38C is nothing to worry about for a Pentium M. It's rated to 100C. In terms of Linux control of the fans, did you install the i8kutils package along with the plugin?;
http://packages.ubuntu.com/warty/utils/i8kutils
Once you do, you should be able to adjust the fan settings via the plugin. To install i8kutils do;
Code:
sudo apt-get install i8kutils
sudo modprobe i8k force=1
That installs and then loads the i8k module. You should be able to see and adjust fan speeds through the graphical plugin now. If you want to make the i8k module load at boot you can manually edit the following file;
Code:
sudo vim /etc/modules
add
to the end of the file. Then edit one more file;
Code:
sudo vim /etc/modprobe.d/aliases
add
Code:
options i8k force=1
to the end of the file. You should be able to see and adjust fan speeds through the graphical plugin now, through reboots.
Instead of using the plugin, you can configure your system to use the i8kmon program to run as a daemon on boot, to controls your fans. First you need to do everything mentioned above, (install i8kutils, edit modules files to load on boot), and then;
Code:
sudo vim /etc/i8kmon
and then paste in the following;
Code:
# Run as daemon, override with --daemon option
set config(daemon) 1
# Automatic fan control, override with --auto option
set config(auto) 1
# Temperature thresholds: {fan_speeds low_ac high_ac low_batt high_batt}
# These were tested on the I8000. If you have a different Dell laptop model
# you should check the BIOS temperature monitoring and set the appropriate
# thresholds here. In doubt start with low values and gradually rise them
# until the fans are not always on when the cpu is idle.
set config(0) {{- 0} -1 40 -1 45}
set config(1) {{- 1} 38 50 40 50}
set config(2) {{- 2} 45 55 45 55}
set config(3) {{- 2} 50 128 50 128}
# end of file
This is the configuration that the i8kmon will use to manage the fans. To understand these settings, PLEASE read the i8kmon man page at;
http://manpages.debian.net/cgi-bin/d...ee&format=html
For example the settings file shown above, is setup for a system that has only 1 fan (like the Inspiron 6000), and the fan is detected as fan 2. (Notice the {- n} notation. The first space with the - sign is for fan 1, and the second is for fan 2. The number shown denotes the fan speed. Again it's covered in the man page). Please make sure it's setup correctly for your hardware. As you stated, if you want the fans to automatically run max at lower temps, adjust accordingly.
Lastly, you need to create an init file to automatically load the i8kmon program at boot.
Code:
sudo vim /etc/init.d/i8kmon
and then paste in the following;
Code:
#!/bin/sh
#
# i8kmon \tinitscript to control i8kmon daemon
#\t\tThis file should be placed in /etc/init.d,
#\t\tand linked to /etc/rcX.d directories using command update-rc.d
#
# Author:\tnanotube <nanotube@users.sf.net>
#
# Version:\t@(#)i8kmon 1.5 31-May-2006 nanotube@users.sf.net
#
set -e
PATH=/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin
DESC="Hardware Monitoring for Dell Inspiron daemon"
NAME=i8kmon
DAEMON=/usr/bin/$NAME
PIDFILE=/var/run/$NAME.pid
SCRIPTNAME=/etc/init.d/$NAME
# Gracefully exit if the package has been removed.
test -x $DAEMON || exit 0
# Read config file if it is present.
#if [ -r /etc/default/$NAME ]
#then
#\t. /etc/default/$NAME
#fi
. /lib/lsb/init-functions
#
#\tFunction that starts the daemon/service.
#
d_start() {
start-stop-daemon --start --quiet --background --make-pidfile --pidfile $PIDFILE \\
--exec $DAEMON
}
#
#\tFunction that stops the daemon/service.
#
d_stop() {
start-stop-daemon --stop --quiet --pidfile $PIDFILE
}
case "$1" in
start)
log_begin_msg "Starting $DESC: $NAME..."
d_start
log_end_msg $?
;;
stop)
log_begin_msg "Stopping $DESC: $NAME..."
d_stop
log_end_msg $?
;;
restart|force-reload)
#
#\tIf the "reload" option is implemented, move the "force-reload"
#\toption to the "reload" entry above. If not, "force-reload" is
#\tjust the same as "restart".
#
log_begin_msg "Stopping $DESC: $NAME..."
d_stop
log_end_msg $?
sleep 1
log_begin_msg "Starting $DESC: $NAME..."
d_start
log_end_msg $?
;;
*)
echo "Usage: $SCRIPTNAME {start|stop|restart|force-reload}" >&2
exit 1
;;
esac
exit 0
Make sure to make /etc/init.d/i8kmon executable!!
Code:
sudo chmod +x /etc/init.d/i8kmon
then run the following:
Code:
sudo update-rc.d i8kmon defaults
This will configure the i8kmon program settiings, and to load at boot and run in daemon mode, so as to monitor the CPU temps and kick in the fans automatically. Again feel free to play with the temp settings if you use this method.
References:
http://pykeylogger.sourceforge.net/w...nd_Fan_Sensorshttp://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthre...186003&page=13http://people.debian.org/~dz/i8k/00-README
A great place for hardware specific questions (for your hardware) like these;
http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/
and for Ubuntu specific questions;
http://www.ubuntuforums.org/
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