PowerTop detects which Linux programs and kernel tunables are resulting in the largest power consumption and use of battery time

PowerTop project detects which Linux programs and kernel tunables are resulting in the largest power consumption and use of battery time.

Power usage is a hot topic for computer users everywhere. For some, it's a matter of how long a laptop lasts without being plugged in. For others, it's controlling the temperature of hundreds of systems within a datacenter. For all of us, it's about keeping the electricity bill under control and being kind to the environment.

Getting your computer to use the least amount of power can be problematic. This site provides information on reducing power usage, tips, and tricks for Intel-based computers running Linux*.

As a first step, Intel is releasing PowerTOP, a tool that helps you find what software is using the most power. By fixing (or closing) these applications or processes, you can immediately see the power savings in the tool. You'll also see the estimated time left for battery power if you are running a laptop. The Tips&Tricks page has fixes for a lot of the issues that are already found. Join our mailing list to participate in this effort to get Linux to use less power.

Building:

Just type make and then run the program...

tar -zxf powertop-1.1.tar.gz
cd powertop
make
./powertop

What's New in This Release:

· On sufficiently new CPUs (and Linux kernel 2.6.25), Powertop now reports which C-states the CPU and BIOS report and support.
· Support for reading C-state information via sysfs was added.
· Support for sysfs power supply class was added.
· Support for the "P" key to show the PIDs of the processes when possible was added.
· Support for Intel 4965 wireless power saving mode was added.
· Powertop now shows USB suspend statistics as a low priority hint for busy devices and general USB suspend statistics in dump mode.