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World Community Grid Forums
Category: Support
Forum: BOINC Agent Support
Thread: Fan spin-up and down is driving me nuts |
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Thread Status: Active Total posts in this thread: 12
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viceroy
Cruncher Joined: Jul 8, 2007 Post Count: 2 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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Is there any way to mitigate this problem.
I've tried various settings under Options - Computing Preferences - Usage limits but no success with setting. Either I kill it completely, no work gets done. Or the fan cycles incessantly. This is on a personal laptop so office noise is an issue. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
The alternating is possibly caused by 1 / 2 or more things.
You're running a 60% default CPU time option in BOINC, which means the client runs 3 seconds, pauses 2 seconds to cool down. Change it to 50%, which causes run/pause cycle to 1 second on 1 second pause, maybe just not enough to get that rev-up/down due heat build up. Make sure the client is set to "Run according computing preferences". Your fans need tuning at a higher lowest rev rate. Programs like SpeedFan are very good at that on desktops. https://www.almico.com/speedfan.php. It being a laptop, they're very sensitive to dust collection in the cooling parts, so switching it off and treat it with compressed air injection in all the air-ducts and fan exhaust is a must. The fan(s) as mechanical device wont last long with that alternating needing an expensive replacement when they break which then begs the question of it being worth it or not. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Why not set it to use less than 100% of the CPUs. If 4 threads, only use 2.... set it use 50% of the CPUs 100% of the time
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
After having the same problem on a desktop computer, I removed the cover and gave it a good cleaning with a can of compressed air. No more problem.
While you can't remove the covers in your case, A good cleaning might be all your laptop needs. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Never liked the idea of persistent uneven heat distribution on a CPU dye. 1 half hot, the other cooler. On my laptop I actually lowered the CPU cycles through the advanced power controls to the point where fan roaring subsided and left everything at 100%, max runtime, no alternating, running cooler, hardly noticeable as user and when on lap, not burning the thighs.
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JanM
Cruncher Joined: Aug 19, 2010 Post Count: 19 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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I saw your advice on another topic and applied it on on Windows-laptop too (where I already used Tthrottle), but reducing this maximum processor state on the advanced power controls really prevents the temperature from rising and thus the fan from spinning up.
Great tip lavaflow! Searched for an equivalent on Ubuntu, but have not found it yet. |
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supdood
Senior Cruncher USA Joined: Aug 6, 2015 Post Count: 333 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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I use cpufreq on two Ubuntu laptops. Same result as in Windows: can limit the cpu frequency to keep the cpu heating even over cores and time while having lower temps and fan noise.
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JanM
Cruncher Joined: Aug 19, 2010 Post Count: 19 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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@supdood: found packages cpufreqd, cpufrequtils and indicator-cpufreq.
With the latter I have now a small icon on my menubar in which I can select Performance of Powersave, but my laptop still decides by itself when to switch to Performance (increasing the temperature and thus fanspeed). How do you fix the cpu frequency? |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Seem to distinctly remember a 'stick' way in CPUFreq, at least when I set it down to one of the offered freq option levels, it would run that until a boot occurred.
In the quick, found this manual: https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/cpu-freq/governors.txt for another variation cpufreq governor. |
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supdood
Senior Cruncher USA Joined: Aug 6, 2015 Post Count: 333 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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JanM--What version of Ubuntu are you running?
----------------------------------------I set up one laptop years ago with 16.04 and I recall that one being easier (sudo apt cpufreq) and it provided a GUI in the tray that allowed you to limit to a specific frequency. The other was somewhat more recent and is 18.04. For that, I believe cpufreq is a GNOME extension and has the ability to create a profile where you limit the cpu frequency to a percentage of the specs. ---------------------------------------- [Edit 1 times, last edit by supdood at Jun 11, 2020 6:17:19 PM] |
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