I am having maddening performance issues with my Framework 13. I am a game developer, and I spend a lot of time compiling code. When I first got the laptop, I was able to compile in around 3-4 minutes, but these days the same codebase takes 7-8 minutes to compile. I only noticed this now because I am on a business trip where my laptop is my primary computing device. The regression started sometime between my last business trip in September, and now.
Some observations:
Previously, the CPU would sustain ~3.8 GHz, but now it only sustains ~2.2 GHz
Previously, the system showed 62.5 GB of RAM, but now it only shows 60.5 GB
Previously, the CPU would get all the way up to 100 degrees, but now when compiling it hovers around 65 degrees.
It is obvious to me that the CPU is heavily throttling for some reason.
Things I have tried:
Cleaning and re-pasting the CPU - no effect
Cleaning and re-seating the RAM - no effect
Updating to Fedora 44 - no effect
Updating firmware - no effect
Ran memtest86 - passed
Things I plan to try:
Clean install of Fedora and/or Windows. I haven’t done this yet because I am away from home and don’t have access to spare disks.
Clean install Fedora 42, as that is the version of Fedora I was using on the previous trip where everything worked fine.
System details:
OS: Fedora Linux 44
CPU: Intel i7-1360p
RAM: 64 GB Crucial DDR4 3200 MHz
Storage: 1 TB WD Black
I would appreciate any and all ideas and advice. Thank you!
It is sounding like an OS restriction. I remember threads from a few years ago about power profiles on Linux (most of them were directed at Ubuntu) so not sure if they apply the same under Fedora.
If a Fedora USB or Ubuntu USB is available maybe try a “Live” session and see if it is possible to get the system to peg out like it did before.
The power going to the system can also play an issue. I do not remember if it needs a 100W PD charger to hit max performance. 60W for sure is what shipped with the device.
The EC is a chatty little thing and maybe it can be probed for some states to ensure it is being told to use higher power demands. Just a few thoughts as I read this during lunch today.
I managed to try a fresh Fedora 44, Fedora 42 (the version I was using when it previously worked fine), and a 240 W power adapter, and nothing made a difference. It sustains ~4 GHz for around 10-20 seconds, then something causes it to drop to 2.2 GHz and it remains there with horribly degraded performance and low temperatures for the rest of the compile. This makes me feel like it’s a hardware or firmware issue of some kind. Perhaps I could try rolling back my firmware…
Here is a video showing the problem. You can very clearly see when the throttling begins. The stuttering isn’t nearly as bad in real life, but it’s very noticeable and makes using the system during a compile undesirable.
Edit: It seems to throttle shortly after the package temperature reaches 100 degrees… could this simply be thermal throttling? I originally dismissed it because I thought it would throttle it just enough to keep it under max, but perhaps it’s overcompensating. In the time since it was working, I replaced the heatsink+fan to fix a noise issue; perhaps the new fan is underperforming? I will try swapping the original fan back in once I get home.
Update: I reached out to framework support and detailed my findings, and they say that it’s likely a hardware issue with my mainboard’s power regulation circuitry. This will have been my second mainboard to have a hardware issue (the first was replaced under warranty after it completely fried itself). Kind of miffed about that.
Good thing I already have a preorder for the Pro. Hopefully their ground-up redesign will be a bit more resilient. But now I can’t resell the old laptop because its mainboard is gimped and you cannot buy any mainboards on the marketplace which are compatible with DDR4. Hopefully someone will be interest in buying “everything but the mainboard”.