Aug 21, 2020 Power Clock is an innovative Employee Time clock, Job Costing, and Production tracking program. It easily replaces the outdated mechanical time clock used in many businesses. Among Power Clock 's powerful features are the following. Power Clock is easy for non-computer people to use. It's easy to tell at home when the power has been shut off: digital clocks may blink or be showing the wrong time. But at an industrial facility, equipment that seems to function normally after a power outage could be running inefficiently if control systems automatically switch to default settings. The free FT4X View™ software from Fox Thermal is a great way to connect to the Model FT4X from a PC or laptop to access the meter settings in a quick and visually appealing way. This software offers: Quick access to all configuration parameters using pop-up windows and pull down menus.

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The clock usually may be set to increment after a short elapsed period, e.g. Every 1-10 minutes and to record if a transaction has taken place. Hence, if the elapsed period 98 is insufficient, the program will jump to the main program, otherwise the real time clock will be incremented 99 and then return to the main program. This PowerPoint tutorial is about timeline slide animation. Here, I have showed how to animate a timeline slide using the animations and the transition.

In recent years, power management has become one of the differentiating features in the quest for finding the perfect laptop. Yet, the operating system must support the various power saving functionalities too. This guide covers the configuration of a Gentoo system to manage power-hungry resources in a flexible-yet-automated manner.

• Add instructions for kernel configuration of remaining CPU frequency drivers

Introduction

About this document...

This document describes the setup of power management features for laptops. Although some of the information in this guide can be applied to power management for servers, it is not the intention of this document to go that route. Please be careful when applying this on a non-laptop system.

Within this document, the primary focus will be on laptop mode tools since it offers a complete set of functionalities. However, we will also refer to other tools that might offer a more detailed approach on individual settings. In such cases, the feature from the laptop mode tools must be disabled so that both tools do not fight over the same resource control.

About laptop_mode

The laptop_mode setting is an in-kernel configuration setting that optimizes I/O, allowing disks to spin down properly (and not be woken up immediately afterwards for queued operations).

About laptop-mode-tools

The Laptop Mode Tools is a software package (app-laptop/laptop-mode-tools) which allows the user to optimize power saving functions. It allows managing the laptop_mode setting in the Linux kernel, but has additional features that allow the tweaking of other power-related settings on the system.

Linux kernel configuration

Minimum kernel setup

There are different kernel sources in Portage sys-kernel. We recommend using sys-kernel/gentoo-sources, but if advanced hibernation support is desired, TuxOnIce might be needed.

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To enable proper power management features in the Linux kernel, enable the following settings:

Selecting CPU frequency driver

Intel P-state

For newer Intel Core series of processors (based on the Sandy Bridge microarchitecture or newer), use the Intel P-state driver.

In this case, the userspace, ondemand, and conservative governors are unnecessary. The performance governor should be selected as the default. ^[1]

Enabling additional drivers

For Intel processors used in laptops since 2011 you may want to enable additional advanced features - Thermal and powercap sysfs.

Thermal sysfs driver

powercap sysfs driver

Additionally, you can enable Running Average Power Limit – RAPL technology. Both PowerTOP and turbostat utilities are aware of RAPL. For RAPL enablement use:

To make use of Intel's Linux thermal daemon you first need to emerge sys-power/thermald and enable it via:

or

Kernel setup finalization

For a more detailed configuration description see the Power management/Processor#Kernel article.

Build and install the new kernel (if necessary) and reboot.

Using Laptop Mode Tools

Installation

It comes to no surprise that installation of the Laptop mode tools software is easily done via:

However, this package takes on additional, optional settings through USE flag configuration. So let's first take a look at the supported USE flags and what they mean to the package.

Observe there are two USE flags that seem to collide: acpi and apm. So what is the deal?

• The apm USE enables support for Advanced Power Management , an older (before year 2000) standard for power management features within a system.
• The acpi USE enables support for Advanced Configuration and Power Interface , the successor of APM. All modern laptops support ACPI.

Depending on the system, either acpi or apm will need to be set. In the remainder of this guide, it is assumed the laptop is recent enough to use ACPI.

So, with the USE flags set, install laptop-mode-tools:

Configuration

Having laptop-mode-tools installed on the system does not automatically enable the power management features that may be needed. To configure the package, first take a look at /etc/laptop-mode/laptop-mode.conf. This is the main configuration file for the package and is pretty well described (through comments).

But it is not the only configuration file to work with. The laptop-mode-tools package supports plugins (or modules) which have their own configuration file(s). These files are located in /etc/laptop-mode/conf.d and are named after the module they represent (such as intel-sata-powermgmt.conf).

Now, one of the important settings in each configuration file is if the laptop-mode-tools package should govern a particular setting or not. This is important when combining laptop-mode-tools with other power management services such as cpufreqd. In this example case, CONTROL_CPU_FREQUENCY=0 must be set:

The next few sections will help the user configure laptop-mode-tools to suit specific needs. When finished, start the laptop_mode service and make sure it is started upon system boot.

With OpenRC:

With systemd:

How does laptop-mode-tools work

When running the laptop_mode service, the software will check in which state the system is in. The states are defined as:

• Battery, which is active when the system is running on battery power; the configuration files use the BATT_ prefix for settings related to this state;
• AC, which is active when the system is running on AC power; the configuration files use the AC_ prefix for settings related to this state;
• Laptop Mode, which is active when laptop mode is enabled; the configuration files use the LM_ prefix for settings related to this state;
• No Laptop Mode, which is active when laptop mode is disabled; the configuration files use the NOLM_ prefix for settings related to this state.

The AC/BATT_ and LM/NOLM_ prefixes can be combined to have a AC_LM_ prefix.

When the laptop_mode service is started, it will switch modes based on events that occur (and of course based on the configuration settings). For instance, the setting ENABLE_LAPTOP_MODE_ON_BATTERY=1 will make sure that the laptop mode tools switch to laptop mode when battery power is used. If that is the case, then the settings starting with LM_, LM_BATT_, BATT_LM_, and BATT_ will be used.

To make sure settings do not collide, it is not allowed to have overlapping settings. In the next example, the first set (for CPU_MAXFREQ) is valid, but the second one (for CPU_MINFREQ) is not.

Configuring CPU frequency management

The support for CPU frequency management in the laptop mode tools allows switching frequencies. It supports setting the CPU frequency governor, minimum frequency and maximum frequency. The configuration file used here is /etc/laptop-mode/conf.d/cpufreq.conf

The CPU frequency governor is a kernel-level policy that defines how the kernel will select the CPU frequency. We already selected the governors we want to use in the kernel configuration earlier. Let's recap:

• performance always picks the highest frequency;
• powersave always picks the lowest frequency;
• userspace does not pick anything, but lets the user decide (or any process that the user is running that will decide for the user);
• ondemand will scale the CPU frequency up to the highest frequency when load is available;
• conservative will scale the CPU frequency up gradually when load is available.

When switching between AC or battery, or (no) laptop mode, the appropriate governor (as well as its minimum and maximum frequency) is selected.

Configuring display brightness

With /etc/laptop-mode/conf.d/lcd-brightness.conf, the laptop mode tools can govern the brightness of the LCD screen.

The file currently uses the /proc/acpi/video/VID/LCD/brightness file (bug 499544) to set brightness values. Recent kernels do not provide this anymore; it will need to adjust this to /sys/class/backlight/acpi_video0/brightness instead.

The possible values that can be used are between 0 and the value in /sys/class/backlight/acpi_video0/max_brightness, with 0 being the lowest brightness value.

Configuring other services

An interesting feature of laptop-mode-tools is to support reloading particular services (like the system logger) after switching its configuration file. This is handled through /etc/laptop-mode/conf.d/configuration-file-control.conf

If enabled, the laptop_mode application will switch the configuration file(s) of the mentioned services with the same file, but suffixed with -nolm-ac , -lm-ac or -batt. It will then signal or reload the appropriate services so they can use the new configuration file.

Using cpufreqd

Installation

The cpufreqd application allows the user to manage CPU frequencies in a more granular approach than what laptop-mode-tools supports. But before we dive into the installation of cpufreqd, let us first look at the USE flags it supports.

The acpi, apm, and pmu USE overlap, so only one should be active. If the laptop is sufficiently recent, acpi is the best bet. If not, apm offers all that is needed. When even APM isn't supported, try using pmu.

With the USE flags configured, it is time to install cpufreqd.

Configuration

The cpufreqd application monitors the status of the system through several plugins. Based on the feedback it receives from those plugins, it will adjust the policy used to govern the CPU frequency.

cpufreqd can be configured by editing /etc/cpufreqd.conf. It contains three different sections:

1. The [General]...[/General] section contains general configuration information.
2. The [Profile]...[/Profile] section defines the policies that the cpufreqd daemon can switch to. The section is very similar to the information used when manually setting the CPU frequency policy using cpufreq-set.
3. The [Rule]...[/Rule] section is the work-horse of the cpufreqd daemon, defining when the daemon decides to switch to a different profile.

Take a quick look at an example rule.

In the above example, cpufreqd will switch the system to the On Demand High profile (also shown in the above excerpt). This profile by itself uses the ondemand governor with a minimum frequency of 40% (iow, a CPU of 2 GHz will have by this policy a minimum frequency of 800 MHz).

The cpufreqd application can offer a more granular approach on CPU frequency scaling. But not only that, but the CPU frequency scaling can be tweaked based on various other metrics available. The default configuration offers a sample rule: when a movie is watched, maximum performance is desired (unless the CPU temperature is getting too high).

When cpufreqd has been configured, it is time to start it (and make sure the service is loaded automatically). Make sure that CPU frequency handling by other tools (like laptop-mode-tools) is disabled!

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See also

External resources

• Laptop Mode Tools Homepage, includes About laptop mode.
• PowerTOP, an interactive application helping users to find out which processes are forcing wakeups on the CPU most often.
• A ThinkWiki article on How to reduce power consumption (on Linux). This article offers an exhaustive list of measures one can take. However, it should be noted that the laptop mode tools implements the majority of these (if properly configured).

References

1. ↑Dominik Brodowski. Intel P-State driver, [https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/cpu-freq/index.txt CPU frequency and voltage scaling code in the Linux(TM) kernel]. Retrieved 12 June 2016.

After a storm: if you lost power, check for unseen problems at your industrial facility that could cost you

Specialized equipment may lose optimal settings – and benefits – when power returns

In late August, the Lower Mainland and parts of Vancouver Island experienced a sudden, intense wind storm, causing the largest power outage ever experienced in BC Hydro's history.

Power was restored rapidly; fallen trees and branches were hauled away. And things generally appeared to go back to normal.

However, appearances can be deceiving. If you're an industrial company that relies on specialized electric and electronic equipment, you could face hidden costs after a power outage.

Know what to look for to prevent hidden costs

David Rogers, an engineer at BC Hydro, paints the picture.

'In your home, when the power goes out, you'll see the clocks on your stove and microwave flashing, and you have to reset them,' he says. 'In a factory, there are dozens of clocks and control systems, and even motors that can be turned off or burned out. You wouldn't necessarily know you have these problems. You need to establish a routine to check for them.'

With 21 years of experience visiting industrial sites for BC Hydro, Rogers says being prepared for the aftermath of an outage is worth it. 'I've seen people who have lost a lot of money as a result of not knowing what to do after there's been a power outage.'

Here are examples of issues Rogers says industrial companies should consider:

• Control systems: After an outage, the customized settings on electronic control systems may be lost as the system reverts to a default setting. That means it could continue to function – but not with the configuration that's optimized for your operation.
• Variable frequency drives (VFDs): Used on many types of equipment, these respond to work loads and ramp up or down as required, saving energy by 'right-sizing' the equipment's response. A power outage may cause them to reset to a single speed, negating potential energy savings.
• Relay switches: These electro-mechanical switches carry messages from the computer brain of a control system out to the actual equipment being controlled. Because they operate in a low voltage system, the upset of an outage and possible subsequent power surge can cause them to heat, fuse, and fail. 'The computer system won't know, and will think everything is fine,' says Rogers. Meanwhile, systems may not function as planned.
• Quality control: Often quality is checked by electronic equipment. Rogers offers the example of a resin manufacturer with a control system that checks products for difficult-to-spot impurities. 'If the system is not optimized, you might wind up discarding 5-6% of your product due to impurities, rather than your normal 2%.'
• Waste: After an outage, a system that manages an input such as water might fail to respond to varying needs. 'For example, you might be pumping water through a system that doesn't need water at the time, so it's going straight down the drain – and many businesses pay for water,' says Rogers.
• Equipment overload: Power lines typically have three 'phases' or wires. An outage can short out one wire, leaving the remaining two carrying the full current load. This can affect equipment such as motors, causing them to burn out due to high inrush currents.
• IT infrastructure: Industry is relying more and more on adequately performing IT (information technology) assets. Power outages typically impact IT hardware by taking out the weakest links, such as older switches. Software scheduling and many other applications can collapse or fail to work properly.

Rogers says problems don't automatically occur after an outage; equipment may reset itself accurately and there may be no harm done. But he says it's important to ensure that employees watch for anomalies after an outage.

'For example, if they start to see a lot more waste, or they notice that power usage is up, or they're wondering, ‘Why did we use 10% more water last month?' he says. 'People wouldn't necessarily associate those changes to a power outage. The situation could go on for months, and they might just shrug their shoulders and think, ‘Well that's weird.'

Create a governance structure for an after-outage checkup

Rogers suggests that companies could develop a checklist of systems that use sensitive equipment such as controls, VFDs, or relay switches that should be assessed after an outage. Most importantly, he says, there needs to be someone accountable for the follow-up routine.

'You know, most plants are so busy, no one is empowered with this,' he says. 'There's no governance to put someone in a position to be aware after a power outage that things can change, and problems can occur. It needs to be someone's job.'

Rogers suggests that three areas share responsibility for the post-outage check-up: maintenance, software and quality control. Between them, they should tour the plant and check for problems, and remind employees to be on the lookout for anything that isn't running as it was before. He says the group should report through to a single manager who would determine if any action is needed.

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'This isn't to say that after a power outage all these problems will occur,' says Rogers. 'But there is a possibility, and it can be costly. In the real world, stuff happens – and it's best to be prepared.'