Ken, I'm an old techie with extreme neurosis over the Windows OS. I hang out in tech forums where we do extensive de-bloating of Windows, and share patches that disable many wasteful functions. So, I would never encourage anyone to blindly re-install Windows. Especially in the current environment where Microsoft has released updates to the latest 24H2 version of Windows that went horribly wrong. Patches on patches of patches! Maybe they have it finally fixed now, who knows?   Besides, if I am right that Adobe is using a Windows service in error, then Adobe has to fix it, not Microsoft.   And a curious footnote... I have Lightroom but rarely use it. Remember that Lightroom lagged behind Bridge/ACR in deploying Denoise AI. I recently updated Lightroom so I tested again. Lo and Behold, this new Lightroom does NOT spin the CPU when applying Denoise AI (or any other AI functions). ... View more

Thanks again, your system is very similar to mine. I've got an I7 instead of I5 and a 3070 GPU. However, I'd be very surprised if this is a hardware problem. I'm much more suspicious of the OS, its services, mods, and potential add-ons. My guess is Adobe is accessing some Windows service features, gets caught in a loop until it times out. I'm on Win 23H2 and it's locked down, no auto updates allowed unless I do by hand. Given the latest round of Microsoft fiascos with version 24 that's a strategy I stick with.   Different versions of the OS and/or services might explain why a few people don't see the problem. ... View more

Thanks, Ken... Please tell your system specs. It's not happening to everybody so must be system specific. Windows or MAC? Processor? Version? We need all the evidence we can get in case anybody at Adobe is paying attention. ... View more

Camera Raw update today - Version 17.5.0.2318. Spinning CPU not fixed. I'm just hanging in there. ... View more

Yet another interesting test. I used an image with people standing in front of a building. There were 16 people in 4 clusters. Starting with raw raw (no settings) I first let ACR find and remove all the people, then clicked Done without opening in Photoshop. It found the 4 clusters and removed all. Although it added one new person of its own invention where one of the clusters used to be. But the big surprise, I got 6 new "Index" files and 8 "Table" files in the BigTableGroupCache. All from that one remove people step.   Then I reopened the image in ACR and did a Denoise. That got me one new Table file and all the Index files were updated. It also turned on the yellow "AI Edit Status" icon, and told me I needed to update the Remove People. So I did. And now I had 17 Table files in BigTableGroupCache! I assume one Table file was for the Denoise, 8 were for the first Remove People, and 8 more for the second (update) Remove People.   I repeated the sequence but did the Denoise first, then the Remove People. That way I got no AI Update Status warning, and no extra Table files in BigTableGroupCache.   But even more fun followed. I started over with raw raw and an empty BigTableGroupCache. I opened the image in ACR and deleted 1 person by hand (no auto detect, no Denoise), then clicked Done. Nothing showed up in BigTableGroupCache. I kept doing this, removing 1 person at a time until I had removed 8 of the 16. Still nothing in BigTableGroupCache. Mysteries abound. ... View more

Wow! I'm impressed and honored that MadManChan showed up here. Thanks. But I'm a little confused and need to ask, what do you mean by "images load faster"? Load into what? Load from Bridge into ACR? Load from Bridge or ACR into Photoshop?   I did a couple quick tests to try to understand. First I used Bridge to copy 8 raw files with Denoise AI into a temp folder and deleted all in BigTableGroupCache. Then I selected all those 8 files in Bridge and opened in Camera Raw. That was fairly fast, about 3 seconds, and BigTableGroupCache got repopulated. So I did it again, opened the same 8 denoised raw files in Camera Raw. That was slightly faster, about 2 seconds. I repeated this several times, always the same result. Slightly faster when BigTableGroupCache is populated. But isn't the difference due to the time it takes to repopulate BigTableGroupCache?   Next test, I selected the 8 Denoised raw files in Bridge and did a "Load files into Photoshop layers". This took 18 seconds with BigTableGroupCache fully populated. It also took the same 18 seconds with BigTableGroupCache empty. And when BigTableGroupCache was empty the Load into Photoshop layers did not repopulate it. Another variation: I deleted the acr and xmp files for these 8 files (so, really raw raw) and loaded them as layers. Same 18 seconds!   Another test, I took 1 Denoised raw and made 18 duplicate copies in a folder. When I opened all 18 at once in ACR via Bridge I only got 1 entry in BigTableGroupCache. So I opened them one at a time. Still only one entry in BigTableGroupCache. So I applied one different exposure adjustment to several of them. Still only 1 entry in BigTableGroupCache. This is a mystery -- does Adobe recognizes enough similarity in raw images to let them share a single entry in BigTableGroupCache?   Bottom line for me: Wipe out BigTableGroupCache and do it often. The benefit of faster "loads" is questionable, and not worth the cost of letting those gigabytes pile up on your system drive and bloat your backups. ... View more

Well, I'll be a %#$@],  my spinning CPU is back again. And after Denoising about 10 images the process slows to a crawl. Normal 8 seconds becomes 60 to 90 seconds. Close and relaunch = Denoise speed returns to normal. I refuse to give up, plus I really enjoy talking to myself. I have a cat, so I'm used to it. ... View more

Another ACR update to Version 17.4.1.2280 today. Says it's only for new camera models, but who knows. This time I did more thorough testing, including a couple reboots, and found no runaway CPU spinning. Torture tested by Denoising a batch of 100 raws. No gradual slow down, no spinning CPU. So, fingers crossed. ... View more

Well, my credibility is definitely in question. Today, my ACR spinning CPU on Denoised Raws is back. No system changes or updates since my post 3 days ago, other than several re-boots. ... View more

The mystery deepens. Today I noticed that my ACR in Bridge was no longer spinning the CPU up to 100% following a Denoise AI. Also, not spinning the CPU when an already Denoised Raw is opened in ACR. But the time to Open a Denoised Raw into Photoshop from Bridge/ACR has increased from 5 seconds to 15 seconds. No unusual CPU activity seen during that 15 seconds. Non Denoised Raws open instantaneously.   The only thing that has changed since my previous post is that I updated Lightroom. I never use Lightroom to "Develop", and updated it just to test. I have never seen before a connection between Lightroom and Bridge/ACR. We are always told the Camera Raw code is the same, but physically separate. Bridge loads a separate Camera Raw.8bi file while Lightroom has it embedded in the main code.   The few others here who have seen the spinning CPU, please test under new versions and report what happens. ... View more

Another ACR update to Version 17.4.0.2272, this one in step with a Lightroom update that does Denoise AI without the DNG file.   Doing a Denoise in ACR now takes about the same time for me. And, it still spins the CPU up to 100% after the Denoise is complete. However, it spins the CPU for only about half the time. On my Win11 system the CPU used to spin for about 40 seconds. Now it only spins for about 20 seconds. Progress, I guess.   Also, on my system when ACR is hosted in Bridge, it used to take 30 to 40 seconds for a Denoised Raw to appear in Photoshop after hitting Open in ACR. Now it only takes 4 to 5 seconds. If ACR is hosted in Photoshop, the Open is instantaneous. That's why I've been dragging/dropping Denoised Raw files from Bridge into Photoshop instead of opening in Bridge.   ... View more

Today we got Bridge Version 15.1.0.635, promising bug fixes. Still no joy on the issues described in this 2+ year old thread. ... View more

Today I installed a "fresh" Windows 11 Version 23H2 on my desktop PC: 12th Gen Intel Core i7-12700KF/3.60 GHz, 64GB. So, no Windows mods/hacks/debloat, no 3rd party software. Then I installed Adobe Creative Cloud, and used it to install Photoshop (26.6.1) and Bridge (15.0.4.534) and ACR (17.3.1.2227). In other words, a system as virgin and up to date as possible.   I loaded a Canon CR3 raw file into ACR with Bridge. Launched Task Manager to monitor Bridge/ACR CPU, and ticked Denoise AI. After about 8 to 10 seconds of high GPU as the Denoise Window appeared, I still saw about 40 seconds of high CPU, rising to 95% then dropping back to less than 1%. I closed ACR, reopened with the Denoised raw, and saw the same 40 seconds of high CPU.   So, I'm confident I don't have some strange gremlin in my system that causes this ACR-CPU problem. It's got to be fully contained within Adobe. ... View more

I installed Bridge Beta Version 15.1.0.95 today. The splash screen promised bug fixes. Sadly, the "wrong size previews" and "soft previews" bugs discussed in this year-old thread are still there.   Luckily, we are getting all those cool AI features (Denoise, Selections) from Adobe. Can't complain about that. But this is one of 3 old core feature bugs I'm tracking that are also over a year old now. ... View more

Finally got some Adobe updates via Creative Cloud today. Now we have ACR version 17.3.0.2224. Sadly, this new version does not fix this runaway CPU problem. On my Windows 11 desktop system at least. I'm tired of asking others to test, but confident it's still there. ... View more

Welcome to the club, Zaphod. I have since reached out to 4 other Photoshoppers from a local photography club. All 4 are technophobes, but they let me nurse them through the test sequence, and all 4 showed the same runaway CPU following Denoise AI. These guys take everything out-of-the-box and never modify their Windows. I suspect they are even on Microsoft auto updates!   I expect (and hope) Adobe will quietly fix this issue in a future update. I imagine they are working on all the "AI" stuff to improve efficiency. Just be patient. ... View more

The *.acr files are definitely a mystery, and a problem. They are created by Denoise AI, Masking, and Super Res. Strangely, you can delete them (outside of Adobe with Explorer, Finder) and they will be simply recreated when ever necessary, with no damage to the image. For example: Denoise AI a raw file, see the acr file, delete the acr file, reopen and process the raw file in Camera Raw, see the acr file magically reappear.   On a recent project, I Denoised about 100+ images and got 2.5 gigs of *.acr files! My advice is to be patient. The implementation of the "AI" versions of Denoise, Masking, and Supe Res is still in Version 1.0. Trust that the developers are working to enhance efficiency. I check my Creative Cloud daily, waiting for the next update to Camera Raw. ... View more

We finally got an update to ACR today, version 17.2. Sadly it has no fix to the CPU mystery covered in this discussion. ... View more

Thanks for trying. My CPU crunch does not happen with just Raw Details. I haven't tried Super Resolution, never needed it. So, counting you, there are 3 confirmed cases and 3 denials. While that's a very limited sample, it seems to point to some unique Windows modification, or some 3rd party add-on. I do a lot of Windows debloating, mostly following the advice from Chris Titus Tech (https://www.youtube.com/@ChrisTitusTech). Maybe there is something there that Adobe dosen't like. The work around is simple (Denoise last and then immediately exit ACR). So, not a big deal. ... View more

Loaded updates to Photoshop 26.2.0 and ACR version 17.10.2100 today. No joy on this crunching CPU issue following a Denoise. Still happens. Also, found one Win11 user on a different forum who says he ran the test and saw the same on his system. Also, I updated my seldom used Dell XPX-13 laptop I use for travel. It has Windows 10 and shows the same. ... View more

Yeah, there is something different in Safe Mode-no Internet. Later, with normal boot, I disconnected from the Internet and Photoshop/Bridge worked OK.  ... View more

D Fosse, Thanks for that. You are only the 2nd to run my test (the other on a different forum), both showing no CPU problem. I guess that's a good indication I've got a unique gremlin in my system. But I'm at a loss to know how to debug that. I tried by killing all processes and services of 3rd party software I've installed, but I still get my 40 second CPU crunching.   Then I tried booting in Safe mode. But when I boot Safe with no internet I can't run Bridge or Photoshop. I get a window saying my subscription can't be verified. I thought Adobe only verified subscriptions periodically, maybe once a month. But I guess not. When I boot Safe with internet I get caught in a Microsoft Edge window that want's me to login and enable Office 365. When I installed Win11 I used the trick to skip the Microsoft account, so I can't login. When I just close that window, Edge freezes and becomes "not responding".   Any hints on how to proceed would be appreciated. ... View more

On my Windows 11 system I see some strange CPU usage with Denoise AI in ACR 17, but waited for an update before commenting. Now with ACR Version 7.0.1.2048 I still see strange and excessive CPU usage.   My workflow: I open a virgin Canon CR2 in ACR via Bridge and just tick Denoise. I get the normal "Enhance" progress window, and see some expected CPU in the Windows Task Manager. Takes about 5 seconds, and I see a denoised image preview. All seems good. But then I notice the CPU takes off, climbs to +95%, and stays there for 30 to 40 seconds before dropping back to idle.   I click "Done" in ACR and get the xmp and acr sidecars. Now, when I reopen the image in ACR I see the same strange CPU behavior. Ramps up to +95% for 30 to 40 seconds while I just watch without doing anything. If I open the image via Photoshop instead of Bridge I see the same thing.   If I open the virgin file via Photoshop, click Denoise, and then click Open as fast as possible after the Enhance window closes, I quickly (2 secs) get a proper denoised image in Photoshop, and the CPU quickly drops to idle. That seems to indicate that the 30-40 seconds of high CPU is not really doing anything! I get the same denoised image whether I let the CPU run or not. I got suspicious ACR was phoning home, maybe uploading stuff. So I disconnected my system from the Internet. I still get the high CPU session when air gapped.   Also, when I host ACR in Bridge and open a denoised image into Photoshop, I have a 25 second delay before the image appears. If I host ACR in Photoshop and open, there is no delay. Image opens in about 2 seconds. So, I've been dragging and dropping from Bridge to Photoshop to avoid the long delay.   ... View more

With the old Denoise version (DNG creation) my Windows 11 system would move along OK, 7 to 10 seconds per image (done one at a time). But then it would drop off and start taking 30+ seconds per image. I would close all Adobe and re-launch and things would be back to normal for a while. In the old days, such degradation over time used to be the sign of a memory leak. Software not able to clean up after itself. I suggest you batch some images to see if that's happening to you. Do a batch of 10, then another 10, then another 10, and see if it starts slowing down. Then close and re-launch and see if speed comes back. I've kept every copy of Camera Raw.8bi for years because there was a track record of problems on new releases. If you can't find the old version let me know. Or, you could just uninstall and re-install the old Photoshop. Creative Cloud lets you do that. Or just have patience, a patch release will come soon. ... View more

Well, I guess I spoke too soon. Last night I achieved "normal" operations for repeated edits over about an hour. Then I shut down and went to bed. Today, I'm back to weirdness. 10 to 40 seconds to open a denoised raw into Photoshop from ACR hosted in Bridge. So I tried Erik's trick to host ACR in Photoshop instead. I did that by simply drag and drop from Bridge. It worked, instant open in Photoshop.   But then in more testing I noticed something strange. I monitored Bridge and Photoshop with the Windows Task Manager. When I open a denoised raw in ACR from either Bridge or Photoshop, the CPU goes up to 99% for about 40 seconds while the GPU floats between 0% and 30%. This is while I do nothing. Just sit and watch. When I do the same on a raw with no denoise, the CPU goes up to 35% for only about 10 seconds.   I think I'm going to give up now, and wait for the next "patch" releases. I bet there are some coming soon. ... View more

An update... My Win11 system has one SSD "system" drive and one HDD "data" drive. All my images are on the HDD. Based on comments in other forums, I moved some raw files to the SSD drive to test. When I denoised a raw file on the SSD and opened it in Photoshop it was fast. Less than 2 seconds to open in Photoshop. But I couldn't believe 2 seconds vs. 50 seconds could be just the difference between SSD and HDD.   So I started over, repeating the tests. But Eureka! Now when I process a raw file off the HDD all steps are normal fast. The initial tick of Denoise is still just under 10 seconds, and the open in Photoshop is now under 2 seconds. I've closed everything and completely restarted Windows twice now. This normal, faster processing remains consistent.   So, it seems the one shot processing off the SSD triggered something within the Adobe config that set things right. I've never seen anything like this in decades with Adobe. ... View more

Installed the "new" Bridge 15.0.0.397 today. No joy on the issues of this thread. All still the same.   Lots of new stuff though. I like the new Denoise AI with no more dng files. A little annoying that comes turned off. You have to go through preferences to turn it on. ... View more