# Dell's 11320H laptop blocked undervolting, questions and solutions



## guilhermebaca (Mar 22, 2022)

I have a Dell Inspiron 5518 laptop, equiped with an I5 11320H and MX450. As usual from Dell, the cooling system is undersized and the thermal throttling is absurd. When the CPU and GPU are working together the CPU only has access to 10w after half an hour of gaming. This keeps the average GPU and CPU temperature below 75 degrees Celsius, which is overkill.
I've been reading for a few days about how to do undervolting on my 11320H cpu. I've read several posts here on the forum and on Reddit about how to deal with this situation, but I still haven't found a solution.
Following what @unclewebb suggested here:

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		https://www.reddit.com/r/WindowsHelp/comments/q73hj8

and here:








						ThrottleStop on Dell Vostro 5402 - i5 1135G7?
					

Hello  I recent bought a Dell Vostro 5402 laptop with i5 1135G7, 16 GB DDR4 2.400, 256 NVMe SSD, nVidia MX330 2GB 25 watts, Win 10 Pro updated, and when I play CS GO, starts with 131, 226 fps, but after a few minutes (2, 3 minutes), the cpu clock underclock and the fps drop, and the game starts...




					www.techpowerup.com
				




What I've managed so far is just getting the CPU to receive 15w continuously during the game by checking the "disable control" option in the Power limit control section in TPL. I also managed to get the processor to receive 30w by disabling the MX450. The whole undervolting part seems to be blocked as in the FIVR window everything is greyed out.
I've attached some print screens and logs to help understand the situation. Logs were all recorded while playing CS:GO, the file names are self explanatory.
Finally, here are my questions:
From the log, I can see that the temperature is being controlled by reaching almost continuously the value defined in PROCHOT (92). Is there a problem with letting the system regulate itself like this? is there any more "elegant" way to make the processor receive the 15w but without hitting the PROCHOT so continuously?

From everything I've read in the last few days undevolting was not blocked by Intel on the 11th Gen H series. This (and my track record with Dell laptops) leads me to believe it's a limitation imposed by Dell via BIOS. Has anyone here tried following the guide a below to successfully modify the BIOS of these new Dell laptops?


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/Dell/comments/t7h4ev/_/hzl5zuw

Thanks


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## unclewebb (Mar 22, 2022)

Your first log file shows that the CPU is overheating and thermal throttling even though CPU power consumption is only 15W. The 11320H is not a 15W processor. 









						Product Specifications
					

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.




					ark.intel.com
				




Dell engineering seems to have really dropped the ball when it comes to providing adequate cooling when the CPU and Nvidia GPU are both active. It likely has a shared heatsink that is completely inadequate. The promised and rated specs can never be used without proper cooling.

It looks like the 11320H has no access to the FIVR register that allows CPU voltage control. This was likely disabled by Intel during manufacturing. This is the new norm for Intel mobile CPUs. With 12th Gen, Intel only plans to allow CPU voltage control if you buy an ultra expensive 12900HK. I do not think it is ever going to be possible to unlock your CPU. The brendan greenley link that I previously posted on reddit was a solution for a different problem. For older Dell laptops, ThrottleStop reports Locked at the top of the FIVR window. Your screenshot shows Not Available. These two problems are not the same. 

Have a look in the Options window. Do you see a lock icon near the PROCHOT Offset setting? Dell typically locks this setting. If it is not locked, you can reduce the PROCHOT Offset value to raise the thermal throttling temperature. Intel suggest that thermal throttling should begin at 100°C. Dell's decision to low ball this to only 92°C means that your CPU will be extra safe at the expense of maximum performance. You can let your CPU thermal throttle all day at 92°C. This is so far below the 100°C Intel spec that you are unlikely to ever hurt it. 



guilhermebaca said:


> As usual from Dell, the cooling system is undersized and the thermal throttling is absurd.


Why support a company that builds laptops like this?


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## londeroarthur (Apr 16, 2022)

I managed to remove the undervolt lock on my Dell G15 on the BIOS and now I'm at -125mV, I can help you!!!


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