Toshiba A200 laptop running Ubuntu hangs/freezes when plugged in
My Toshiba laptop worked perfectly for three months or so in Ubuntu recovery mode but now it hangs/freezes every hour and when it's plugged in.
I spend eight hours a day on an average on my laptop. I just want it to last at least that long. If the laptop is not plugged in in recovery mode/regular Ubuntu mode, it freezes in five minutes and the screen becomes all weird.
It works perfectly with Windows 7 on battery but hangs instantly as soon as it is plugged in. Also now, a high CPU usage doesn't help anymore.
Any strategy or suggestions that I could employ to extend the duration for which it doesn't freeze?
A post on the Toshiba forums, A205 S4617 laptop freezes when ac power plugged in., describes the same situation as I am in.
The thread My Toshiba A200 suggests the solution of :
Try changing the following setting in the bios setup, under the 'Advanced' tab Dynamic CPU Frequency:
Mode = Always Low(NOT DYNAMIC)
My laptop has been running on AC power without a problem for 24hours, including many restarts, and when I went back to the original bios setting, the problem returned almost straight away.
EDIT
Other suggestions I found on the web from here and here:
- Set the power plan to high performance
- Set the power plan to "Minimal Power Management" (1 and 2 do conflict)
- Start -> Control Panel -> Device Manager --> Processor -> disable one of two processors -> reboot normally
- Do this:
- Only plug battery into laptop
- Turn on the laptop and start Windows normally
- Plug AC adapter into laptop, the screen will freeze
- Leave the laptop the way it is for 12-24 hours
- After 12-24 hours, turn it off the hard way
- Once it is turned off, turn it back on. The laptop is working now.
Other sources blame the graphics card for the problem, and claim that degrading the display solves the problem. To check this out, boot into Safe mode (which doesn't use the advanced video driver) and plug it into the mains. If this is indeed the case, turn off every advanced display option such as as Aero, themes or whatever.
You might want to consider that it is getting too hot and causing a board inside to malfunction. My Toshiba Satellite gets HOT when plugged in, so I charge it and run it from battery when possible. Have you tried just charging each time you need it, then unplugging it and then repeating as necessary? I know you said you are on a laptop 8 hours a day, but perhaps this could help.