Windows 11 Keeps Breaking AMD Adrenalin Software

First, I do want to mention that I do have a unique laptop in that it's an ASUS TUF Gaming Laptop with an AMD Ryzen 7 3750H CPU, an RX Vega 10 integrated chip, & an Nvidia GeForce 1660 Ti GFX. With the Nvidia software, the drivers are never downgraded, no issues when I update to the newest driver when it's ready. When it comes to the AMD side of things though.... I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle that makes me want to rip my hair out. I go to AMD's website, download the latest adrenalin software as it won't open due to MS update downgrading the AMD driver to a previous one.

Example:
Current AMD Released Driver (MS Auto Update): 22.3.1 Released by AMD on 03/09/2022. (AMD Official Release*)
Current AMD Released Driver (AMD Optional): 22.4.2 Released by AMD on 04/25/2022. (AMD Stable Release**)

Granted I can turn off the optional drivers with AMD so that I can't see them or that any are available. I guess it just feels like that by being able to see them, & the fact that I can't get them through the automatic updates that MS is just behind with my drivers & that I'm always going to be behind everyone else. When it comes to gaming depending on the game sometimes that millisecond counts between a win & a loss. As a suggestion or as a future option MS can via an advanced option allow us to choose to install via the Automatic Updates manufacturer optional drivers? That way the choice is ours to make & we can feel more in control with that choice than having to come up with clunky work arounds.

This next section is going to be the work around I've found (at least using AMD Software) - Please use it as a template as it may help with a work around for other driver software you may have issues with as well.

One of the first things I've learned is that even if you do turn off the Automatic updates for your drivers, is that when you manually click "Check for Updates" is that if you've installed any recent "Optional" drivers Windows Update will now replace them with whichever version Windows has as the released version. Windows Update will not ask for your permission, it'll just download it, install it, & if you're lucky it'll ask if you want to restart now or if you want to restart later for the changes to take effect.

AMD's Adrenalin Software it can be quite "touchy" & when you go to open it you may get a large box with lots of words that basically says, "Go to our website to redownloading/installing the AMD Adrenalin Software again". What's currently working for me *Fingers crossed* is after downloading the software & opening it I make sure to select the Recommended Driver (which should match the one MS puts out). Next, click on additional options & select Full Install (For Gamers) Minimal Install (Non-Gamers), then de-select "Factory Reset" to turn it off. You'll see the option to the right of Factory Reset change or disappear completely. Click Install on the bottom right. Once finished, you may have to restart your PC/Laptop, but you should be able to click Check for updates under Windows Update with it no longer breaking your AMD Adrenalin Software.

*Official Release - The official release is made infrequently and is what is distributed to partner sites & is distributed to a very wide audience. Official Release versions tend to be very well tested before being released. There may only be a handful of Official Releases in a given year.

**Stable Release - The stable release is one a company believes has very few issues or bugs. This version is typically considered stable enough to be used but may not include all of the fixes or features that may get added with it later on. A lot of times this release may fix a bug or several bugs, but other than that won't do nearly as much as an Official Release will for you.

This is just my thoughts on what the two versions are, if you read the release notes on 22.4.2 it honestly fixes I think one thing, which maybe helps the few people out there that need that one thing fixed. I guess while writing this out, I realized myself maybe always having the shiny newest thing being released isn't always the best thing. That maybe it is a good idea to slow my roll a little bit & just wait for a more official release. If that's what MS is doing then you know what, keep up the good work & I'll keep on looking for the work arounds to keep using the software with my Games. ;)