High (99%) GPU usage in any game until logging out and in again

General system Kernel, boot, graphics & hardware
1

Not sure where to put this topic, so I’m asking here.

I’ve been using EndeavourOS since 2021, and been a happy camper since. But as of recent, I’ve noticed something off. The GPU usage has become unusually high as of late. I started noticing when playing Neon White when I noticed that I only got about 70-90fps on that game. They were certainly not unplayable numbers, and I had a blast with the game regardless, but considering I’m running an RX 6800 XT, it’s odd that a game like that wouldn’t run any faster than this. So I just thought that either the game was unoptimized, or that Unitiy Engine games aren’t well optimized on Proton.

But then I started running some other games, and with Mangohud running on Doom Eternal, which I’m quite familiar with, and that’s when I really started noticing that something was off. On the title screen with the Doom Slayer chilling on the middle of the screen, I got only about 90-100fps, and the GPU usage was at 99%. And in-game, the framerate would struggle to maintain 60fps, whereas usually it would run much higher at the 100-range to even the 200-range when in-game. I also ran Mangohud on Neon White with same results. Especially when getting into a level. I also ran some Unigine benchmarks, including Unigine Valley and Superposition, which had the card running at 40-80fps at 1440p, Ultra and 20-30fps at 1440p with High settings respectively.

With numbers like these, I thought my GPU had somehow degraded. So I switched over to my rarely used Windows partition to test Unigine Valley, and there it showed a night and day difference. Managing to run at around 180-250fps on the same exact settings even! That’s when I noticed that nothing was wrong with the hardware, only the software. I also figured out that logging off from my Linux session and back in fixed any performance issues I had. Unigine Valley ran identically as it did on Windows. But if I were to shut off my machine, and return to run any software again, then I would return with the same issues, and (you guessed it) only logging out and in again can solve it.

And in case you ask, I’ve tried a lot of things. I’ve tried switching between both Mesa and Mesa-git drivers, using various Vulkan drivers, Vulkan pre-fixes and any relevant AMD drivers for my RX 6800 XT. Nothing I have tried worked to resolve my issue. Only logging off and back in again seems to have fixed the high GPU usage, and in turn fixing performance issues. At least temporarily, until I shutdown my machine.

So is there anyone on this forum who can guide me to the right direction on how I can just enjoy my games without needing to log off and on again?

2

GPU being used at 99% in gaming is not an indication that there is something wrong with the software or hardware. Usually, depending on the resolution you’re playing, that would put more weight on the GPU. For example, if you play on 1080p, a lot of the performance is dependent not on the GPU, but on the CPU. The GPU performance becomes more important when you start playing at 2K or higher.

In terms of why you’re able to resolve the issue after logging off and logging back in, I am not sure about. For sure, the software might need to be tweaked to get better framerate in games. When it comes to Linux, there are few things to look at:

  1. How is Steam installed? Are you using the flatpak or natively installed in Linux through pacman?
  2. What resolution are you currently playing at?
  3. What is the proton GE version that you are using? And have you tried different versions?
  4. Are you using any launch options for when you launch your games through Steam?
  5. Have the games ever ran smooth prior to you noticing these issues?

I am using EOS with KDE running on RX6900XT and I dont notice these issues myself. Yes in Windows some games do run smoother, but for games like Doom, it should still run smooth on Linux, I’ve tested this myself getting well over 200FPS.

3

  1. Steam is installed from the AUR using yay.

  2. 1440p is what I play at, as that’s what my monitor displays.

  3. Currently, I’m running Proton GE 8.6, which is at least a very recent Proton GE version.

  4. I have Gamemoderun activated for Neon White, but has made no difference. For my other games, I just have Mangohud. Of course with %command% at the end.

  5. Yes. They have worked with no issues prior to noticing oddball performance issues. It was only recently I had these issues somewhere around this summer.

4

Have you had a chance to look here? https://linux-gaming.kwindu.eu/index.php?title=Improving_performance

5

I’m assuming you mean from the mulitlib repo since I don’t see a steam package in the AUR?

Have you tried some of the launch options other people are using with an RX 6000 series card for Doom Eternal.

RADV_PERFTEST=‘rt,gpl’ VKD3D_CONFIG=‘dxr11’ gamemoderun %command% +com_skipIntroVideo 1 +com_skipKeyPressOnLoadScreens 1

6

which DE do you use? it could be the culprit if logging out solves your issue. Did you update your kernel? the last few updates solved a lot of issues for AMD. try to use wayland, not sure if it makes a difference.

  1. try steam-native
  2. check protondb
  3. which driver do you use? radv or amdvlk? radv is usually faster.
  4. how many games you tried on windows? some games just run slower on linux, not much to do about it. if all of them run a lot slower that could be a problem.
  5. some games will run better with older proton versions
  6. no need to use proton-ge most of the time.
  • bonus probably snake oil tips: try the zen kernel, compile proton-ge with -march=native
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I primarily use the KDE Plasma desktop, though I’ve also tried on GNOME. Both have the same issue when I boot up straight into the two, could even try Xfce if I wanted to. And I do use Wayland as a matter of fact, and the same occurs on an X11 session. The kernel (which is the Zen kernel actually) is also updated to the most recent version. I update on a regular basis. RADV is what I use across all games, I also use ProtonDB for any possible fixes and such for games with documented performance issues on Linux and to get games running as optimal as possible on both my Linux desktop and Steam Deck. Even if there are times where some Linux games may be at least a smidge slower than on Windows, never have I had an odd issue like this where it’s literally like running on a GPU way weaker than the RX 6800 XT until I log off and back on again.

Besides maybe reinstalling EndeavourOS or going over to a different Arch-based distro like regular Arch via archinstall, I don’t think there’s a whole lot I can actually do. I’ve tried getting help on a Linux Discord server with no luck. I sincerely appreciate all the advice, but I have tried a lot of them, and they haven’t worked. Could try some more before calling quits, but I’m not gonna hold my breath on this.

Would it maybe be possible to bring it up to EOS or Arch devs in general to see if there could be any correlations to a certain function? Though I could very well be alone one this issue.

8

Since when have you started noticing this, was this since the recent kernel 6.4.x kernel updates, if so have you tried switching to the lts kernel?

I have an Nvidia gpu, I play games at 4k. When I play my Doom Eternal fps swings between 100-144(since I have both my monitors set for 144hz) and my gpu usuage is between 94-100%.

Since @TheProf has the same series gpu as, isn’t experiencing the problems you are experiencing and when you logout and login again the problem is gone, I think the problem may be somewhere else because your are experiencing it with different mesa versions and different Vulkan drivers.

Some things you could still try:

  • Check your dmesg output and journal for errors after you quit the game when that starts happening?
  • Try using the Flatpak version of Steam, how is your experience then, does the same problem still occur then?
1 Like
9

I doubt that is is related to a distro, as I use KDE on EOS with an AMD GPU and it works well, however there is definitely something wrong with the config. I would avoid a reinstall for now unless you have some time to kill :slight_smile:

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Not really since that specific kernel update. I started noticing a few weeks back when I first started playing Neon White, but as mentioned, initially dismissed it thinking it was just this game. And it was this week when I figured out that it’s a software issue of some kind in general.

11

Is your system updated?
If yes try the lts kernel, because there were a lot of issues with amd the past month.

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I haven’t tried the LTS kernel. Might give it a try when I get back home, and see how it goes.

13

Hi,
I have the same kind of issue here. Mangohud shows half power consumption at full GPU Usage. I update my system on a weekly basis, but I always have to downgrade my kernel to 6.3.9. I tried all the latest kernels, but it’s the only one helping with the GPU Problem.

System: Intel 12500, AMD RX 6700

14

Happy to know I’m not the only one experiencing at least a similar issue. If LTS kernel won’t work, then I guess I’ll try that.

15

Finally back to my computer. Happy to report that switching to LTS kernel seems to have solved the issue! I went into LTS after both rebooting the machine and shutting it off and on again. It seems to have fixed the issue for me. I get the full performance I expect from the machine without having to log on and off.

Unless circumstances change somehow, I think that I’ve finally officially solved the issue. Thanks for the help, guys!

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