tpfancontrol

Hello, all.
I have heard of tpfancontrol.
What is the exact function of this software?
Does it make the fan to start running at higher CPU temperature?
Or does it allow the fan to run at smaller increments of speed?
I am just wonder about the main purpose of the software.

P.S. If it tends to run the CPU at slightly higher temperature, would it be bad for CPU longevity?

 

TPFanControl merely allows you to manually change the fan speed of your Thinkpad, and tweak the temperatures at which your Thinkpad's fans turn on/off and what RPM to spin at at each of those temperature thresholds. By itself, it's not going to help nor harm your computer; it's the settings that you make that will determine that.

Generally speaking, if a CPU runs warmer but is still not anywhere close to its maximum thermal design temperature, it should not impact the CPU's life. But, as a whole, electronics like cool and dry climates, so it's not ideal. Besides, it's neither comfortable nor safe to use a hot laptop (but at the same time, a loud laptop is not ideal either).

 

I use tpfancontrol on a T61 and it has helped on the fan noise.

Have you seen the FAQ on the tpfancontrol homepage?

Scroll down to the bottom:

TPFanControl by troubadix

/Thomas

 

Thanks for the inputs.
I just installed it to see how it works.

Bios default setting gives me 48-52C with 3700RPM
Smart1 mode gives me 62-64C with 0-1900RPM.
It is definitely quieter but warmer.
I wonder why Lenovo doesn't have its own program for fan control.

 

^Because the average user would probably cause more harm than good tweaking fan settings on his own.

 

I found this program interesting and installed it, but was daunted by the many options available. So I ended up uninstalling it. It would be great if there was a collection of TPFanControl.ini files that are already optimized for specific models or tasks.

 

given that ambient air temperature and immediate environment (desk, bed, lap, chair, etc.) can all affect intake air temperature, the .ini file that works great for one system may be a terrible choice for another.   plus, two identical systems in identical environments may not run at identical temperatures due to other factors like thermal compound efficiency, fan type/manufacturer, dust in system, etc.   while the difference may only be 1~3°C, that could be enough for a fan to stay off or move to the next threshold.   because of this, even if someone had .ini files tweaked for various systems, distributing them would be careless IMHO.

in short, it's best to either learn the intricacies of the application or not use it at all.