Suggestion for the live installer

Feedback Feature Request
1

I have a laptop with HDD, and hdparm is not on the ISO by default, so, when I boot, later install it for check (previous connection with wifi) and the acpi state (hdparm -B /dev/sda), is 96 in every live iso, that causes “clap”, head parking if I wait for install it (looking, testing, reparing my grub :stuck_out_tongue: or something before launch calamares). When I connect to wifi install hdparm and set hdparm -B 254 /dev/sda, all calm down and the load cycle count stops (smartctl -a /dev/sda). I suggest include hdparm in ISO and some script that if detect an HDD, setup hdparm -B 254 to be careful with the disk and not increments the load cycle count of disk.

Thank you.

2

So it is the PowerManagement:

       -B     Get/set  Advanced Power Management feature, if the drive supports it. A low
              value means aggressive power management and a high value means better  per‐
              formance.   Possible settings range from values 1 through 127 (which permit
              spin-down), and values 128 through 254 (which  do  not  permit  spin-down).
              The highest degree of power management is attained with a setting of 1, and
              the highest I/O performance with a setting of 254.  A value  of  255  tells
              hdparm  to  disable  Advanced Power Management altogether on the drive (not
              all drives support disabling it, but most do).

On my machine, it is either not supported or disabled:

$ sudo hdparm -B /dev/sd[a-z]  

/dev/sda:
 APM_level	= not supported

/dev/sdb:
 APM_level	= not supported

/dev/sdc:
 APM_level	= off

/dev/sdd:
 APM_level	= not supported

/dev/sde:
 APM_level	= not supported

Well I assume 96 is default hardcoded value on the HDD Firmware, which is just read by linux. By setting a new value, you overwrite the value.

However… you can download it and set another value. Myself, I don’t see a reason to include it by default.

3

I know that is a power “problem” and is managed by hdparm, and yes probably 96 is the default value of the firmware, that I suggest i prevent increment the load cycle count value using default hdparm 254 or 128. Probably in a desktop this does not occur.

sudo hdparm -B /dev/sda

/dev/sda:
APM_level = 254

A lot of users uses HDD and not SSD in laptop, is a benefit to manjaro and the users, no increment the load cycle count number that in short is the lifetime of the hard disk.

Other distros have the power manager in performance, using hdparm or other software.