NetworkThrottlingIndex: what it actually throttles, and why the advice is usually wrong

Frost LIVENetworkProUndo: YesUpdated Oct 8, 2026View as Markdown

Short answer

Updated Oct 8, 2026

NetworkThrottlingIndex lives under SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfile and limits non-multimedia network packet processing to roughly 10 packets per millisecond by default. Setting it to 0xFFFFFFFF disables that limit. The honest assessment: it can help on very high-throughput connections and does close to nothing for a typical game's traffic, which is nowhere near the throttle ceiling.

In the app

Disable Network ThrottlingPRO

Registry

HKLMSOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfile

NetworkThrottlingIndex100xFFFFFFFF

What the switch writes. Your current value may differ.

What it does

The throttle exists so that heavy network traffic cannot starve audio and video playback of CPU time. It caps packet processing for non-multimedia traffic.

A competitive game sends small packets at a modest rate, typically well under the throttle threshold, which is why the theoretical benefit rarely materialises.

When it helps, and when it hurts

When it helps

Measurable on connections doing sustained high-throughput transfer alongside gaming.
Can help when streaming and gaming simultaneously on the same machine.

When it hurts

Removes a protection designed to keep audio playback smooth under network load. On a machine that streams, that protection may have been doing its job.
For most players the change is unmeasurable, and it is frequently sold as a large FPS win. It is not one.

What it writes

Exactly what the switch changes, read from the app's source. Switching it off is what the app writes when you turn the tweak off again.

Registry values the switch writes.
Key and value	With the tweak	Switching it off
HKLMSOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfileNetworkThrottlingIndexCaps how many non-multimedia network packets Windows processes per millisecond while multimedia plays. 0xFFFFFFFF removes the cap; 10 is the Windows default.	0xFFFFFFFF	10

From the app's source (network_throttling.hpp), app 2.0.0, checked Oct 8, 2026.

The same change by hand

You do not need the app for this one. These commands make the changes from the table above. Run them in a Command Prompt opened as administrator, and make a restore point first.

Make the change · CMD

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfile" /v "NetworkThrottlingIndex" /t REG_DWORD /d 0xFFFFFFFF /f

Put it back · CMD

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfile" /v "NetworkThrottlingIndex" /t REG_DWORD /d 10 /f

See what it is set to now · CMD

reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Multimedia\SystemProfile" /v "NetworkThrottlingIndex"

How to undo it

In the app: Yes

Switching it off sets a standard Windows value, which may not be exactly how you had it.

Delete the value to return to the Windows default, or set it back to 10 (0xA). Switching it off in Frozen Tweaks sets it to 10, the Windows default.

Changing several settings at once? The app's Make a restore point button, on every plan, makes a Windows restore point before you start.

Verdict

Low risk, low reward. We include it because it is genuinely part of the latency picture on some systems, but anyone claiming it is a major FPS tweak is repeating folklore.

In the app