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    NVIDIA GPU activity monitor blinking?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by vrgimael, Jun 2, 2012.

  1. vrgimael

    vrgimael Newbie

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    Hello again,

    The icon in the system tray that shows if something is running on the dedicated GPU is blinking, as if changing from "GPU on" and "GPU off" about every second.
    When you hover the mouse over it or click the icon, it shows "GPU activity: none".
    What's happening? I noticed the battery is draining faster after it started as well..

    My laptop is an Acer Aspire 5750G, with a Core i3 2.1GHz, and a GT 540M GPU.

    Thanks!
     
  2. toothfish

    toothfish Newbie

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    i also experience the same problem. I checked my GPU temperature and it is increasing even when idle

    Acer TM 8481G
    intel i5-2467M
    Nvidia GT520M
    8gb ddr ram
     
  3. lbrooker14

    lbrooker14 Newbie

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    Same here. Idling around 50-60 depending on overall laptop heat. (Hotter on my lap for example)

    Acer 4830TG
    i5-2430M
    GT 540M o/c @820/1020
     
  4. lbrooker14

    lbrooker14 Newbie

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    Worth noting that it still blinks when the laptop is on battery with Powersaver active. So the GPU is for all intents 'Off' no program could actually use it if it wanted to. Idle temp doesn't come down much either.
    Just an Nvidia/Acer bug possibly, maybe part of the monitoring process?
     
  5. lbrooker14

    lbrooker14 Newbie

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    Sorry for the three part response, I'm basically posting as I discover stuff. Don't know about you guys, but despite the meter my GPU is never using more than .83v according to HWMonitor. I'll go out on a limb and suggest there's no way in the world it's doing a thing at those power levels. As for the temp increasing bit, it's on the same fan/heatsink assembly as your processor, and these Acer's are notoriously badly designed from a heat perspective.
    For reference on a flat surface with a bit of airflow and light processor use (web, torrents and iTunes right now) my 540 idles at 37-43. I personally wouldn't worry unless you're idling 50+ on a good flat surface, and even then I'd see what other users of your particular model are getting, since they're all varying degrees of terrible.
     
  6. imglidinhere

    imglidinhere Notebook Deity

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    It's a program that's flipping out.

    There's a reason no one has replied to this...It's a monitoring program that's literally just trying to get attention when nothing is wrong. :p

    As far as temperatures go, for those machines, 50-60*C is about normal. My M17x R2 doesn't ever peak above 47*C at idle, even on a flat surface...but that's because the cooling in my machine is far superior to yours.

    As long as the load temperatures are under 95*C for constant usage, you're fine. Idle temps don't really matter if the load temps are good.