Re: [libreplanet-discuss] Minifree's Libreboot D16 systems (server, workstation) working normally under computationally intensive load?

[Leah Rowe]

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Hi J. B.,

On 31/12/16 08:30, J.B. Nicholson wrote:
> Have the Minifree's Libreboot D16 systems been tested under 
> computationally intensive loads?
> 
> I'm particularly interested to know if the systems will shut down
> due to the CPUs running too hot for too long, or if the system will
> perhaps slow down the system to prevent the CPUs from getting so
> hot that they'd have to do a thermal shutdown.

This shouldn't be a problem. Libreboot D16 is even used in production
(e.g. vikings) and is stable. Lack of microcode updates doesn't cause
thermal issues on these CPUs, and virtualization still works on the
CPUs that we use.

> I've tried a few completely free GNU/Linux systems with lesser
> CPUs (such as the "AMD FX(tm)-8150 Eight-Core Processor" as
> identified by /proc/cpuinfo in the model name field) and thermal
> shutdown was a real problem -- watching a high-res movie (say, a
> 1080P or 4K movie), running multiple FLAC encoding processes, or
> playing any 3D game would be enough to trigger the CPU fan spinning
> up a lot and then a few seconds later the entire system would shut
> down. The system had to be left alone for some minutes before it
> was cool enough to get all the way through the boot process and let
> users back on the system again.
> 
> I've seen videos showing the TALOS libre workstation doing 
> computationally intensive things (playing 3D games and
> screensavers, running VMs, etc. even simultaneously) and this did
> not appear to be a problem, so I thought I'd ask about the Minifree
> Libreboot D16 systems.

I work with Timothy Pearson, the person behind TALOS, who also ported
D16 to Libreboot. The Libreboot D16 is about as powerful as the TALOS.
The TALOS campaign seems to be failing (the campaign hasn't budged in
about a week, with only 12% funded and 13 days left) so Minifree has
started offering D16 as an alternative, until we can figure something
else out.

- -- 
Leah Rowe

Libreboot developer

Use free software. Free as in freedom.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software

Use a free operating system, GNU+Linux.
https://libreboot.org/docs/distros/
Or BSD:
https://libreboot.org/docs/bsd/

Use a free BIOS.
https://libreboot.org/

Support computer user freedom.
https://peers.community/

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No. 9361826 | VAT No. GB202190462
Registered Office: 19 Hilton Road, Canvey Island, Essex SS8 9QA, UK |
Web: https://minifree.org/

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