High temperature + loud fan on AMD Ryzen

[Stroman]

Just got my laptop today and the first thing I notice is that runs hotter and with a louder fan than my Dell XPS 13 (2019) using the same set of apps.

Are these normal temperatures for this CPU load?

KDE System Monitor

sensors

s-tui

Specs:
Kubuntu 23.10
AMD Ryzen™ 7 7840U
64GB RAM

[Stebalien]

Are the fans & intakes clear? I wouldn’t expect any noise given that load, TBH. I have the same config (7840U, 64GB, Linux) and it’s silent unless I’m compiling something (or I block the fans).

[dimitris]

Temps seem a bit high, as just another data point here’s mine (7840U, Fedora 39, idle):

$ sensors
amdgpu-pci-c100
Adapter: PCI adapter
vddgfx:      854.00 mV 
vddnb:       855.00 mV 
edge:         +40.0°C  
PPT:           8.12 W  (avg =   5.17 W)

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:003-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:           5.00 V  (min =  +5.00 V, max =  +5.00 V)
curr1:         0.00 A  (max =  +1.50 A)

mt7921_phy0-pci-0100
Adapter: PCI adapter
temp1:        +38.0°C  

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:001-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:           0.00 V  (min =  +0.00 V, max =  +0.00 V)
curr1:         0.00 A  (max =  +0.00 A)

BAT1-acpi-0
Adapter: ACPI interface
in0:          16.63 V  
curr1:         0.00 A  

k10temp-pci-00c3
Adapter: PCI adapter
Tctl:         +43.8°C  

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:004-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:          20.00 V  (min =  +5.00 V, max =  +5.00 V)
curr1:         4.80 A  (max =  +5.00 A)

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:002-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:           0.00 V  (min =  +0.00 V, max =  +0.00 V)
curr1:       680.00 mA (max =  +0.00 A)

nvme-pci-0200
Adapter: PCI adapter
Composite:    +40.9°C  (low  = -273.1°C, high = +81.8°C)
                       (crit = +84.8°C)
Sensor 1:     +40.9°C  (low  = -273.1°C, high = +65261.8°C)
Sensor 2:     +48.9°C  (low  = -273.1°C, high = +65261.8°C)

acpitz-acpi-0
Adapter: ACPI interface
temp1:        +41.8°C  
temp2:        +40.8°C  
temp3:        +39.8°C  
temp4:        +43.8°C  

FWIW fan running while “idle” is how I detected this - you might want to check for the same kind of parasitic interrupts/kernel threads:

[TRACKING] AMD: small group of kworkers keeping CPU 0 busy after suspend/resume cycle(s)

Fedora 39 GNOME Wayland. Updated description/steps to reproduce (same as from my support ticket, disregard references to log/console attachments): Steps to reproduce (all while connected to the dock): Fresh boot. Configure htop to show kernel threads (capital K to toggle), and also include the core/CPU ID in the results (use F2 to go into setup for that). Run htop (with kernel and note the absence of kworker/0:n-pm kernel threads, especially from CPU 0 where presumably this class of i…

[R1ck]

tbh temps around 50-57 C are normal on my fw. The fan kicks in if its around 98 C.
So overall the system is a little bit hotter than my old intel system, but wayyy more quite… aka it runs mostly passive cooled until i do some compiling etc XD

[Stroman]

I’m just resting the laptop on a flat surface. What are you using?

[Ulmondil]

My laptop with 7640U is usually cooler. Only time I recently found the fan to be too loud was while testing Stable Diffusion on the igpu. Kernel version is 6.5.x.

[Stebalien]

Any flat surface will do.

[Jorg_Mertin]

Is this a fresh plasma install? The baloo_file | _extractor will hit soon and index all files. It will take longer if you start installing and changing large files/packages etc.
And the entire experience takes some time, more if you have a large installation.

Also check if there is not excessive logging going on. Noticed on my KDE Neon that firefox was spamming the journald → journalctl -f

[Stroman]

No it’s not fresh Plasma, using the SSD from my previous laptop.

Thanks I’ll keep an eye on journalctl.

After a reboot my fan is no longer constantly on, but it does turn on in response to 30-40% spikes of CPU usage and it’s generally hotter than my previous laptop. I’m going to get a raised laptop stand to increase airflow and thermal pads/paste soon.

[Nicholas_Von_Wolff]

Mine usually sets around 42C on desktop Idle (Fedora Kinoite 40) and between 42-64C during my work day (Code editing, containers, Ansible, VPN, RDP, SSH, other Linux admin stuff).

Only time I’ve ever noticeably heard the fans is when booting up a game. Temps climb quickly to 98C, fans spin up to max, and between the fans plus whatever the boost clocks do, temps tend to settle around 70-85C with fans staying at full speed. Definitely recommend headphones if you intend to do any gaming. May be a different story if you use an eGPU, which would reduce the heat load on the FW13’s tiny cooler.

The important factor for my temps were:

• I’m using a raised stand with ventilation that lines up with the vents on the bottom of the framework. This decreases how fast the fan needs to spin to move the same amount of air. The rubber strips on the bottom of the framework do ok, but if you are optimizing for fan noise this will help.
• When docked leave the laptop lid/screen open to help the hot air escape the laptop easier. This decreases the speed in which the fan needs to spin to move the same amount of air. Exhaust vent gets mostly blocked when the laptop is closed. You can configure the laptop screen to turn off when docked if you don’t want it on.
• While I haven’t done this myself you can change your power profile from High Performance, or Balanced, to Power Save. The performance hit feels minimal in non-demanding work loads and this will reduce the heat generated (lowering fan speeds).
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