Ubuntu : An Idea to reduce power consumption (for PC with NVIDIA Optimus)

Hi,

I am using my Razer Blade 2017 and programming with C++ all 4 cores are almost 100%, consequently the temperature are always high.

For me this became a problem, so my idea is to DISABLE NVIDIA graphics and use only Intel's.

I tried this on UBUNTU 18.04:

# 1) This will install bbswitch:

apt-get -y install bbswitch-dkms

# 2) This will disable nvidia graphics at boot-time

echo '
blacklist nouveau
options bbswitch load_state=0
' >/etc/modprobe.d/nvidia-graphics-drivers.conf

# 3) Tell ubuntu to load the bbswitch module at boot
echo '
bbswitch
' >/etc/modules-load.d/bbswitch.conf

# 4) Update the initrd image

update-initramfs -u

# reboot with init 6


# After reboot verify with: cat /proc/acpi/bbswitch
# should tell something like: 0000:01:00.0 OFF

Notice that now the HDMI port will not work, but if you want to access an external monitor you can still use an Thunderbolt 3 to Displayport cable or Thunderbolt docking station.

Pros: Temperatures are reduced
Cons: OpenGL performace are reduced, HDMI port does not work