PC Drivers & Software

[alkalineknight]

Setup: Dell Latitude 7300 | i7-8665U | 32GB DDR4 | M2.sata 512GB |
iGPU: UHD 620 | eGPU: RX Vega 56 | Asus XG Station Pro | Thunderbolt 3 (15D9) : NVM 44.00

The issue I am having is when and only when I connect my RX Vega 56 via my eGPU enclosure my clock speeds on my CPU reduce to 0.40Ghz. I recently discovered through the use of Intel XTU that somewhere something sets my 'Turbo Boost Power Max' to 3W..... Just to provide context when I boot my laptop without my eGPU connected my system is set to and operates with 22W.

Now I do not know how or even where to start, in discovering how to permanently fix this. I am hoping the AMD support or someone in this forum may know. Although making the changes in Intel XTU fixes the issue. I reoccurs every time I restart my laptop, and randomly it will revert to 3W during the middle of a game.

CAN ANYONE HELP?

[kingfish]

colesdav‌ probably has some insite on this issue...

[kingfish]

You might disable fast start...can't hurt to try..

https://betanews.com/2016/03/03/windows-10-fast-startup/ 

How to Enable or Disable Fast Startup

Deciding whether to bother with Fast Startup actually takes longer than turning it on or off. First, open up your power options by hitting Windows+X or right-clicking your Start menu and selecting Power Options. In the Power Options window, click “Choose what the power buttons do.”

If this is the first time you’ve messed with these settings, you’ll need click “Change settings that are currently unavailable” to make the Fast Startup option available for configuration.

Scroll to the bottom of the window and you should see “Turn on fast startup (recommended),” along with other shutdown settings. Just use the check box to enable or disable Fast Startup. Save your changes and shut down your system to test it out.

If you don’t see the option at all, it means hibernation is not enabled on your machine. In this case, the only shutdown options you’ll see are Sleep and Lock. The quickest way to enable hibernation is to close the power settings window and then hit Windows+X and open Command Prompt (Admin). At the Command Prompt, type the command:

powercfg /hibernate on

After turning hibernate on, run through the steps again and you should see both the Hibernate and Fast Startup options.

 

At the Command Prompt, use this command to set a reduced size:

powercfg /h /type reduced

Or use this command to set it to full size:

powercfg /h /type full

And that’s it. Don’t be afraid to turn Fast Startup on and experiment with it. Just keep the caveats we mentioned in mind and see whether it works for you. You can always put things back the way you had them.

 https://www.howtogeek.com/author/walterglenn/

[alkalineknight]

Hi Kingfish,

Will give this a try today and let you know the outcome. My option was ticketed to enable fast start. So I have unchecked it to see what happens.

Regards,

Alkalineknight

[alkalineknight]

Sadly this had no affects on the issue faced.

[kingfish]

Also there is some issues with the last Win10 update. You might check to see if you have this update installed:

Privacy, Performance Problems Plague Windows Update 

Those who have installed KB4559309 are reporting a laundry list of issues, including very slow boot times, markedly worse performance when gaming, external hard drives not working properly, display failures, printing problems, and Office files failing to open. Part of the problem is that KB4559309 cannot be uninstalled without using System Restore. The update cannot be removed through the standard Add/Remove Programs process.

[alkalineknight]

I am using the latest Windows 10 build (2004) and the latest Radeon Drivers. Though the irony is that I was using them previously and all was working well. Then due to a Bitlocker problem I had to rebuild my machine and this issue appeared.

[colesdav]

Hi,

Saw my name mentioned...
So here I am.

I am familiar with that Asus XG Station Pro eGPU enclosure.
Please confirm this is the correct specification for the eGPU Enclosure: 

XG-STATION-PRO | Graphics Card Accessories | ASUS USA 

That Asus XG Station Pro eGPU enclosure unit looks really compact and is aesthetically pleasing.
However I think it is an example of eGPU enclosure where form took precidence over function.

The first thing I would say about that enclosure is the glaring problem with it.
It comes with a single external 330W Power Supply.

That is not enough power to run an RX Vega 64 or 56, in fact, I think it is close to the edge of the Power Supply Requirement to run the claimed supported AMD GPUs for the unit, which are specified as: 

AMD Radeon RX5700XT/5700/5600 XT//590/580/570 and Radeon Pro WX7100
*Win10 64-bit Graphics Cards Support

If you are trying to run the Vega 56 with a single 330W power brick supplied with that ASUS XG Station Pro eGPU enclosure then it is likely that the GPU is trying to pull so much power from the 330W brick that it is affecting the power draw from the Thunderbolt 3 port as well.

Thunderbolt 3 specification is here:
Thunderbolt™ 3 – The USB-C That Does It All | Thunderbolt Technology Community 
The port is able to supply up to 100W to charge devices.
It can supply 15 Watts for bus powered devices.

I remembered reading this review:
https://egpu.io/asus-xg-station-pro-review-cool-calm-collected/ 

It discusses the use of dual PSU adapter to allow you to run Vega GPUs:

Do you have one of those adapters?

Thanks.

[alkalineknight]

Hi Colesdav,

Thank you for the reply.

I believe I could get unstuck with the 330W limitation at some point but my preset situation I do not believe is related to the eGPU, but I will consider the Waterman related post.

The Asus eGPU enclosure was never designed to power the connected device, and my RX Vega 56 rated at 210W, yet has been pushed hard enough by different online resources where one source records a consumption max of 250W. My laptop has direct power supply and can feed up to 15W out of its TB3 port towards the eGPU. So theoretically I should have 80W give or take. I did also read the review above but they needed the extra juice for the featured Vega 64.

Further to this when I use Intel XTU, I can game perfectly well until either the set 22W-25W power boost change reverts at random or I reboot my machine. Don't get me wrong I have considered going Razer Core X, but I am dealing with the cards I have and theoretically it all should work fine.

My gut is that it is something that is activated by the AMD drivers that modifies Boost Power Watt value to my Intel CPU. I just don't know how to prove it or where to start tearing apart my OS from.

Regards, 

Alkalineknight

[colesdav]

What game are you trying to play and what resolution and settings.

What power do you see reported in the Radeon Performance Overlay for the GPU?
The GPU Power reported by the Radeon Overlay does not include the 75Watts from the PCIe Connector to the card.
I think you are at the limit and you need more power supply.

[colesdav]

Need to fix the typos. Locked out.

[alkalineknight]

As I am getting back into gaming so far I have running only 3dmark time spy for bench stability testing. I have also let my son play Fortnite. He was the one to tell me that my setup became laggy. Which made me discover my Intel XTU changes reverted. My monitor is 2560x1600. I plan to reboot some old classics before moving on to newer titles. I will record the power usage and capture the peak.

Just out of curiosity. Do you really think that the eGPU enclosure limitation is the trigger for my CPU to become set at 3W's?

[colesdav]

RE: Just out of curiosity. Do you really think that the eGPU enclosure limitation is the trigger for my CPU to become set at 3W's?
Laptop power supply might be unable to power to the PC, charge the laptop battery and supply up to 15W through the Thunderbolt 3 port all at the same time.
That might be causing the laptop to go into a low power CPU state.

The eGPU box, if it is well designed, should supply power to the eGPU box and Graphics Card usingh it's own PSU.
That avoids draining laptop battery or putting too much stress on the Laptop Power Supply.

I did a quick search and found this:
Your Processor Spec: Intel® Core™ i7-8665U Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.80 GHz) Product Specifications 
Similar problem different Dell Laptop: CPU Core Speed stuck at 0.80GHz Latitude e7440 - Dell Community 
A suggested solution: ThrottleStop (9.0) Download | TechPowerUp 

[alkalineknight]

Hi Colesdav,

Firstly thank you for your continued responses.

To shed some more light. My Laptop is connected as follows;

Lat 7300 -> WD19TB -> eGPU

My WD19TB has the 180W Power Adapter and as a result my laptop is registering a 90W Power Adapter Input. Standard requirement for my laptop is a 65W adapter.

It is also worth noting that when my eGPU is either not connected or on the occasion where it is registering an error code 12. My laptop operates perfectly fine. I came across a number of threads relating to Dell CPU throttling due to dust or due to BIOS bugs, but my machine only acts this way when the eGPU is functioning. Also worth noting that when I load Intel XTU and set back the 'Turbo Boost Power Max' to 22W (what it is set to when my eGPU is not connected) My machine will work perfectly, sometimes for hours on end.

I have also enabled the 2nd BIOS to experiment if there is any change and I can see none so far. I plan however to run HWmonitor in the background in the hope to capture the peak power usage value of the GPU during gaming so I will come back with that. 

I do use my laptop for work, so I can run multiple screens. During a working day the only thing that taxes the eGPU is Teams Video Calls. Which in reflection of Radeon Overlay does not show that it is sucking too much power.

Finally, I tried to use ThrottleStop previously and again since receiving your post. Now it could be that I am just over looking something. However, no matter what changes I make. My CPU stays stuck at 0.40Ghz. It seems as if Intel XTU is the only applications that can unlock the power restriction.

[hardcoregames_]

Being an Apple user I have seen the XG Station Pro used by some who need additional performance for work. It comes with its own power so it does not tax the USB-C power limits.

The CPU throttling is more likely from overheating which is another common gripe on the Apple forums.

The OP's Dell is an Intel based rig so it may well be overheating as well. Laptops are not well suited for desktop class workloads.

[alkalineknight]

Hi HardCoreGames,

The issue I face is immediate as soon as the eGPU kicks in when I log in. My CPU registers a temp of 53°C upon initial boot and there is nothing really taxing he CPU apart from what is required to generally boot Windows.

Also my laptop works perfectly fine when the eGPU is not connected and when I operate my screens via the iGPU. Further to this once I use XTU. My machine works perfectly. It's something I want to fix as it makes the boot process a pain. My machine loads into the Windows login screen within a minute. But takes 5+ mins to get to a point where I can load Intel XTU and make a single change, apply then all is well (Unless it randomly reverts).

[hardcoregames_]

alkalineknight wrote:

Hi HardCoreGames,

The issue I face is immediate as soon as the eGPU kicks in when I log in. My CPU registers a temp of 53°C upon initial boot and there is nothing really taxing he CPU apart from what is required to generally boot Windows.

Also my laptop works perfectly fine when the eGPU is not connected and when I operate my screens via the iGPU. Further to this once I use XTU. My machine works perfectly. It's something I want to fix as it makes the boot process a pain. My machine loads into the Windows login screen within a minute. But takes 5+ mins to get to a point where I can load Intel XTU and make a single change, apply then all is well (Unless it randomly reverts).

You seems to be really slow on the boot, I use an unremarkable Intel 665p SSD and it reboots my desktop in 20 seconds.

[colesdav]

If you do not have one of those adapters then I suggest you set the Power Limit to -50% on a Vega 56 as shown below in Wattman as a starting point:

[colesdav]

If you do not have that PSU splitter you have a couple of options.
(1). Buy a Corsair SF 750 PSU or similar and use it to supply power to the GPU PCIe connectors.
(2). Cleaner solution = sell the Asus XG Station Pro and buy a Razer Core X which has a built in 650 W PSU:

https://www.razer.com/gaming-egpus/razer-core-x/RC21-01430100-R3U1 

[colesdav]

Here is information on Vega 56 air cooled power consumption:
AMD Radeon Vega RX 56: Power Consumption 

You might want to put the BIOS for the card in secondary position (switch moved farthest from HDMI and DP outputs).

[alkalineknight]

Thank you as I didn't realise that the bios options allowed for two different power consumption profiles. So I will change this tomorrow.

[colesdav]

https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/release-notes/rn-rad-win-20-7-1

[alkalineknight]

So the hard truth is that the issue is definitely caused by DPTF (Intel "Dynamic Platform Thermal Framework") Although, I like some, would say this is also not a permanent fix, but for me it has increase my boot to login to a usable system by miles.

I found a website the referred to disabling DPTF permanently and preventing it from reinstalling. The task was quite easy as it goes and it can be fully reverted (tested this).

The entire article I found is; https://bradshacks.com/disable-dptf/ 

The fix for me was installing the "NoDPTF.reg" referenced registry file which prevents windows from being able to install the DPTF within device manager.

Then within 'Device Manger' under 'System Devices' I located 'Intel(R) Dynamic Platform and Framework Processor Participant' Right Button Click (menu click) selecting uninstall device. I also ticked the box for delete the drivers.

Once I rebooted my machine all is well. I am left with one device within 'Device Manager' as uninstalled stating 'PCI Data Acquisition and Signal Processing Controller'

My clock speeds operate normal, my machine is set to optimised thermal management within Dell Power Manager and via Windows it is set to best performance. Under benchmark my system records a single value of 91*C but is stable. Which is the main thing.

Although I will continue to look this works for me for the moment. So I thank everyone involved in trying to help me with my issue.

[colesdav]

That is a very interesting article at  https://bradshacks.com/disable-dptf/
Thank you.
I am looking for a new gaming or business laptop with a powerful processor, a pair of Thunderbolt3 ports or 1 TB3 + Dell graphics amplifier for 2 eGPUs and a decent discrete GPU.
Nothing from AMD has Thunderbolt3 and AMD laptop discrete GPU offerings are very weak.
Likely I will be buying a laptop with an Intel processor, so this might be useful to me.
Bye.

[alkalineknight]

Hi Colesdav,

You may want to look into some of the laptops with the AMD Ryzen 4 processors.

AMD Laptops - Faster, Longer Battery, and CHEAPER! - YouTube 

Not that I am a HP fan but I am sure that there will be more options out there. I still stick with Dell but I do feel their build quality is slacking in recent years.

Back to the topic in hand. With the recent release by Intel of Thunderbolt 3 technology (making freely available to all) it is likely that it will appear in more laptops going forward without the huge price tag. Not only that it will also bring down the price of Thunderbolt 3 eGPU enclosures. So you may find laptops with more than two TB3 ports as the chipset supports 4 by default. Though if you do hold out for Intel they plan to integrate TB4 / USB4 into the processor architecture. It does not mean it will be faster than TB3 but it will be closure to the CPU. Making it more responsive with less latency.

From what I have read there has been success with dual eGPU's but it has also been said that sometimes it is better to invest in one decent eGPU for performance. As you can get held back by the 40Gbps TB3 bus speed. Though I will leave this with you to decide, but feel free to throw any questions my way. I'll be happy to answer where I can.

Thunderbolt 4 vs USB4 vs Thunderbolt 3 - What's Changed? - YouTube