Lower HDD temp.{SOLVED}

[phd21]

Hi ChickyNuggiez,

Welcome to the wonderful world of Linux Mint and its excellent forum!

It would help to know more about your system setup. If you run "inxi -Fxzd" and "lsusb" from the console terminal prompt, highlight the results, copy and paste them back here, that should provide enough information.

If you have older Hard Disk Drives (HDD), I would check the health status using smartmontools (see below) and get Solid State Drives (SSD) which are reasonably priced now. You can set up smartmontools as a service (daemon) to notify you of problems.

I would recommend installing, or checking to see if, these are installed from the "Synaptic Package Manager (SPM)".

hdparm
hddtemp
smartmontools
gsmartcontrol
lm-sensors (run setup afterward, "sudo sensors-detect")
psensor

Console terminal command to install the above apps.

Code: Select all

sudo apt install hdparm hddtemp smartmontools gsmartcontrol lm-sensors psensor

Recommend reading these articles:
hard drive - How to lower the HDD temperature - Ask Ubuntu
https://askubuntu.com/questions/251830/ ... emperature

This way your SSD or HDD will live the longest in Linux - Techzle
http://techzle.com/this-way-your-ssd-or ... t-in-linux

How to get HDD temperature in Linux - Linux Tutorials - Learn Linux Configuration
https://linuxconfig.org/obtain-hard-dri ... sing-linux

Linux Monitor Hard Disks Temperature With hddtemp - nixCraft
https://www.cyberciti.biz/tips/howto-mo ... ature.html

How to install one of the best system monitors for the Linux desktop | TechRepublic
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/ho ... x-desktop/

How to monitor harddisk health with smartmontools on Ubuntu
https://www.howtoforge.com/tutorial/mon ... on-ubuntu/

Most Effective Ways To Reduce Laptop Overheating In Linux - It's FOSS
https://itsfoss.com/reduce-overheating-laptops-linux/

How to install sensors (lm-sensors) on Ubuntu / Debian Linux - nixCraft
https://www.cyberciti.biz/faq/install-s ... ian-linux/

S.M.A.R.T. - ArchWiki
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/S.M.A.R.T.

Hope this helps ...

[Petermint]

Your disk rotates at 5400 rpm which is about as slow as the disk can rotate and keep the heads floating. Slower means retracting the heads first then swinging the heads back after the disk regains speed.

Rotating disks use the most power when seeking. You can reduce seeks by adding more memory to let Linux cache more directory and file information. Start System Monitor and look at the memory plus cache usage. If they add up to the amount of memory you have, an extra block of memory might help. In my case, the 6 GB in my previous machine was too small and my current 16 GB is rarely full.

You can switch magnetic disks down to stopped and back up to reduce usage which can reduce heat. Magnetic disks tend to guzzle power when they start back up which creates a lot of heat. You only want the disk off during long periods of idle. The system tends to scribble on the disk all the time and only has idle periods long enough for SSD. This is a reason to split the system off to an SSD.

Clean the fan once per year to reduce overall temp inside the case.

If your machine can fit another disk, you could move the system to a small SSD which will reduce the activity and heat in the rotating disk.

Firefox and other browsers record a mass of junk on disk for every Web page. You can tune Firefox and some other applications to not write everything to disk every time, reducing disk activity and heat. The tuning would depend on what applications you run all the time.

[djph]

Is there a program or a way i can maybe lower my HDD temperature?

More airflow.

[phd21]

Hi ChickyNuggiez,

You are welcome...

I do not see anything wrong with the results from running the console terminal commands.

FYI-1: When you reply, you do not need to keep the other person's text in your reply. When you make your reply before posting (submitting), delete the previous person's reply text unless you are making point for point responses.

FYI-2: Your overall system performance will increase dramatically for the better by getting an SSD to replace your current drive or as a boot drive with the Linux system on it. It will also run cooler as SSD run cooler than the older mechanical platter drives and they last longer. Currently, 512gb SSD are less than $45 us and 256gb SSD are $30us or less.

Amazon.com : ssd 2.5 inch 256gb
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=ssd+2.5+inch ... _sb_noss_2

Amazon.com : ssd 2.5 inch 512gb
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=ssd+2.5+inch ... _sb_noss_2

The links I provided before have a lot of information, and although the drive may show ok in smartmontools (smartctl), you can check other entries for possible problems like prefail, etc...

FYI-3: You might consider checking to see if there are any Bios updates since 07/02/2010 and if there are, then updating the Bios with those updates.

I think the link below shows various updates for your computer, but make sure you have the correct model before downloading and updating the Bios. Not sure if the most current Bios update includes previous updates (cumulative) or not, if not, then you should download all the updates (v1.60, v1.70, v1.80) since your installed version 1.50 and install them in order, restarting the computer after each Bios update.

Satellite C655D-S5063 BIOS drivers | Toshiba drivers download
http://toshibadriversdownload.com/satel ... s-drivers/

Example v1.80 Bios update details
Satellite C655D-S5063 BIOS drivers | Toshiba drivers download
http://toshibadriversdownload.com/satel ... s/?id=1154

FYI-4: I too have a laptop stand with fans which I think helps. You can check your computer's Bios to see if there are any fan controls in there. My Dell Inspiron 7000 does not have any Bios Fan controls and my Linux systems do not seem to use the fan except on the initial bootup (startup). There are some fan packages in the "Synaptic Package Manager (SPM)" for various laptop and desktop manufacturers that you and others can install and use. I found a 3rd party Dell laptop fan control package that does seem to work for mine.

Hope this helps ...

[djph]

Other than the fact that decade old hardware is going to be slow and powerhungry compared to today's offerings ... if it still works for you, there's not much more to be said.


Not 100% sure what you mean about chrome writing to your HDD though.

[djph]

Read what peppermint wrote he mentioned you can tune your browser to not write to hdd or maybe im misreading it. Also can i screw things up in my computer doing a bios update? I read that can happen my computers working ok now dont want to mess things up for myself.

While it is true that browsers write a lot of temporary files; these days /tmp is on a ramdisk (tmpfs), rather than on the harddrive itself.

BIOS updates can potentially be dangerous. Backup first just in case things go south; and have the recovery methods available via other means (a second PC, printed out, phone, etc)

[phd21]

Hi ChickyNuggiez,

I updated my last reply while you were replying, please reread it.

Bios updates are perfectly safe as long as the power does not go out while updating it. You may need to create a bootable freeDOS USB stick or CD in order to install the Bios updates from a Linux-only computer, easy to do.

Below is an excellent website with great information on Linux. The Speed up your Linux Mint has a section on taming browsers.

Easy Linux Tips Project: Home Page
https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/p/1.html

Easy Linux Tips Project: Speed Up your Mint!
https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.c ... -mint.html


You can adjust your system to power down various things like hard drives based on inactivity through the Linux Mint power settings or using other apps.

[Termy]

In all these posts, I failed to find the actual temperature of your drive. If it's not going any higher than 50C, you're probably fine. If it gets any higher than 50C, I'd be looking to fix it ASAP. Drives can also get too cool, which is a surprise for many people; apparently <20C is often a problem. If the disk is very old, I might even be concerned if it got higher than 45C.

Keep in mind, that's for HDDs. Apparently, much to my surprise, SSDs can actually run much hotter and cooler than HDDs. IDK about NVMe SSDs, though. Apparently a common safe range for SSDs is 0C to 70C, but running at the extreme ends of that range will likely wear it out much quicker.

Bios updates are perfectly safe as long as the power does not go out while updating it.

...and, critically, you use the correct file. I would never recommend an inexperienced user flashes a BIOS/UEFI, unless strictly necessary, because of the risk involved, and you'd be surprised how easy it can be for such a person to make a grave mistake. Not all motherboards have features allowing you to restore things even after messing up the BIOS/UEFI. You also put a tremendous amount of trust in the software used to do the flashing, in some cases.

[djph]

Keep in mind, that's for HDDs. Apparently, much to my surprise, SSDs can actually run much hotter and cooler than HDDs. IDK about NVMe SSDs, though. Apparently a common safe range for SSDs is 0C to 70C, but running at the extreme ends of that range will likely wear it out much quicker.

Point of note, according to sensors (part of the 'lmsensors' package, as I recall) says "high temp" for my NVMe is 80C and critical is 87C

[Termy]

Point of note, according to sensors (part of the 'lmsensors' package, as I recall) says "high temp" for my NVMe is 80C and critical is 87C

Close, it's 'lm-sensors'; that one trips me up all the time. Thanks for clarifying for NVMe drives; maybe they can get hotter, or maybe it's specifically your model.

[djph]

Point of note, according to sensors (part of the 'lmsensors' package, as I recall) says "high temp" for my NVMe is 80C and critical is 87C

Close, it's 'lm-sensors'; that one trips me up all the time. Thanks for clarifying for NVMe drives; maybe they can get hotter, or maybe it's specifically your model.

Or maybe the thing is just a mess

It's a WD Black SN750

[phd21]

Hi djph &Termy,

FYI: For comparison, the storage that came with my Dell is NVMe M.2 256gb SSD, SK Hynix sc311, runs at 85 F = 29.44 C to max 95 F = 35.5 C.

Update: According to gsmartcontrol's temperature tab:
SCT Status Version: 3
Current Temperature: 33 Celsius (91.4F)
Power Cycle Min/Max Temperature: 29/39 Celsius
Lifetime Min/Max Temperature: 23/58 Celsius (23C=73.4F, 58C=136F)
Specified Max Operating Temperature: 80 Celsius = 176F

My USB external SSD: These cannot use the SCT temperature commands? They always seem cool to touch. Psensors always show these drives to be around 91.6C = 197F to 98.8C = 210 F ???

1.) 2.5 inch - Silicon Power A55 (SPCC) 256gb current temp is 33 Celsius (91.4F)

2.) 2.5 inch - Patriot Burst 480gb current temp is 33 Celsius (91.4F)

...

[Petermint]

SSDs heat up when erasing which is needed before a write. Continuous writes of several gigabytes will make them hit max temperature. The ones I tested recently slowed down at about 10 GB of continuous writes. Your usage will rarely hit that. Perhaps only when copying from your current disk to the SSD.

Looking at the age of the machine. If the disk is that old, it needs replacing. Looking at the power of the CPU, you only need the cheaper end of the SSD range. Our local suppliers usually have something like the Crucial BX500 on sale.

[Termy]

Looks like that drive may date back to approximately 2009 for a very similar model — prehistoric times. I've found so many images of that drive, but for some dumb reason, manufacturers don't just put the date on the drive labels, but instead put some unnecessary date code which relates to the date, and to add insult to injury, it seems like different manufactures use different codes!

[Petermint]

Luckily, laptops have moved on from https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibit ... _3330.html. 1.6 GB of storage. Wow. An such an easy package to move around.

I get the same feeling looking at a 2.5" disk next to an NVMe SSD. If you are looking at moving on to a new notebook in the future, given the age and slow speed of your current machine, you might look at adding SSD to your current machine using a lower priced NVMe SSDs in a NVMe to 2.5" SATA adapter. The adapters are less than $10. The NVMe SSDs (PCIe 3) are not much different in price from their 2.5" versions as the PCIe 4 versions are now the premium products.

The SSD will last ten years with normal use and 385 years with light use. When you buy a replacement used machine in a couple of years, the new machine will have NVMe. You can reuse the NVMe disk or move the disk to a USB enclosure.