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I have recently installed Ubuntu 14.04 LTS on my MacBook Pro. But whenever I use more than 20 minutes it gets scorching hot. I tried installing laptop mode but apparently it doesn't exist.

I found something about running on efi vs bootcamp. Is that the reason why? If so can anyone explain how to fix it or suggest a link?

Could it be other reasons?

Also I had Yosemite so I used rEFInd

JayC
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3 Answers3

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You need to install Nvidia driver and also a switch utility.

Run in terminal

sudo apt-get install nvidia-331 nvidia-prime

and reboot.

Without the driver both Nvidia and Intel adapters consume power and that is why the laptop is heating.

You can check which adapter is working by

prime-select query

Switch to Nvidia by

sudo prime-select nvidia

switch to Intel by

sudo prime-select intel

Or do in in GUI Nvidia-Settings program.

enter image description here

Pilot6
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  • I installed and rebooted my computer. How do i switch utility? and how do i verify only one of the adapters is working? – JayC Jul 06 '15 at 17:08
  • You can start "Nvidia Settings" program. The switch is there. – Pilot6 Jul 06 '15 at 17:09
  • I am at Nvidia settings but do you by any chance know which tab contains the switch? – JayC Jul 06 '15 at 17:12
  • Just look around. I do not have this hardware now. And I wrote how to do it in terminal. – Pilot6 Jul 06 '15 at 17:13
  • @JayC Added the picture. – Pilot6 Jul 06 '15 at 17:15
  • couple more questions: My nvidia settings doesn't have prime profiles but i was still able to change it to intel on terminal and I get the following message: update-alternatives: using /usr/lib/nvidia-331-prime/ld.so.conf to provide /etc/ld.so.conf.d/x86_64-linux-gnu_GL.conf (x86_64-linux-gnu_gl_conf) in manual mode update-alternatives: using /usr/lib/nvidia-331-prime/alt_ld.so.conf to provide /etc/ld.so.conf.d/i386-linux-gnu_GL.conf (i386-linux-gnu_gl_conf) in manual mode When i do query, it tells me it's intel. Is this okay? – JayC Jul 06 '15 at 17:38
  • @JayC It is weird, that it does not have the setting. Maybe the driver did not install well. What does same command from my comments show? – Pilot6 Jul 06 '15 at 19:40
  • 01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation GK107M [GeForce GT 650M Mac Edition] (rev a1) Subsystem: Apple Inc. Device 00fc Kernel driver in use: nvidia – JayC Jul 06 '15 at 21:54
  • This solution seemed to solve the fan issue (running full-speed) on my Mac Air as well, running 14.04. Quiet now like a church mouse. – wayneeusa Dec 24 '16 at 23:24
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The problem got sorted out for me.
I am running 16.04 on Macbook pro retina 2015 

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mactel-support
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install macfanctld

After installing it, view its manual by running

man macfanctld

it will show the config file path. Mostly it will be the below path

 /etc/macfanctl.conf

Open the config file and edit it according to your needs. I will post my config file here which is working perfectly fine for Macbook Pro 13 inch retina.

# Config file for macfanctl daemon
#
# Note: 0 < temp_X_floor < temp_X_ceiling
#       0 < fan_min < 6200       

fan_min: 4000

temp_avg_floor: 30
temp_avg_ceiling: 40

temp_TC0P_floor: 30
temp_TC0P_ceiling: 40

temp_TG0P_floor: 30
temp_TG0P_ceiling: 40

# Add sensors to be excluded here, separated by space, i.e.
# exclude: 1 7
# will disable reading of sensors temp1_input and temp7_input.

exclude:

# log_level values:
#   0: Startup / Exit logging only
#   1: Basic temp / fan logging
#   2: Log all sensors  

log_level: 0

Save the config file and restart for safety. This package seems to run like a daemon on the background and control the fan speed. I can hear fan speeds dynamically changing from the fan noise.

Null Pointer
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    When you say sorted out, what temperature does your MBPro run at? I've tried every single thing I could find. Including disabling offending interrupts. TLP, Powertop, laptop-tools, fan control daemons, disabling dGPU, etc. I can't get my CPU heat lower than 45-50 degrees during idle. My MB Pro generally runs around 30-40 degrees in macOS, and hardly spikes over 55 degrees. On Ubuntu or Arch it goes up to 80 degrees quite easily. – nenchev Nov 23 '17 at 19:04
  • I have edited my answer. Please refer it now. – Null Pointer Nov 29 '17 at 09:36
  • No need for ppa in Ubuntu 20.04 – Clèm Jun 07 '20 at 18:23
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Yes, enabling EFI mode has worked for some people: My ubuntu macbook pro feels warm, can I solve this?

Here is the link to install laptop mode: http://samwel.tk/laptop_mode/packages/tarball

You can disable animations and effects from CompizConfig Settings Manager so that your laptop runs cooler.

http://www.rodsbooks.com/ubuntu-efi/index.html gives you a lead how to boot your mac with EFI.

Community
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aprado
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  • i just realized that if i'm using rEFInd, i am using EFI instead of bootcamp. But that still makes my laptop burning hot. Also, i tried laptop mode and couldn't find a package. – JayC Jul 06 '15 at 06:14