Laptop CPU acting weird and being slow

[crazygast]

hi there, i got a problem with my laptop, so if i game or run a benchmark my cpu sometimes acts normal, boosts normally, runs normally but then moments later it stops doing it, it cuts down to 1.20ghz or so, only gets up to like 55% usage, temps are around 60C, in gaming it drops down to like 15fps or less, in cinebench r23 it scores around 1750 or so while if it runs normally it scores around 3900, it sometimes gets so bad that even discord vc's are lagging or just opening something takes ages, i already tried changing the thermal paste but that didn't help if it boosts normally it hits like 97C so thats high but slowing down so much till like 60C is in my eyes too much, i tried changing the thermal settings in the bios, switching between performance and balanced, but the fact that it sometimes doesn't even boost up even if u just start the game or the benchmark gets me confused, i first thought it was the cooling (still possible i have no idea anymore)
its a lenovo thinkpad t15
cpu: i5-10210u
gpu: nvidia geforce mx 330
ram: 16gb 2666mhz
thank u in advance

[unclewebb]

Some Lenovo laptops are changing the thermal throttling temperature while you use them. The Intel default is 100°C but some Lenovo laptops randomly drop this down to 65°C. This makes for a miserable laptop experience. 

 

Download ThrottleStop. It has a variety of options to deal with Lenovo's issues.

 

https://www.techpowerup.com/download/techpowerup-throttlestop/

 

Open the Options window and see what PROCHOT Offset is set to on the right hand side. This is typically 3 or 5. Check this box and check the box above it, Lock PROCHOT Offset. That will prevent the thermal throttling temperature from changing. 

 

After you get that fixed up, turn on the Log File option so you have a record of your CPU performance. Go try to play a game for 15 minutes. When finished testing, exit the game and then exit ThrottleStop. The log file will be in the ThrottleStop / Logs folder. Attach a log to your next post or copy and paste the data to www.pastebin.com and post a link here.

 

Some of the low power 10th Gen U series CPUs run fantastic after you tweak them. They have a 15W TDP rating. Some manufacturers enforce this limit while others leave this limit wide open. 

 

[crazygast]

Thank u for trying to help me!
So i did what u told me but it still does the same thing. Is it possible that Intel's XTU is interfering? i did a reboot before this testing and as far as i know it doesn't start up when the laptop starts up, not sure if this would do something just thought id let u know.
I also know that i installed "lenovo's intelligent thermal solution driver" when i did a clean windows 10 install, again i dont know if this might effect things or not.
Also might be handy to know that im running windows 10 home.

2021-03-26.txt

[unclewebb]

@crazygast Your laptop has a power limit throttling problem. Your computer is setting the long term turbo power limit to as low as 7 Watts. That is why your CPU is running so slow. This power limit is forcing it to slow down so it does not exceed 7 Watts. Laptop manufacturers do all sorts of crazy stuff like this. Look at the far right column in the log file and you will see PL1. You will also see power slowly being choked off to 7W which is half of the rated power for your CPU.

 

Go into the FIVR window and check the Disable and Lock Turbo Power Limits box. That might help. Also post a screenshot of that window and the TPL window. 

 

Some of these issues cannot be solved. The intelligent thermal driver is not that intelligent. Make sure this is set to performance mode. In quiet mode, it will lower your power limits like you are seeing which kills performance. If this is causing problems, you might have to uninstall it. 

[crazygast]

So i ran cinebench r23, it ran no problem, even scoring higher than ever before, i tried to play gta v for a bit but it keeps giving me fps drops, one moment it runs fine, 55/60fps the next moment it drops down to like 20fps. Probably a thermal problem because i saw the cpu hit like 99/100c and thats when those drops happen.
 

2021-03-26.txt

[unclewebb]

The good news is that your CPU is running better than ever. The bad news is that the heatsink and fan were not designed to handle a CPU that is capable of running continuously at 40W or more. That TEMP word in the far right column of the log file shows that your CPU is constantly thermal throttling. You can try replacing the thermal paste but I do not think that is going to fix the problem. 

 

Here is an example of the type of heatsink Lenovo is using in these low power laptops. 

 

 

Not much metal to be found there. Looks like a microscopic layer of copper was spray painted on to a piece of tin foil. The 3 point mount is not going to win any design awards either. The 10210U has a 15W TDP rating. The cooling system was not designed to handle much more than that long term.

 

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/195436/intel-core-i5-10210u-processor-6m-cache-up-to-4-20-ghz.html

 

If your Lenovo laptop has a similar heatsink, you will have to reduce the turbo power limits to what your cooling system can manage. The log file shows that even at 25W, your cooling is marginal. Having the long term PL1 power limit set to 51W is not realistic considering your cooling.

 

As you spend some time with the CPU bouncing off the thermal throttling limit, the GPU likely starts to heat up too. The performance drops you are seeing might be the GPU throttling. In the ThrottleStop Options window you can check Nvidia GPU to monitor your GPU temperatures and speed.

 

Without better cooling, you cannot run your laptop at its full rated speed indefinitely. It was not designed for this type of load.

[crazygast]

Yup thats what my cooler looks like except its a 4 point mount, i already replaced the thermal paste and that didn't help. Also for some reasoon a lot of my fan is blocked off by the design but to open it up u have to take some material away and i dont wanne do that. I did some testing and i disabled turbo boost and set the TDP at 17.5W in Intel's XTU, it runs fine now, i can now play gta v, 60fps no problem, cinebench r23 scores around 3160. One quick question tho, would liquid metal help thermals maybe?

 

[unclewebb]

@crazygast I was afraid to use liquid metal on that flimsy cooler. I thought it might eat it alive. I thought about gluing a pile of loose change to this thing to give it some more bulk.

 

3 hours ago, crazygast said:

i disabled turbo boost

You do not need to do this. Just set the turbo power limits to what your heatsink and fan can handle. Intel XTU sometimes has a problem with restoring your settings consistently after a sleep resume cycle so keep an eye on that issue.

[crazygast]

Alrighty, ill just set it at 20W to be safe, thank u so much!!
Oh before i forget, i have a question about my mic aswell. So basically it doesn't work...
It worked and then i had to install all of my school programs and now it doesn't work anymore, even after a clean install, i reinstalled all the drivers from the lenovo website but nothing seems to help. Any ideas?