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I noticed that a zone of my laptop is quite hot even with low usage, for example, reading a PDF file and the fans are on. Doing the same action with Windows 10 (I have a dual boot) this doesn't happens, the zone is cool.

Why does this happen? Is it due to high CPU usage? Or what?

Is it possible to fix this problem?

Edit 1

Resut of command

lspci -k | grep -EA3 'VGA|3D|Display'

00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation UHD Graphics 620 (Whiskey Lake)
Subsystem: Hewlett-Packard Company UHD Graphics 620 (Whiskey Lake)
Kernel driver in use: i915
Kernel modules: i915

02:00.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation GP107M [GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile] (rev a1)
Subsystem: Hewlett-Packard Company GP107M [GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile]
Kernel driver in use: nvidia
Kernel modules: nvidiafb, nouveau, nvidia_drm, nvidia

Edit 2

prime-select query

nvidia

Edit 3

I tried to select the use of Intel integrated GPU without results.

With Ubuntu 19.04 thermald is already installed and PC is quite hot, not cool like in Windows. I also noticed the battary goes down very slowly. I don't see this speed decrease on Windows.

Is this a problem of Ubuntu or is it only for Ubuntu 19.04?

Franky17
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2 Answers2

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Your computer is hot, because it is always using Nvidia GPU, while Windows uses it in case it is needed for heavy GPU tasks like games.

Ubuntu doesn't switch graphics automatically. You can use nvidia-prime or bumblebee to switch Nvidia graphics.

See THIS ANSWER for more details.

You can also use CLI commands:

sudo prime-select intel
sudo prime-select nvidia

You can also install laptop-mode-tools to economy power.

Pilot6
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  • Thx. I will try your solution – Franky17 Aug 27 '19 at 16:55
  • You need to log out and log in after you switch graphics. – Pilot6 Aug 27 '19 at 16:56
  • thx again. With your solution the temperature of a zone of pc seems a bit lower then before and fans are off, but the problem persists. This zone which is quite hot with Windows it is very cool (and fans are always off)... – Franky17 Aug 27 '19 at 20:49
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I'd install thermald to keep your machine cool when using Nvidia video...

  • sudo apt-get update

  • sudo apt-get install thermald

Thermald comes with a default configuration file at /etc/thermald/thermal-conf.xml that will control most computers, but may need to be customized for some computers. See man thermal-conf.xml for some details and examples. Once one has modified the configuration file, stop thermald and restart it:

sudo service thermald restart

After installing thermald, I'd stop the thermald process, and run it manually as sudo thermald --no-daemon to watch its actions in real time. This real time info can be used to create your own customized thermal-conf.xml file. See man thermald for more information.

sudo service thermald stop
sudo thermald --no-daemon --loglevel=debug

You can search for thermald here on Ask Ubuntu to see what previous answers there are.

A good starter reference is at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Kernel/PowerManagement/ThermalIssues

heynnema
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  • I read the Thermald's wiki. As far I understood it monitors CPU temperature with sensors and tweaks the cooling conotrol to cool the system, so it just control the fan? I want to prevent useless usage of CPU and subequent heating (or GPU) for tasks which need few resources (as Windows does I think). – Franky17 Aug 28 '19 at 10:29
  • @Franky17 no, not to control the fan, per se, but the CPU. Just try thermald, and if it doesn't help (after you adjust the conf file, if need be) then just uninstall it :-) – heynnema Aug 28 '19 at 11:42
  • Yep, I will try it anywhere – Franky17 Aug 28 '19 at 16:50
  • I have Ubuntu 19.04, thermald is already installed... I also noticed that pc battery goes down rapidly. – Franky17 Aug 28 '19 at 17:11
  • @Franky17 if the battery goes down too quickly, it may be due to the use of the Nvidia video. Install lm-sensors and check the running temps. You may need to customize the thermald conf file for your computer. – heynnema Aug 29 '19 at 13:47