Acer Aspire 5 A515-51G-5072

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Hardware Specification

Note: This may differ depending on your part number.

Part Number: NX.GTCSI.002

Firmware: Insyde BIOS v1.20

Display: 15.6" TN Matte 1920x1080 @ 60Hz (BOE NT156FHM-N41)

Processor: Intel Core i5 8250U @ 1.60GHz (4C/8T 15W)

Integrated Graphics: Intel UHD 620 Graphics

Dedicated Graphics: Nvidia GeForce MX150 2GB (1D10 25W)

Audio: Intel HD Audio, Speakers, Microphone

Memory Slot #1: 04CB 4GB DDR4 2400MHz (On-board)

Memory Slot #2: SK Hynix 4GB DDR4 2400MHz (Removable)

2.5" Slot: WD Blue 1TB 5400 RPM HDD

M.2 Slot: Empty (22mm x 80mm)

Wi-Fi: Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377

Bluetooth: Lite-On Technology Corp

Ethernet + Card Reader: Realtek RTL8411B(N)

Keyboard: Generic 101 key US, Backlit

Webcam: Quanta Computer Inc, 720p

Touchpad: Elantech ELAN0501, Multi-Gesture Support

Ports: 2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0, 1x USB Type-C, 3.5mm Jack, SD Card Reader

Battery: Li-Ion 48Whr 4-cell

Power Supply: 65W AC Adapter

Hardware Identification

Note: This may differ depending on your part number.

CPU: 

$ lscpu
Architecture:        x86_64
CPU op-mode(s):      32-bit, 64-bit
Byte Order:          Little Endian
CPU(s):              8
On-line CPU(s) list: 0-7
Thread(s) per core:  2
Core(s) per socket:  4
Socket(s):           1
NUMA node(s):        1
Vendor ID:           GenuineIntel
CPU family:          6
Model:               142
Model name:          Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8250U CPU @ 1.60GHz
Stepping:            10
CPU MHz:             800.108
CPU max MHz:         3400.0000
CPU min MHz:         400.0000
BogoMIPS:            3600.00
Virtualization:      VT-x
L1d cache:           32K
L1i cache:           32K
L2 cache:            256K
L3 cache:            6144K
NUMA node0 CPU(s):   0-7
Flags:               fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe syscall nx pdpe1gb rdtscp lm constant_tsc art arch_perfmon pebs bts rep_good nopl xtopology nonstop_tsc cpuid aperfmperf pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 sdbg fma cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic movbe popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm abm 3dnowprefetch cpuid_fault epb invpcid_single pti ssbd ibrs ibpb stibp tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid ept_ad fsgsbase tsc_adjust bmi1 avx2 smep bmi2 erms invpcid mpx rdseed adx smap clflushopt intel_pt xsaveopt xsavec xgetbv1 xsaves dtherm ida arat pln pts hwp hwp_notify hwp_act_window hwp_epp md_clear flush_l1d

PCI: 

$ lspci
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200 v6/7th Gen Core Processor Host Bridge/DRAM Registers (rev 08)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation UHD Graphics 620 (rev 07)
00:14.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP USB 3.0 xHCI Controller (rev 21)
00:15.0 Signal processing controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP Serial IO I2C Controller #0 (rev 21)
00:15.1 Signal processing controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP Serial IO I2C Controller #1 (rev 21)
00:16.0 Communication controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP CSME HECI #1 (rev 21)
00:17.0 SATA controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 21)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP PCI Express Root Port #1 (rev f1)
00:1c.4 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP PCI Express Root Port #5 (rev f1)
00:1c.5 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP PCI Express Root Port #6 (rev f1)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation Intel(R) 100 Series Chipset Family LPC Controller/eSPI Controller - 9D4E (rev 21)
00:1f.2 Memory controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP PMC (rev 21)
00:1f.3 Audio device: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP HD Audio (rev 21)
00:1f.4 SMBus: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-LP SMBus (rev 21)
01:00.0 3D controller: NVIDIA Corporation GP108M [GeForce MX150] (rev a1)
02:00.0 Unassigned class [ff00]: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8411B PCI Express Card Reader (rev 01)
02:00.1 Ethernet controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 12)
03:00.0 Network controller: Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 802.11ac Wireless Network Adapter (rev 31)

USB: 

$ lsusb
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
Bus 001 Device 005: ID 0408:a060 Quanta Computer, Inc. 
Bus 001 Device 004: ID 04ca:3015 Lite-On Technology Corp. 
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub

Memory: 

# dmidecode --type 17
# dmidecode 3.1
Getting SMBIOS data from sysfs.
SMBIOS 3.0.0 present.

Handle 0x000E, DMI type 17, 40 bytes
Memory Device
	Array Handle: 0x000D
	Error Information Handle: No Error
	Total Width: 64 bits
	Data Width: 64 bits
	Size: 4096 MB
	Form Factor: SODIMM
	Set: None
	Locator: ChannelA-DIMM0
	Bank Locator: BANK 0
	Type: DDR4
	Type Detail: Synchronous Unbuffered (Unregistered)
	Speed: 2400 MT/s
	Manufacturer: SK Hynix
	Serial Number: 00000000
	Asset Tag: 9876543210
	Part Number: HMA851S6AFR6N-UH    
	Rank: 1
	Configured Clock Speed: 2400 MT/s
	Minimum Voltage: 1.5 V
	Maximum Voltage: 1.5 V
	Configured Voltage: 1.2 V

Handle 0x000F, DMI type 17, 40 bytes
Memory Device
	Array Handle: 0x000D
	Error Information Handle: No Error
	Total Width: 64 bits
	Data Width: 64 bits
	Size: 4096 MB
	Form Factor: SODIMM
	Set: None
	Locator: ChannelB-DIMM0
	Bank Locator: BANK 2
	Type: DDR4
	Type Detail: Synchronous Unbuffered (Unregistered)
	Speed: 2400 MT/s
	Manufacturer: 04CB
	Serial Number: 89870200
	Asset Tag: 9876543210
	Part Number: AM1P24HC4R1-BUNS    
	Rank: 1
	Configured Clock Speed: 2400 MT/s
	Minimum Voltage: 1.25 V
	Maximum Voltage: 1.5 V
	Configured Voltage: 1.2 V

Known Issues

  • Bootable USB detection by the BIOS can be slow or flaky at times, need to restart the laptop again.
  • Out of the box battery life is lower compared to Windows, need to tweak the defaults using TLP & Powertop.
  • PCIe spams error messages in the journal, to fix this add pci=noaer as kernel parameters.
  • PCI Express Active State Power Management does not work. Use BIOS recommended defaults.
  • AHCI Power Management does not reliably work for some SSD brands, especially Samsung. Use BIOS recommended defaults.
  • Wi-Fi speeds can get throttled when using on battery power, in that case disable power management for the Wi-Fi chipset.
  • Using TLP and powertop --auto-tune (run as the root user) will cause conflicting power settings and disabling of Turbo boost when plugged in.

BIOS Firmware Settings

Note: You need to update BIOS to V1.20

Set supervisor password first, only then you are able to change Secure Boot option

  • Secure Boot: Off
  • Touchpad: Advanced

Kernel Boot Parameters

Note: Back up your GRUB before making below changes.
  • pci=noaer to disable advanced error reporting for PCI devices.

Custom TLP Settings

Note: Back up your tlp.conf before making below changes. Do not use TLP and powertop --auto-tune (run as the root user) together, it will conflict the power settings.
  • You will need to install TLP & Powertop.
  • These settings are aimed at moderate-high power savings when on battery power and high performance when connected to a power source.
  • Add below lines at the end of your /etc/tlp.conf, You will need to modify them further to suit your usage pattern.
/etc/tlp.conf
TLP_DEFAULT_MODE=BAT
TLP_PERSISTENT_DEFAULT=0

# DISK
DISK_DEVICES="sda"
DISK_IOSCHED="keep"
DISK_IDLE_SECS_ON_AC=0
DISK_IDLE_SECS_ON_BAT=5

# FILE SYSTEM
MAX_LOST_WORK_SECS_ON_AC=15
MAX_LOST_WORK_SECS_ON_BAT=45

# CPU
CPU_SCALING_GOVERNOR_ON_AC=performance
CPU_SCALING_GOVERNOR_ON_BAT=powersave
CPU_ENERGY_PERF_POLICY_ON_AC=performance
CPU_MIN_PERF_ON_AC=0
CPU_MAX_PERF_ON_AC=100
CPU_MIN_PERF_ON_BAT=0
CPU_MAX_PERF_ON_BAT=25
CPU_BOOST_ON_AC=1
CPU_BOOST_ON_BAT=0
SCHED_POWERSAVE_ON_AC=0
SCHED_POWERSAVE_ON_BAT=1

# GPU
INTEL_GPU_BOOST_FREQ_ON_AC=1100
INTEL_GPU_BOOST_FREQ_ON_BAT=1000
INTEL_GPU_MAX_FREQ_ON_AC=1100
INTEL_GPU_MAX_FREQ_ON_BAT=1000
INTEL_GPU_MIN_FREQ_ON_AC=300
INTEL_GPU_MIN_FREQ_ON_BAT=300

# KERNEL
NMI_WATCHDOG=0

# SATA
SATA_LINKPWR_BLACKLIST=""
SATA_LINKPWR_ON_AC="max_performance"
SATA_LINKPWR_ON_BAT="min_power"

# AHCI
AHCI_RUNTIME_PM_ON_AC=on
AHCI_RUNTIME_PM_ON_BAT=on
AHCI_RUNTIME_PM_TIMEOUT=15

# PCIE
PCIE_ASPM_ON_AC=default
PCIE_ASPM_ON_BAT=powersave
RUNTIME_PM_ON_AC=on
RUNTIME_PM_ON_BAT=auto
RUNTIME_PM_DRIVER_BLACKLIST=""

# WIFI
WIFI_PWR_ON_AC=off
WIFI_PWR_ON_BAT=on

# WAKE ON LAN
WOL_DISABLE=Y

# AUDIO
SOUND_POWER_SAVE_ON_AC=0
SOUND_POWER_SAVE_ON_BAT=1
SOUND_POWER_SAVE_CONTROLLER=Y

# USB
USB_AUTOSUSPEND=1
  • Type tlp start (as the root user) in the terminal to start TLP using custom settings.
  • Type tlp-stat -c | sort (as the root user) in the terminal to view your custom settings which should present in the end of the output.
  • Type powertop (as the root user) in the terminal, go to Device stats and Tunables tabs to view your current power consumption and parameters which need to be tweaked further.

Custom Powertop Settings

Note: Do not use TLP and powertop --auto-tune (run as the root user) together, it will conflict the power settings.
  • You will need to install Powertop.
  • These settings are aimed at balanced power savings when on battery power and when connected to a power source.
  • You will need to modify these settings further to suit your usage pattern.
/usr/bin/pwrtp
# auto = enable power saving
# on = disable power saving

# Auto-tune all settings
sudo powertop --auto-tune

# Force Runtime PM for PCI Device NVIDIA Corporation GP108M [GeForce MX150]
sudo bash -c 'echo "auto" > /sys/bus/pci/devices/0000:01:00.0/power/control'

# Disable Autosuspend for USB device Gaming Mouse G402 [Logitech]
sudo bash -c 'echo "on" > /sys/bus/usb/devices/1-3/power/control'
sudo bash -c 'echo "on" > /sys/bus/usb/devices/1-4/power/control'

# Disable Runtime PM for PCI Device Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 802.11ac Wireless Network Adapter
sudo bash -c 'echo "on" > /sys/bus/pci/devices/0000:03:00.0/power/control'
  • Add these lines, save this file (as the root user) in /usr/bin/, make it executable chmod +x /usr/bin/pwrtp
  • You can create a systemd service powertop.service which executes this file at startup.
/etc/systemd/system/powertop.service
[Unit]
Description=Powertop custom startup script

[Service]
Type=idle
Environment="TERM=dumb"
ExecStart=/usr/bin/pwrtp

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
  • Save this file (as the root user) in /etc/systemd/system/
  • Start powertop.service
  • Enable powertop.service
  • Reboot your machine, and check status (as the root user) systemctl status powertop.service, powertop > Tunables Tab.