Constant high GPU usage when downloading content

steamopen Steam client

ValveSoftware/steam-for-linux#12312 · opened 2025-09-07 by makisukurisu · updated 2025-09-07 · 2 comments · github

Mmakisukurisu 2025-09-07 github

Your system information

Steam client version (build number or date): 1751405894
Distribution (e.g. Ubuntu): Fedora Linux 42 (Workstation Edition), with Gnome 48 running on Wayland
Opted into Steam client beta?: No
Have you checked for system updates?: Yes
Steam Logs: steam-logs.tar.gz
GPU: Intel (Xe 80, Raptor Lake, from i5-1334U)

Please describe your issue in as much detail as possible:

When downloading games or updates, if Steam window is visible on the current virtual desktop (or is visible as part of virtual desktop navigation, by pressing Super/Using gestures to open the tasks view [1]), then Steam will have a large GPU usage for no apparent reason. (For me it's about 50% utilization)
However, if Steam is opened in a non-active virtual desktop, or is not downloading any updates, the GPU usage will drop to zero.

[1] - What Tasks View looks like under my definition:

Steps for reproducing this issue:

Open Steam client;
Update or Download some content;
Leave Steam window on a library view (without any complex graphics, or graphs)
Observe a spike in GPU utilization;
Move Steam window to a new Virtual Desktop;
Observe a drop in GPU utilization;

A recording of the screen during this. Using Resources app to gather information about system resources utilization.

Recording of the bug

Small description of contents:
From 00:00 to 00:20 - Showing the background resource usage (note spiking in GPU due to screen recording ("System Processes" in Apps view))
From 00:20 to 00:45 - Started downloading a game, and showing spiking in GPU usage with attribution to Steam client;
From 00:45 till the end of the video - Showing that changing Virtual Desktops mitigated the GPU usage problem.

Mmakisukurisu 2025-09-07 github

If there's a way for me to provide more details, let me know, I'd love to help isolate and fix this issue.

I presume with no basis, OFC that this may be due to rendering of the download graph, or some other "complex" graphics, that are simply not displayed front and center. Or some obscure bug with Intel iGPUs and Wayland caused by higher CPU usage (because of the downloads processes)

Mmakisukurisu 2025-09-07 github

P.S. Just checked what happens on X11 windowing system. The situation is, surprisingly to me, worse.

On Xorg the GPU draw when downloading a game doesn't depend on the window's visibility. Even closing the client window doesn't cause Steam app itself to use less GPU.

So, it doesn't seem to be windowing system dependent per say.

Nothing extracted yet.