Intel splits its graphics drivers, moving 11th to 14th Gen Core iGPUs to legacy support

Intel’s splitting up its iGPU drivers between newer ARC GPUs and “legacy” products

Intel has announced that the company has split up its graphics drivers, relegating the company’s older GPUs to “legacy software support”. This means that Intel’s older GPUs will only be receiving “critical fixes” and updates that address “security vulnerabilities”. There will be no more Day-0 game support or feature upgrades.

Intel’s “Legacy” GPUs include the integrated graphics for Intel’s 11th to 14th-generation Core processors. Additionally, this impacts older CPU families like Skylake, Apollo Lake, Kaby Lake, Amber Lake, Coffee Lake, Whiskey Lake, Comet Lake, Gemini Lake, Ice Lake, Lakefield, Jasper Lake, and Lekhart Lake processors. Furthermore, Intel’s Iris Xe (DG1) discrete GPU has moved to “legacy” support.

Now, only Intel’s newer ARC discrete GPUs (Alchemist and Battlemage) and Core Ultra CPUs are supported by Intel’s latest graphics drivers. These GPUs will recieve day-0 game support and “Game On” updates.

As of September 19, 2025, Intel will be moving 11th – 14th Gen Intel Processor Graphics and related Intel Atom, Pentium, and Celeron processor graphics to a legacy software support model. Intel will provide software support for affected products on critical fixes and security vulnerabilities only. Software updates for these products will move to a quarterly release cadence with additional critical releases as needed.

The following product families are impacted by this transition:

Codenames: Skylake, Apollo Lake, Kaby Lake, Amber Lake, Coffee Lake, Whiskey Lake, Comet Lake, Gemini Lake, Ice Lake, Lakefield, Jasper Lake, Elkhart Lake.

• 11th Gen Intel Core processor family (Codename Tiger Lake, Rocket Lake, Tiger Lake-H)
• 12th Gen Intel Core processor family (Codename Alder Lake-S, Alder Lake-H, Alder Lake-P, Alder Lake-U, Alder Lake-HX, Alder Lake-N, Twin Lake)
• 13th Gen Intel Core processor family (Codename Raptor Lake-S, Raptor Lake-HX, Raptor Lake-H, Raptor Lake-P, Raptor Lake-U)
• 14th Gen Intel Core processor family (Codename Raptor Lake-S Refresh, Raptor Lake-H Refresh, Raptor Lake-U Refresh)
• Intel Iris Xe Dedicated Graphics family (Codename DG1)

– Intel

While it is not uncommon for older GPUs to lose driver support, it is worth noting that Intel’s 13th-generation and 14th-generation Core CPUs are still available from retailers. The loss of mainstream GPU driver support for these CPUs is disappointing. That said, these iGPUs aren’t exactly gaming-grade graphics solutions.

Moving forward, Intel plans to focus its GPU driver development on its newer ARC products, which makes sense. If that helps improve the performance and stability of Intel’s latest GPUs, it is a positive development for the broader GPU market. After all, a stronger Intel will force AMD and Nvidia to become more competitive.

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