from Device Manager, checked the reg keys - and they were all removed/gone. Apparently, booting into Safe Mode - the keys are removed and reverts back to default.

To bad, cause i did notice some improvements in CrystalDiskMark and didn't encounter any of the other possible issues (like higher temperatures or BSOD), so was gonna keep it for extensive testing/use.

Oh well 2 systems suffered the same fate, Safe mode gets nuked unless if I reverted back. I guess it tries to revert back the drivers while booting to Safe mode but it fails hence it gets stuck at this state.

I am pretty sure MS did it first for Windows servers as they are the ones that will have performance benefit from it the most but for normal users? I am pretty sure normal users aren't using there PC/laptops as a server like usage.

The benefit ain't worth the risk & hassle for it. Don't like the hassle especially for something that isn't announced or isn't officially released to Windows Home/Pro.

This thing needs some major polishing before it gets officially released & announced for RP/Beta/Dev Insiders.

neves · Dec 22, 2025

THEBOSS619 said:
I am pretty sure MS did it first for Windows servers as they are the ones that will have performance benefit from it the most but for normal users? I am pretty sure normal users aren't using there PC/laptops as a server like usage.

The benefit ain't worth the risk & hassle for it. Don't like the hassle especially for something that isn't announced or isn't officially released to Windows Home/Pro.

This thing needs some major polishing before it gets officially released & announced for RP/Beta/Dev Insiders.

NVMe SSDs went mainstream around 2017, or at least - that's when prices began to drop considerably - making them a viable option for the average consumer. Also, quite common - in almost every laptop released around that time. And yet... only now - almost 9 years - we get native/proper support for NVMe.

Everyone can benefit from this change/update - not just server. Tho, this registry values - have multiple option beyond NVMe Native Support:

Registry Value Name	Type	Value (Data)	Purpose
1176759950	REG_DWORD	1	Enables Native NVMe Opt-In
1853569164	REG_DWORD	1	Enables Native Support
156965516	REG_DWORD	1	Activates Modern Stack
735209102	REG_DWORD	1	Enables BypassIO Path

Even those can improve performance for every type of Windows, based on this description:

The BypassIO Path in Windows 11 is a performance feature, integral to DirectStorage, that creates a streamlined I/O path to reduce CPU overhead for disk reads, boosting game/app loading speeds, especially on NVMe SSDs, but can conflict with older file system filter drivers (like some antivirus/anti-cheat software) causing instability, often seen as Event Viewer warnings or app crashes.

Tho, that's also the main culprit - for some of the mentioned issues - on older system (with older components/drivers) in particular.

uncyler825 · Dec 22, 2025

1853569164 is IP toggle key not Native Support features. Most experimental features require this key. If you install an Insider Preview OS build, Microsoft will enable this key to activate experimental features.

Activating the 1853569164 key during a general OS build will also trigger this bug. KB5070316 Windows 11 Insider Dev and Beta build 26220.7344 (25H2) - Dec. 5

abactuon · Dec 22, 2025

For some reason nothing is written to the event log.

Of course, entries are made in other logs.

THEBOSS619 · Dec 22, 2025

neves said:
NVMe SSDs went mainstream around 2017, or at least - that's when prices began to drop considerably - making them a viable option for the average consumer. Also, quite common - in almost every laptop released around that time. And yet... only now - almost 9 years - we get native/proper support for NVMe.

Everyone can benefit from this change/update - not just server. Tho, this registry values - have multiple option beyond NVMe Native Support:

Registry Value Name Type Value (Data) Purpose
1176759950 REG_DWORD 1 Enables Native NVMe Opt-In
1853569164 REG_DWORD 1 Enables Native Support
156965516 REG_DWORD 1 Activates Modern Stack
735209102 REG_DWORD 1 Enables BypassIO Path

Even those can improve performance for every type of Windows, based on this description:

The BypassIO Path in Windows 11 is a performance feature, integral to DirectStorage, that creates a streamlined I/O path to reduce CPU overhead for disk reads, boosting game/app loading speeds, especially on NVMe SSDs, but can conflict with older file system filter drivers (like some antivirus/anti-cheat software) causing instability, often seen as Event Viewer warnings or app crashes.

Tho, that's also the main culprit - for some of the mentioned issues - on older system (with older components/drivers) in particular.

Can't deny that, the benefits is there indeed and will surely it will be built upon it for future performance update enhancement , MS taking baby steps as slowly as it can.

The way I see it...

All those DirectStorage/BypassIO/NVMe Native Support doesn't scale well if you are a single user using OS like any normal person would... Unless MS is planning to introduce in the future a crap load of background AI processes crunching CPUs and writing/reading multithreaded IO Streamlined path which will be mitigated by DirectStorage/BypassIO/NVMe Native Support. Which I won't be surprised :ROFLMAO:

I feel like SSD Controllers will be the bottleneck once we start hitting it hard. All those NVMe Gen3/4/5 DRAMless SSDs will have a hard time while SSD with DRAM can have benefits as it usually comes with it a decent performant SSD controller.

And with prices craziness that is happening with anything related to RAM/VRAM/SSD/NAND/etc,etc....... well we are doomed. Those stuff are like Oil or Gas... when those gets expensive... everything else gets expensive along with it.

neves · Dec 23, 2025

THEBOSS619 said:
Can't deny that, the benefits is there indeed and will surely it will be built upon it for future performance update enhancement , MS taking baby steps as slowly as it can.

The way I see it...

All those DirectStorage/BypassIO/NVMe Native Support doesn't scale well if you are a single user using OS like any normal person would... Unless MS is planning to introduce in the future a crap load of background AI processes crunching CPUs and writing/reading multithreaded IO Streamlined path which will be mitigated by DirectStorage/BypassIO/NVMe Native Support. Which I won't be surprised

I feel like SSD Controllers will be the bottleneck once we start hitting it hard. All those NVMe Gen3/4/5 DRAMless SSDs will have a hard time while SSD with DRAM can have benefits as it usually comes with it a decent performant SSD controller.

And with prices craziness that is happening with anything related to RAM/VRAM/SSD/NAND/etc,etc....... well we are doomed. Those stuff are like Oil or Gas... when those gets expensive... everything else gets expensive along with it.

If it's problematic/bugged - Servers should be the last place - "to test a buggy feature". In the Corporate & Industrial world - even monthly Windows Updates are a Big No No! - while aiming to avoid the risk of something going wrong (and loose hours or even a day - of work/business/profit - aka - financial loss). And those are just employee works stations. You think anyone would risk an "experimental feature" - on a Server (risking the main database getting corrupted - even impacting/spreading to back-up units)? That would be catastrophic - on so many levels. Even a consumer server used for streaming, file sharing or gaming - corrupting data or going offline - could anger to many spirits and imply major losses. That being said... Server users interested in this features - should definitely wait for a stable/refined/optimized implementation.

Beyond that, indeed... makes "A LOT" more sense for Servers (far bigger improvements) - compared to average consumers. Can help with high resolution video editing and would lower loading times for games (tho, Many modern games already use DirectStorage on Windows to bypass older paths - which matters more than raw NVMe architecture). On the other hand... Laptops are more popular than Desktops this days - and this features are more aggressive with power-consumption, thus.... the main downside (can have a noticeable impact on battery life). Same goes for cooling limitations (and higher temperatures). Same reason Power Performance Tuning features - are hidden - and the online guides from Microsoft - are intended for Servers. Tho, obviously you can - and many do use them on a Consumer PC (the so called "Ultimate Power Plan" - is based on those guides). So yeah, since it's hard to separate Desktop PCs from Portable PCs this days - this feature will be accessible in consumer Windows - but will probably be hidden as well. While old hardware is particularly problematic.

True, it's a really bad time for storage investments. :\

abactuon · Dec 23, 2025

neves said:
the so called "Ultimate Power Plan" - is based on those guides

abactuon · Dec 23, 2025

neves said:
Servers should be the last place - "to test a buggy feature".

Maybe Microsoft management thinks we're all fools. Maybe they're right.

OilerNut · Dec 24, 2025

neves said:
If it's problematic/bugged - Servers should be the last place - "to test a buggy feature". In the Corporate & Industrial world - even monthly Windows Updates are a Big No No! - while aiming to avoid the risk of something going wrong (and loose hours or even a day - of work/business/profit - aka - financial loss). And those are just employee works stations. You think anyone would risk an "experimental feature" - on a Server (risking the main database getting corrupted - even impacting/spreading to back-up units)? That would be catastrophic - on so many levels. Even a consumer server used for streaming, file sharing or gaming - corrupting data or going offline - could anger to many spirits and imply major losses. That being said... Server users interested in this features - should definitely wait for a stable/refined/optimized implementation.

Beyond that, indeed... makes "A LOT" more sense for Servers (far bigger improvements) - compared to average consumers. Can help with high resolution video editing and would lower loading times for games (tho, Many modern games already use DirectStorage on Windows to bypass older paths - which matters more than raw NVMe architecture). On the other hand... Laptops are more popular than Desktops this days - and this features are more aggressive with power-consumption, thus.... the main downside (can have a noticeable impact on battery life). Same goes for cooling limitations (and higher temperatures). Same reason Power Performance Tuning features - are hidden - and the online guides from Microsoft - are intended for Servers. Tho, obviously you can - and many do use them on a Consumer PC (the so called "Ultimate Power Plan" - is based on those guides). So yeah, since it's hard to separate Desktop PCs from Portable PCs this days - this feature will be accessible in consumer Windows - but will probably be hidden as well. While old hardware is particularly problematic.

True, it's a really bad time for storage investments. :\

I am sorry but this is such outdated thinking. While companies will have some harden mission critical servers that SHOULD BE isolated and air gapped, most companies will be patching servers and should be patching them monthly while implementing recommended CIS/NIST security baselines on them. We aren't in the NT or even the 2000 days where applying updates and service packs were truly scary things to do. People in the industry should be knowledgeable enough to apply updates to a small group of servers and proceeding from there. Anyone pushing back against this screams they aren't knowledgeable and if things break they would have no clue on what to do and are scared of being put into that position.

Meanwhile, they could turn this NVME feature on for some development servers where it would be beneficial and if rubbish didn't work it would have very little impact. and Microsoft has very likely been working closely with some major players on this. It's not like people would be using this feature on DCs, PKI services or DHCP servers.

Sorry but as someone who has been a sysadmin for over 20 years, I felt I needed to speak out against this.

TairikuOkami · Dec 24, 2025

TairikuOkami said:
Code:

reg add "HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Policies\Microsoft\FeatureManagement\Overrides" /v "156965516" /t REG_DWORD /d "1" /f reg add "HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Policies\Microsoft\FeatureManagement\Overrides" /v "735209102" /t REG_DWORD /d "1" /f reg add "HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Policies\Microsoft\FeatureManagement\Overrides" /v "1853569164" /t REG_DWORD /d "1" /f

Sooo. I have got fed up with this ordeal and I have upgraded to 26H1 and it seems to do the trick, but I have got mixed results.
Slow disk has got noticeably slower and fast disk has got slightly faster. I have to use slow disk for Windows, not happy about it.

My slow disk is PCIe 3.0 running in PCIe 4.0 slot and my fast disk is PCIe 4.0 running in PCIe 5.0 slot.

View attachment 157619 View attachment 157616 View attachment 157617

I have just updated BIOS (ComboAM5 1.2.0.3g to ComboAM5 1.2.7.1) and it has improved results.

My assumption, software/driver support is important.

Software
1. The latest BIOS
2. The latest chipset driver

Hardware
3. Motherboard PCIe support (Gen4/5)
4. NVMe disk, the newer, the better (Gen5)

No NVMe driver:

NVMe driver default / the latest BIOS/drivers / the latestest BIOS/drivers (05/26):

maur0 · Dec 24, 2025

neves said:
NVMe SSDs went mainstream around 2017, or at least - that's when prices began to drop considerably - making them a viable option for the average consumer. Also, quite common - in almost every laptop released around that time. And yet... only now - almost 9 years - we get native/proper support for NVMe.

Everyone can benefit from this change/update - not just server. Tho, this registry values - have multiple option beyond NVMe Native Support:

Registry Value Name Type Value (Data) Purpose
1176759950 REG_DWORD 1 Enables Native NVMe Opt-In
1853569164 REG_DWORD 1 Enables Native Support
156965516 REG_DWORD 1 Activates Modern Stack
735209102 REG_DWORD 1 Enables BypassIO Path

Even those can improve performance for every type of Windows, based on this description:

The BypassIO Path in Windows 11 is a performance feature, integral to DirectStorage, that creates a streamlined I/O path to reduce CPU overhead for disk reads, boosting game/app loading speeds, especially on NVMe SSDs, but can conflict with older file system filter drivers (like some antivirus/anti-cheat software) causing instability, often seen as Event Viewer warnings or app crashes.

Tho, that's also the main culprit - for some of the mentioned issues - on older system (with older components/drivers) in particular.

Unfortunately it didn't work here, why? :/ reletech p600 my ssd nvme,

boromyr · Dec 24, 2025

For me it only worked after disabling Intel VMD and setting sc config stornvme start=boot

neves · Dec 24, 2025

OilerNut said:
I am sorry but this is such outdated thinking. While companies will have some harden mission critical servers that SHOULD BE isolated and air gapped, most companies will be patching servers and should be patching them monthly while implementing recommended CIS/NIST security baselines on them. We aren't in the NT or even the 2000 days where applying updates and service packs were truly scary things to do. People in the industry should be knowledgeable enough to apply updates to a small group of servers and proceeding from there. Anyone pushing back against this screams they aren't knowledgeable and if things break they would have no clue on what to do and are scared of being put into that position.

Meanwhile, they could turn this NVME feature on for some development servers where it would be beneficial and if rubbish didn't work it would have very little impact. and Microsoft has very likely been working closely with some major players on this. It's not like people would be using this feature on DCs, PKI services or DHCP servers.

Sorry but as someone who has been a sysadmin for over 20 years, I felt I needed to speak out against this.

So outdated - that the first thing you add after making that statement - is a contradictory statement. If your - modem perspective was accurate - that wouldn't/shouldn't be the case (fear the possibility of a Windows Update braking something). After all "by your claims" - Windows updates were fully stable for past 20+ years (since the last Update Roll-up - for Win2K Service Pack 4 was released). And.... every Windows Update since then was a smooth ride... Ahem Ahem! NOT! Ahem Ahem... astronomical level of BS. On the other hand, taking... "reality/proof" into account - even the latest Windows and recent Updates from past months - caused all kinds of issue:

KB Number / Version	Issue	Impact
KB5066835 (Oct 2025)	WinRE Failure	Broke USB mouse/keyboard support in the Recovery Environment, making it impossible to fix PCs that wouldn't boot.
KB5065789 (Sept 2025)	IIS / Localhost	Caused "ERR_CONNECTION_RESET" for developers using local IIS servers.
KB5067036 (Oct 2025)	Task Manager Loop	Task Manager wouldn't fully close, causing massive memory leaks and CPU slowdowns over time.
Version 24H2 (Initial)	SSD Blue Screens	Caused BSODs specifically on Western Digital and SanDisk SSDs due to Host Memory Buffer issues.

Only updates worth taking into account - are Endpoint Security Updates - where definitions for AV/EDR are usually set even for 1 - > 4 Hours - aiming to cover 0 Days Vulnerabilities and situational vulnerability patches. Not Monthly features updates, you don't even get those with LTSC - "EXACTLY FOR THIS REASON (can still break stuff to this day - in late 2025, not something that happend only 20 years ago - as you seem to believe)!" Old way of thinking - that's still an industry standard - because it "still" works/necesary.

neves · Dec 24, 2025

maur0 said:
Unfortunately it didn't work here, why? :/ reletech p600 my ssd nvme,

Doesn't work with every SSD, and also - you need Microsoft Default Driver: Standard NVMe Express Controller - make sure it's not using the manufacturer Driver (Samsung NVMe or whatever you're using).

As for bypassIo - oppen Terminal (as admin) - and use the following command, to see if it's compatible:

fsutil bypassIo state /v c:\

If it is, you should get:

Code:

BypassIo on "c:\" is currently supported
Storage Type:   NVMe
Storage Driver: BypassIo compatible
Driver Name:    stornvme.sys

maur0 · Dec 24, 2025

neves said:
Doesn't work with every SSD, and also - you need Microsoft Default Driver: Standard NVMe Express Controller - make sure it's not using the manufacturer Driver (Samsung NVMe or whatever you're using).

As for bypassIo - oppen Terminal (as admin) - and use the following command, to see if it's compatible:

fsutil bypassIo state /v c:\

If it is, you should get:

Code:

BypassIo on "c:\" is currently supported Storage Type: NVMe Storage Driver: BypassIo compatible Driver Name: stornvme.sys

It may be that this controller is not yet supported in Windows natively in the nvme, which is why "it hasn't changed" maxio mapi1202

boromyr · Dec 24, 2025

C:\Users\PC>fsutil bypassIo state /v c:\
BypassIo on "c:\" is partially supported
Volume stack bypass is disabled (ambakdrv.sys)
Status: 494 (The specified driver does not support BypassIO operations.)
Reason: The driver's StorageSupportedFeatures registry value is not defined
Storage type: NVMe
Storage driver: Not compatible with BypassIo
Driver name: stornvme.sys
I get this

werty · Dec 25, 2025

A little improvement on the main Crucial T500 drive. Crucial Stprage Executive is crashing while loading the application.

DanTheGuy · Dec 27, 2025

I just tried enabling it on my 25H2 installation (26200.7462) and after a reboot I lost access to my user account, giving me an error message along the lines of "The user account does not exist" when attempting to sign in. I had to reboot into safe mode to regain access to the account and then remove the registry keys and it fixed my problem. I do wonder if I maybe missed something since I only added 3 registry values according to this guide, but in this thread it looks like there was supposed to be 4 values. I'm afraid to re-attempt it though, haha.

uncyler825 · Dec 27, 2025

DanTheGuy said:
I just tried enabling it on my 25H2 installation (26200.7462) and after a reboot I lost access to my user account, giving me an error message along the lines of "The user account does not exist" when attempting to sign in. I had to reboot into safe mode to regain access to the account and then remove the registry keys and it fixed my problem. I do wonder if I maybe missed something since I only added 3 registry values according to this guide, but in this thread it looks like there was supposed to be 4 values. I'm afraid to re-attempt it though, haha.

Because these IDs enabled the IP experimentation feature (togger). This might accidentally enable other experimental features and cause problems for your system.

der_7e_schatten · Dec 27, 2025

So question, is it available on latest Dev build (26220.7523) or not yet?
Tried that on my Surface Book 3 on latest Dev Build, still on disk.sys

Announcing Native NVMe in Windows Server 2025

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