Intel Z790 motherboard owners have been complaining about their internet connections randomly dropping out over the last few months because of an issue relating to their Ethernet controllers, but a solution is now here—kind of. As explained in a post that MSI shared today on its official subreddit, Intel has released a new mitigation driver that addresses the problem with its I226/I225 Ethernet controllers by disabling Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE) at 1 Gbps and 2.5 Gbps, although this is merely a workaround, as Intel is still trying to figure out the root cause behind the issue. MPG Z790 CARBON WIFI owners should find the new drivers on the motherboard’s support page, according to MSI.
From an Intel Community post:
Some customers have recently reported connection drops at random times, specifically on the newly launched 700 series motherboards with Intel Ethernet Controller I226-V.
Intel has reproduced the issue and is diligently working on a root cause and fix. For any of our customers experiencing this problem, a mitigation option to explore is to disable the “Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE)” mode in the Advanced Windows/ Linux driver setting. We believe this should help. We are continuing to assess the situation and will follow-up accordingly.
We appreciate those who have shared information about their experience with this issue, and we welcome your input. Intel will continue to review the comments and information you share to help us work towards a solution.
From an MSI post:
Intel has released I226/I225 2.5GbE mitigation driver for random connection drop issue and the driver is available on MSI website:
Driver v2.1.3.3 for Windows 11
Driver v1.1.4.38 for Windows 10
This driver is a workaround that disables Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE) at 1Gbps/ 2.5Gbps.
Intel is still doing ongoing investigation to determine the root cause and will provide a robust solution.
The driver is available on the product page.