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Arch Linux CPU Governor Guide ​

INFO

This guide helps improve either performance or battery life on Arch Linux.

1. Display Governor ​

  • Display Current Governor:

    bash
    cat /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu*/cpufreq/scaling_governor

  • Display Available Governors:

    bash
    cat /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu*/cpufreq/scaling_available_governors

2. Change Governor ​

TIP

Balance performance and battery use by adjusting the CPU governor.

  • Install cpupower:

    bash
    sudo pacman -S cpupower

  • Set CPU governor:

    • For battery efficiency:

      bash
      sudo cpupower frequency-set -g schedutil

    • For performance:

      bash
      sudo cpupower frequency-set -g performance

  • Make the governor setting persistent:

    Edit the cpupower configuration:

    bash
    sudo nano /etc/default/cpupower

    Add GOVERNOR="schedutil" or GOVERNOR="performance".

  • Enable and start the service:

    bash
    sudo systemctl enable cpupower --now