• Edited
  • #1

The problem is that my new Beelink Ser8 with Windows unfortunately consumes a lot of power, even when idle on the desktop.

My SER8 has the latest BIOS (V029 from 10/23/2024). For the examination I have freshly installed the following OS, with the latest drivers (and the drivers from Beelink as a test), no other devices connected, no programmes open, I measure the following power consumption via Wifi socket when idling in the desktop (i.e. not calibrated, but it is sufficient for estimating the dimensions)

Windows 10 1809 LTSC:

  • Power consumption: 28 - 40 watts

Windows 11 24H2:

  • Power consumption: 18 - 21 watts

Ubuntu 24. 04 LTS

  • Power consumption: 7 - 9 watts

Under Windows I observe an abnormally high CPU utilisation due to the “system” process and numerous system interrupts. ‘system’ points to ntoskrnl.exe in the properties.

Image description

Windows 10 1809 LTSC:

  • CPU load: never below 5%

Windows 11 24H2:

  • CPU load: never below 2%

I think this is the cause of the excessive power consumption in idle mode. I have investigated the matter further with the Windows Performance Analyser and was able to find out that the high CPU usage of “system” must be related to the following components:

ntoskrnl.exe
Wdf01000.sys
ACPI.sys
msgpioclx.sys
amdgpio2.sys

amdgpio2.sys also causes a lot of interrupts.

The problem is the same in Windows 10 and 11.

To narrow down the problem, I reinstalled Windows 10 1809 LTSC on the machine without a network. Completely fresh and without any updates, the system then uses around 12W. I then installed each driver manually and offline, while keeping an eye on the task manager and the power measurement.
You can install the latest drivers for everything and the system stays at around 12W power consumption and also goes to 0% CPU load when it has nothing to do. ….

… Until the AMD GPIO driver (amdgpio2.sys) is installed - then the box starts to rattle around again, doesn’t come to rest and uses 3x as much power. I have tried different versions of the driver - without success.

The different versions of amdgpio2.sys only changed the CPU load a little and accordingly the power consumption. Depending on the driver version between 2% and 5%, which corresponds to 18 to 40 watts. However, the basic problem remains.
To verify this, I ran the same experiment again with Windows 11 24H2 - with the same result as with Windows 10.

Then, by chance/typing error, I gave the device (ACPI\AMDI0030) the amdgpio3.sys, which is actually for AM4 chipsets (ACPI\AMDIF030), and the trouble was over again. I probably just disabled the GPIO controller with the wrong driver.
What effect does this have? Which peripherals are connected via this controller in Ser8?
It is very likely that it is not the GPIO controller itself but a device connected to it that is causing the problems.

It would be important for the Beelink technicians to solve the problem and provide an improved BIOS.

The trial with Ubuntu shows that the system is basically capable of running as economically as would be expected with the hardware built in and as comparable systems from other manufacturers do. Beelink should urgently make improvements here.

(I don’t seem to be the only customer with the problem of high idle current consumption, in some reviews this was cited as a negative point for the Beelink Ser8)

    Hi there,

    ① Please press delete key as soon as you turn on the PC, so that you can go to BIOS. Please send us a picture of the Main page.
    We will check if you need to update the BIOS.

    ②Please go to AMD website and download the auto-detect program.It will update some chipsets and video drivers automatically. It will identify and install appropriate drivers for their AMD hardware. The program works by scanning the user’s system to detect the installed AMD hardware components, such as graphics cards or processors. It then compares the detected hardware information with a database of AMD drivers and software versions.

      support1 As I wrote at the beginning of my post, the system already has the latest BIOS (V029 from 10/23/2024, you can click on the link to see the image you want)

      Of course, I first used the latest AMD Auto-Detect and Install tool (release date 2024-12-05).
      I also tested the drivers provided by Beelink, as described above.

      Since that didn’t work, I tried ALL previous versions of the AMD chipset drivers back to version (3.08.17.735 Release Date 2021-08-23).
      I also tried the drivers provided by Microsoft for the GPIO controller.

      Through my tests it is clear beyond doubt that there is a problem with either the GPIO controller (ACPI\AMDI0030), its driver or a peripheral connected to the system through the GPIO controller.

        10 days later

        Serli
        Hello,

        1. Could you please send your question to our official after-sales email? This is the address: support-pc@bee-link.com
        2. Please send your SN and purchase record again, as well as the link to this forum, so that our customer service colleagues can better check your question.
          Have a nice day!

        Best regards!
        Wendy
        Customer Support

          • #5

          support6 I wrote the same text to support-pc@bee-link.com already 10 days ago. Unfortunately, nobody at support-pc@bee-link.com has been able to help me so far.
          Then I was told to adjust the BIOS fan control - I tested it extensively - without success.
          They asked for the BIOS version again, although it is at the top of my text. Then told me, when I sent them pictures of the BIOS and nameplate again, that I was using the current BIOS - I know that and that is not the question.

          I haven’t heard anything from Beelink Support for a week now.

            Serli
            Hello,

            Could you tell me your email address on here?
            I saw a similar email today, but I’m not sure if it was from you.

            Have a nice day!

            Best regards!
            Wendy
            Customer Support

              • #7

              support6 No, I will definitely not write my e-mail address in a public forum.

              How do you make a private message in this forum?

                • Edited
                • #9

                support4 As I wrote above, I have already done this extensively. So far without getting any help.

                I have just sent another email with the entire message history and the link to this forum topic.

                It would be good if a competent employee would read through the entire description and understand the issue in order to solve the problem with the GPIO controller ( ACPI\AMDI0030 ).

                • Edited
                • #10

                Thanks for your reply.Our relevant personnel will get back to you.

                10 days later

                Has there been any progress on this issue? Any fixes or developments?

                  May i ask does your machine have a problem with high idle current consumption?
                  Please send us a picture of SN number and BIOS version.
                  So we would be able to know whether it is latest BIOS and send you files accordingly.
                  Here`s how to check your BIOS version:https://mega.nz/#F!yuISGa4I!s1bQQajKwnsEdzjqq4nopQ 

                  8 days later
                  • #13

                  DannyBoy7783 No, nothing has happened yet. Beelink doesn’t seem to care.

                  I have had further contact with email support. Of course they asked for the firmware and serial number again and then told me that the BIOS is up to date.
                  Later I was offered to send the device in for a replacement. In the meantime, I have been in contact with other SER8 users who have confirmed the same error with their devices. An exchange for a new device would therefore not help.

                  On 21/02/2025, Beelink released a new BIOS (without a changelog). I installed it on my device without any changes. The problem with the GPIO controller still occurs.

                  Dear Beelink developers: Please solve the problem with the GPIO controller ( ACPI\AMDI0030 ).

                  Magister
                  Hi there
                  Thanks for sharing .

                  Hey, in your posts you mention testing different driver versions.
                  While updating my BIOS today, I noticed that newer versions have also been released:

                  amd_chipset_software_7.02.13.148.exe [2025-02-25]
                  https://www.amd.com/en/support/downloads/drivers.html/chipsets/laptop-chipsets/amd-ryzen-and-athlon-mobile-chipset.html

                  amd-software-adrenalin-edition-25.2.1-win10-win11-feb2025-rdna.exe [2025-02-11]
                  https://www.amd.com/en/support/downloads/drivers.html/processors/ryzen/ryzen-8000-series/amd-ryzen-7-8845hs.html

                  have you tested them yet?

                  I’ll add that I currently have the latest BIOS and the above drivers (+Windows Update @ 100%). I haven’t measured the usage in IDLE, but I’ll have to check it myself - it’s just a matter of taking a box from home to work to measure it in the socket :)

                    bakahk

                    Thank you very much ! appreciated

                    • #18

                    bakahk This will not solve our problem. You can save yourself the effort of testing the new driver package: A look at the release notes reveals that the GPIO driver has remained the same. “AMD GPIO2 Driver 2.2.0.134 2.2.0.134 No change”

                    Thanks for the heads-up! It seems like the new driver package will not be successful since the GPIO driver is not being altered. Thanks for the clarification, and I’ll focus on finding other workarounds instead. Let me know if there’s anything else I can help with!

                      Twinklekapoor
                      Hi there
                      May i know the exact issue you encounter?