Linux 7.3 improves gaming on AMD GPUs with limited VRAM
Linus Torvalds has released Linux 7.3, which changes how the kernel manages graphics memory when AMD GPUs run short of VRAM. OMG! Ubuntu reports that the change can move unprotected background data out of VRAM to make room for higher-priority tasks; Valve engineer Natalie Vock led the work.
Bottom line — Linux 7.3 also speeds up ext4 and changes CPU scheduling, while Ubuntu 26.10 ships with the kernel.
Go deeper 4
-
OMG! Ubuntu reports that tests ran Indiana Jones and the Great Circle on an 8 GB GPU with memory settings pushed towards 9 GB.
-
The kernel’s revised scheduler aims to keep systems responsive when background processes compete for CPU time, according to OMG! Ubuntu.
-
Ext4 gains faster parallel direct writes and small direct reads; a ByteDance engineer measured 2.19 million 4K random reads per second, up from 1.92 million, on a PCIe Gen5 NVMe SSD, OMG! Ubuntu reports.
-
Phoronix says the graphics updates also include support for older AMD Radeon hardware and Intel Nova Lake graphics enabled by default.