Ubuntu 10.10 overheating notebook

[nbpage]

I installed 9.x some time ago and it made my notebook (Dell M90) run hot. I finally just stopped running intensive programs.

I installed 10.10 over the weekend and now my cpu cores idle at 55c or more and my GPU at 75-80.

Opening any web page shoots the GPU up to 90 or more.

I'm running all recommended drivers.

I've blown the dust out.

Can anyone help before I blow a pile of money on Windows - which doesn't melt my machine and lets me run what I want?

Cheers

[Sinopa]

Hmmm... you could install htop and find out what uses so much CPU but it seems that it's more of a hardware problem and not a operating system problem.

[nbpage]

Thanks for replying.

XP didn't overheat.

Ubuntu 9.x ran hot enough to keep me from playing 3d games.

Ubuntu 10.10 runs hotter still.

I don't see how it can be HW.

It's mostly the GPU - though the CPU run warm enough to get the fans running on high with only a web page open (like now).

[ladlers]

Windows xp, for example, has advanced acpi drivers that control the fan speed by software. I don't know where you'd go for this for ubuntu. Perhaps search the Dell forums. Then, you could also get an external laptop fan that plugs into usb under the laptop.

[W10]

Buy a laptop cooler. Look on google for "best laptop cooler". It must be fan driven. You slide it under the laptop.

[MASONTX]

"Windows xp, for example, has advanced acpi drivers that control the fan speed by software. I don't know where you'd go for this for ubuntu."

Sounds like a good project for someone with the technical skills to write that sort of software.

[nbpage]

I just left it on for a couple hours with nothing running at al. I got back and my GPU was 80c. I opened Chrome and it jumper to 82 before the first page fully loaded.

I have it propped up so there is air running under. A cooler might be a good idea.

But this wasn't as big a problem with Ubuntu 9.x. What's happening?

I spent a couple hour looking for another Nvidia driver last night. Nothing.

I really don't want to have to reinstall an OS again and go to Win7. But I want to melt the notebook I spent $2k on a couple years back even less.

I can see that xorg almost always takes around 30% of CPUs. This can't be normal, is it?

Sorry guy - I'm just frustrated. I appreciate your help and input.

[benali72]

I run Ubuntu 9.x and 10.04 on four machines total (2 laptops and 2 desktops). All 4 machines are old Pentium-IVs at apx 2.2 to 2.8 ghz CPU's. So I don't have much CPU to work with -- I have a fraction of what you have with a Dell M90 core-duo.

3 of my machines have 1 gig memory, the 4th has 1.25 gig ram.

On none of the 4 machines does Ubuntu 10.04 consume more than 10% CPU at idle.

Some ideas ...

1. Go to System -> Preferences -> Startup Applications and turn off any background daemons (services) you don't need

2. Check your laptop System -> Preferences -> Power Management settings... if you left the machine alone for a couple hours and it was still hot when you got back, it's possible these are incorrect or could be set better.

3. When you measure CPU at idle, it should be off the System Monitor installed to the top task bar menu (NOT by opening the System Monitor in its own window, which consumes significant CPU, that throws off your measurements).

4. After you've gotten a good CPU-at-idle measurement, now open System Monitor and select the Processes Tab. Go to View and check mark All Processes. Click on the % CPU column a couple times so that you can see exactly which process is causing your high CPU idle consumption.

From this step you should be able to identify if there is some specific process causing your high CPU idle (in which case you could fix it by stopping or disabling that process).

Lastly, I googled on "ubuntu hot laptop" and found several thread forums with some more ideas (fiddling with ACPI etc).

Tell us how it goes.... good luck!