smcFanControl - very serious bug?

[MBHockey]

I got a new MBP just as Leopard was released, and I downloaded smcFanControl to play with it a bit and put the minimum value up a bit when I use the computer on my lap so it's not as hot. Everything was working fine, until yesterday when i realized, after a reboot, my MBP's fans were still going at around 5000 rpm (the smcFanControl is set NOT to start up with my computer, and there is nothing in /Library/StartupItems, further there was nothing relating to S MC in activity monitor when i checked.)

Another test was that i opened SMC and set my fans to the max, 6000 RPM. I heard the fans whirring and saw the temps dropping (with iStat) and then quit the SMC application. The fans kept going at 6000 rpm for 10 minutes (no load on CPU), and then I reopened SMC and pushed the value back down. Upon quitting the app, shouldn't it revert to letting OS X decide how fast my fans should be running?

Finally, the idea that the setting is a 'minimum value' does NOT seem to be the case. As a test, i set SMC to the default value of 2000 RPM. I then opened up World of Warcraft and played for two minutes. I did not hear the fans rev up and switching over to iStat is saw the temperatures skyrocketing and the fans were stuck at 2000 RPM each. This means SMC did not set a minimum value for the fan RPM, but rather set the exact value for the fans to spin at.

This seems like an enormous bug, no? Can anyone else replicate results like this? Is it just not compatible with Leopard? How can I truly get SMC to stop governing what my fans do (since quitting the app and restarting has no effect?)

I sent off two emails to the developer this morning, but both have not been replied to yet.

Is it just my machine? Am I missing something silly?

Thanks

[KingYaba]

This is why I do not like to mess with hardware control applications.

[Merlinus]

Originally Posted by MBHockey

I got a new MBP just as Leopard was released, and I downloaded smcFanControl to play with it a bit and put the minimum value up a bit when I use the computer on my lap so it's not as hot. Everything was working fine, until yesterday when i realized, after a reboot, my MBP's fans were still going at around 5000 rpm (the smcFanControl is set NOT to start up with my computer, and there is nothing in /Library/StartupItems, further there was nothing relating to S MC in activity monitor when i checked.)

Another test was that i opened SMC and set my fans to the max, 6000 RPM. I heard the fans whirring and saw the temps dropping (with iStat) and then quit the SMC application. The fans kept going at 6000 rpm for 10 minutes (no load on CPU), and then I reopened SMC and pushed the value back down. Upon quitting the app, shouldn't it revert to letting OS X decide how fast my fans should be running?

Finally, the idea that the setting is a 'minimum value' does NOT seem to be the case. As a test, i set SMC to the default value of 2000 RPM. I then opened up World of Warcraft and played for two minutes. I did not hear the fans rev up and switching over to iStat is saw the temperatures skyrocketing and the fans were stuck at 2000 RPM each. This means SMC did not set a minimum value for the fan RPM, but rather set the exact value for the fans to spin at.

This seems like an enormous bug, no? Can anyone else replicate results like this? Is it just not compatible with Leopard? How can I truly get SMC to stop governing what my fans do (since quitting the app and restarting has no effect?)

I sent off two emails to the developer this morning, but both have not been replied to yet.

Is it just my machine? Am I missing something silly?

Thanks

Seems to be working as intended--whether or not those intentions are reasonable I'll leave up to you. SMC sets the min fan speed value at certain points (when it's turned on, at a change in your energy settings, when you manually change it) and otherwise doesn't actively change them. It does not set the speed or revert to your default or any profile upon closing.

This actually worked out very well for people using Boot Camp--as it's possible now to set the fans at your desired level and then boot into Windows. Fan speed control in Windows has always been flaky (although there's Input Mapper now), so this is a workaround.

This does lead to some odd results sometimes, especially if you crashed from OSX when you quit and SMC thinks you're running a different profile and is set to auto-start, then your fan speed will abruptly change when you log into OSX again

As for WoW, that also isn't really a problem with smcfancontrol so much as Apple's own settings for their fans. Suffice to say that the MBP fans (with or without smcfancontrol) will not automatically ramp up at certain temp points unless you have quite a heavy sustained heat load over time. At times, it even seems a bit arbitrary when the fans will kick in. Generally for example, if you do things that send your CPU temp up to 85 for a few seconds or even a few minutes, the fans won't necessarily kick in very early or even very high.

[MBHockey]

it seems nonstandard for any application to still govern anything on a computer after it has been quit... Doesn't it?

Is there a way to totally remove it?

[koobcamuk]

Originally Posted by MBHockey

I sent off two emails to the developer this morning, but both have not been replied to yet.

I know the developer. He is currently away on business but I am sure will respond to you. I have alerted him of this thread.

I can also let you know that I have 3 machines with this software installed - they are all working fine.

[MBHockey]

So the behavior i'm experiencing is completely standard for this application? I guess i'm just new to fan control apps . It seems all i have to do is shut down and remove the application to get rid of the settings.

Thanks everyone.

[koobcamuk]

Originally Posted by MBHockey

So the behavior i'm experiencing is completely standard for this application?

What makes you say that?

I do not get this behaviour at all. Nor have I ever heard of it. I can set my fans to whatever I like and they stick there. I can also set a minimum value and they can then go over that when they need to...

[MBHockey]

I'm not following you. Could you speak less generally about what it is you are trying to convey?

Either way, the problem is solved.

[brady.myers]

No, the behavior definitely isn't normal - in Tiger, fans would spin up beyond the smcFanControl settings all the time, and they'd also reset to default if smcFanControl wasn't running/wasn't loaded at startup. It worries me, too, and I hope the developer puts out an update soon.

[kresh]

Originally Posted by MBHockey

I then opened up World of Warcraft and played for two minutes. I did not hear the fans rev up and switching over to iStat is saw the temperatures skyrocketing and the fans were stuck at 2000 RPM each. This means SMC did not set a minimum value for the fan RPM, but rather set the exact value for the fans to spin at.

What was the temprature? Are you just guessing that OS X would have had the fans at a higher speed for that temprature by default?

My fans idle at 999 rpm. After 2 minutes of WOW I wouldn't expect OS X to have them higher than 2000 rpm.

Of course that's all moot if the temps were in runaway and not being controlled.

I'm not trying to be a smart-alek, just curious what the temps were before you decided that SMCFanControl was busted?

edit: Do your fans spin up enough to hear them after 2 minutes of WOW? I'm curious 'cuz I use SMCFanControl as well and I don't want to wake up one day with burned cores

[blackslayer]

Originally Posted by MBHockey

I got a new MBP just as Leopard was released, and I downloaded smcFanControl to play with it a bit and put the minimum value up a bit when I use the computer on my lap so it's not as hot. Everything was working fine, until yesterday when i realized, after a reboot, my MBP's fans were still going at around 5000 rpm (the smcFanControl is set NOT to start up with my computer, and there is nothing in /Library/StartupItems, further there was nothing relating to S MC in activity monitor when i checked.)

Another test was that i opened SMC and set my fans to the max, 6000 RPM. I heard the fans whirring and saw the temps dropping (with iStat) and then quit the SMC application. The fans kept going at 6000 rpm for 10 minutes (no load on CPU), and then I reopened SMC and pushed the value back down. Upon quitting the app, shouldn't it revert to letting OS X decide how fast my fans should be running?

Finally, the idea that the setting is a 'minimum value' does NOT seem to be the case. As a test, i set SMC to the default value of 2000 RPM. I then opened up World of Warcraft and played for two minutes. I did not hear the fans rev up and switching over to iStat is saw the temperatures skyrocketing and the fans were stuck at 2000 RPM each. This means SMC did not set a minimum value for the fan RPM, but rather set the exact value for the fans to spin at.

This seems like an enormous bug, no? Can anyone else replicate results like this? Is it just not compatible with Leopard? How can I truly get SMC to stop governing what my fans do (since quitting the app and restarting has no effect?)

I sent off two emails to the developer this morning, but both have not been replied to yet.

Is it just my machine? Am I missing something silly?

Thanks

atleast urs still remain at 6000.. i can tune mine up to 8000!and it is really louder than 6000... that is crazy.. i just remove it straight away incase it spoils my fan.

[triddent222]

SMC works fine on Leopard (at least, for me). When you quit the application, it will not go back to the default speeds. When you restart OS X, it will not go back to the default speeds. Only when you shutdown OS X, and boot it back up will you get the default fan speeds. I've had the same behavior running both Leopard, and Tiger. As someone said before, reaching 70C will not make your fans speed up all of a sudden, Tiger doesn't do it, neither does Leopard. Bug? I don't think so, I'd say it's akin to the battery not charging until it reaches 92% on MBPs. It's just to maximize the useful life of the components.