Ubuntu
linux package

MacBook Air 4,1 gets very hot before fan starts

Bug #964480 reported by Skyler Leigh on 2012-03-25

This bug affects 2 people

Affects		Status	Importance	Assigned to	Milestone
	Linux	Expired	Medium	linux-kernel-bugs #43011
	linux (Ubuntu)	Incomplete	Medium	Unassigned

Bug Description

My MacBook Air gets quite hot to the touch during minor usage (i.e. machine sitting untouched with browser and terminals open). The fan should really be starting up before the machine becomes uncomfortable to touch, but for some reason the fan is not triggered. What additional details can I provide to better describe the issue?

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.04
Package: linux-generic 3.2.0.20.22
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.2.0-20.32-generic 3.2.12
Uname: Linux 3.2.0-20-generic x86_64
NonfreeKernelModules: wl
AlsaVersion: Advanced Linux Sound Architecture Driver Version 1.0.24.
ApportVersion: 1.95-0ubuntu1
Architecture: amd64
AudioDevicesInUse:
USER PID ACCESS COMMAND
/dev/snd/controlC0: skyler 3238 F.... pulseaudio
Date: Sun Mar 25 03:46:11 2012
EcryptfsInUse: Yes
MachineType: Apple Inc. MacBookAir4,1
ProcEnviron:
TERM=xterm
LANG=en_US.UTF-8
SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcFB: 0 inteldrmfb
ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/vmlinuz-3.2.0-20-generic root=UUID=3727a9a5-dffe-4a76-8b94-739e3385d194 ro quiet splash vt.handoff=7
SourcePackage: linux
StagingDrivers: mei
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
dmi.bios.date: 01/24/2012
dmi.bios.vendor: Apple Inc.
dmi.bios.version: MBA41.88Z.0077.B0F.1201241549
dmi.board.asset.tag: Base Board Asset Tag#
dmi.board.name: Mac-C08A6BB70A942AC2
dmi.board.vendor: Apple Inc.
dmi.board.version: MacBookAir4,1
dmi.chassis.type: 10
dmi.chassis.vendor: Apple Inc.
dmi.chassis.version: Mac-C08A6BB70A942AC2
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnAppleInc.:bvrMBA41.88Z.0077.B0F.1201241549:bd01/24/2012:svnAppleInc.:pnMacBookAir4,1:pvr1.0:rvnAppleInc.:rnMac-C08A6BB70A942AC2:rvrMacBookAir4,1:cvnAppleInc.:ct10:cvrMac-C08A6BB70A942AC2:
dmi.product.name: MacBookAir4,1
dmi.product.version: 1.0
dmi.sys.vendor: Apple Inc.

Tags:

Revision history for this message

Skyler Leigh (nevermaker) wrote on 2012-03-25:

AcpiTables.txt Edit (173.2 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
AlsaDevices.txt Edit (600 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
AplayDevices.txt Edit (465 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
ArecordDevices.txt Edit (158 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
BootDmesg.txt Edit (59.5 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
CRDA.txt Edit (257 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Card0.Amixer.info.txt Edit (212 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Card0.Amixer.values.txt Edit (1.7 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Card0.Codecs.codec.0.txt Edit (8.1 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Card0.Codecs.codec.3.txt Edit (3.7 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
CurrentDmesg.txt Edit (246.5 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Dependencies.txt Edit (2.0 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
IwConfig.txt Edit (480 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Lspci.txt Edit (12.9 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
Lsusb.txt Edit (610 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
PciMultimedia.txt Edit (632 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
ProcCpuinfo.txt Edit (3.5 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
ProcInterrupts.txt Edit (1.8 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
ProcModules.txt Edit (2.9 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
PulseList.txt Edit (20.8 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
RelatedPackageVersions.txt Edit (138 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
RfKill.txt Edit (112 bytes, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
UdevDb.txt Edit (135.0 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
UdevLog.txt Edit (305.7 KiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")
WifiSyslog.txt Edit (10.2 MiB, text/plain; charset="utf-8")

Brad Figg (brad-figg) on 2012-03-25

Changed in linux (Ubuntu):
status:	New → Confirmed

Revision history for this message

Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury) wrote on 2012-03-26:

Did this issue start happening after an update/upgrade? Was there a kernel version where you were not having this particular problem? This will help determine if the problem you are seeing is the result of the introduction of a regression, and when this regression was introduced.

Revision history for this message

Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury) wrote on 2012-03-26:

Also, would it be possible for you to test the latest upstream kernel? Refer to https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KernelMainlineBuilds . Please test the latest v3.3 kernel[1] (Not a kernel in the daily directory). Once you've tested the upstream kernel, please remove the 'needs-upstream-testing' tag(Only that one tag, please leave the other tags). This can be done by clicking on the yellow pencil icon next to the tag located at the bottom of the bug description and deleting the 'needs-upstream-testing' text.

If this bug is fixed in the mainline kernel, please add the following tag 'kernel-fixed-upstream'.

If the mainline kernel does not fix this bug, please add the tag: 'kernel-bug-exists-upstream'.

If you are unable to test the mainline kernel, for example it will not boot, please add the tag: 'kernel-unable-to-test-upstream'.
Once testing of the upstream kernel is complete, please mark this bug as "Confirmed".

Thanks in advance.

[1] http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.3-precise/

tags:	added: needs-upstream-testing
Changed in linux (Ubuntu):
importance:	Undecided → Medium
status:	Confirmed → Incomplete

Revision history for this message

Skyler Leigh (nevermaker) wrote on 2012-03-27:

This is a fresh install of Precise beta, so I don't know if the issue was present in any earlier versions.

In testing with the 3.3 kernel from upstream, the issue was actually worse. For comparison, I monitored the temperatures using GKrellM:

Kernel version 2.2:
- CPU temperatures start at around 50 C, and rise to 60 under load.
- The fan does not kick in until high load raises the temperature.
- Fan is able to cool the machine back down to 60, and then the fan shuts down.

Kernel version 3.3:
- CPU temperatures climb QUICKLY until 75 while the machine is completely idle.
- Fan kicks in around 75 and cools the cpu down to 70 or so.
- The temps don't decrease below 70ish, so the fan never comes down from high speed.
- Under minor usage (browser, terminal, and gkrellm) cpu temps are rising faster than the fan can compensate. temp is above 80, but the fan is maxed out already.
- This is evidence that the fan at its highest speed is not enough to cool the computer down. I'm not sure what is going on. The machine doesn't get as hot under mac os and the fan doesn't run constantly.

tags:

added: kernel-bug-exists-upstream
removed: needs-upstream-testing

Revision history for this message

Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury) wrote on 2012-03-27:

This issue appears to be an upstream bug, since you tested the latest upstream kernel. Would it be possible for you to open an upstream bug report at bugzilla.kernel.org [1]? That will allow the upstream Developers to examine the issue, and may provide a quicker resolution to the bug.

If you are comfortable with opening a bug upstream, It would be great if you can report back the upstream bug number in this bug report. That will allow us to link this bug to the upstream report.

[1] https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/Upstream/kernel

Changed in linux (Ubuntu):
status:	Incomplete → Triaged

Revision history for this message

In Linux Kernel Bug Tracker #43011, nevermaker (nevermaker-linux-kernel-bugs) wrote on 2012-03-29:

Created attachment 72744
output of dmidecode on my machine.

For comparison against the older kernel version, I monitored the temperatures using GKrellM:

Kernel version 3.2:
- CPU temperatures start at around 50 C, and rise to 60 under load.
- The fan does not kick in until high load raises the temperature.
- Fan is able to cool the machine back down to 60, and then the fan shuts down.

Kernel version from Ubuntu PPA, http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.3-precise/

Bug Watch Updater (bug-watch-updater) on 2012-03-29

Changed in linux:
importance:	Unknown → Medium
status:	Unknown → Confirmed

Revision history for this message

Eugene San (eugenesan) wrote on 2012-05-14:

With 3.4 from Quantal, exactly the same behavior as with upstream 3.3 described above.

I only wonder how that can happen if Linus Torvalds uses same machine :-)

Revision history for this message

penalvch (penalvch) wrote on 2013-12-29:

Skyler Leigh, this bug was reported a while ago and there hasn't been any activity in it recently. We were wondering if this is still an issue? If so, could you please test for this with the latest development release of Ubuntu? ISO images are available from http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/daily-live/current/ .

If it remains an issue, please just make a comment to this.

If reproducible, could you also please test the latest upstream kernel available (not the daily folder) following https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KernelMainlineBuilds ? It will allow additional upstream developers to examine the issue. Once you've tested the upstream kernel, please comment on which kernel version specifically you tested. If this bug is fixed in the mainline kernel, please add the following tags:
kernel-fixed-upstream
kernel-fixed-upstream-VERSION-NUMBER

where VERSION-NUMBER is the version number of the kernel you tested. For example:
kernel-fixed-upstream-v3.13-rc5

This can be done by clicking on the yellow circle with a black pencil icon next to the word Tags located at the bottom of the bug description. As well, please remove the tag:
needs-upstream-testing

If the mainline kernel does not fix this bug, please add the following tags:
kernel-bug-exists-upstream
kernel-bug-exists-upstream-VERSION-NUMBER

As well, please remove the tag:
needs-upstream-testing

Once testing of the upstream kernel is complete, please mark this bug's Status as Confirmed. Please let us know your results. Thank you for your understanding.

tags:	added: needs-upstream-testing
tags:	added: kernel-therm
Changed in linux (Ubuntu):
status:	Triaged → Incomplete

Revision history for this message

In Linux Kernel Bug Tracker #43011, bp (bp-linux-kernel-bugs) wrote on 2020-01-24:

Looks forgotten, reopen if still of interest.

Bug Watch Updater (bug-watch-updater) on 2020-01-24

Changed in linux:
status:	Confirmed → Expired

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MacBook Air 4,1 gets very hot before fan starts

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