An update on the state of ISW-Modern, and fan control on MSI laptops.

[FaridZelli]

October 8th 2022:

So in a nutshell, ISW-Modern is simply a fork of ISW with updated instructions. It now uses acpi_ec as opposed to the vanilla ec_sys module which is no longer included with most kernels. I'm not a programmer, and do not know Python. This is just a temporary fix held together with duct tape until BeardOverflow's msi-ec module is merged with the official Linux kernel.

Once msi-ec is available, this repo will become obsolete as other projects such as MLFC and MControlCenter can then make use of the new module. As for ISW, it's still a decent script at its core for those who prefer a minimal set-and-forget solution. Parts of the script will have to be rewritten, and the index will be retired.

If I still happen to have an MSI laptop and some free time by then, I might create a new fork called ISW-Minimal, which will serve as a lightweight CLI utility for all distros, for the sole purpose of providing fan control.

And at last, I must add that I'm not interested in adding support for incompatible models. If you have a fix for a specific model, create a pull request and I will gladly merge it with the main repo. New hardware addresses can be added under [MSI_ADDRESS_DEFAULT] in isw.conf as new sections such as [MSI_ADDRESS_ONE], [MSI_ADDRESS_TWO], and so on.

Thanks for being a part of our community, and taking interest in various projects. I look forward to a day where it'll no longer be necessary to jump through so many hoops, just to change the speed of a laptop fan. Manufacturers will start to take interest once Windows looses more market share in the coming years. I'm not against Windows entirely, but monopolization causes a severe lack of support for other platforms, which is not excusable under any circumstances.

December 12th 2022:

Sold my laptop, ISW-Modern is no longer maintained. However, feel free to reach out to me in the future if you need information or have any questions about the project, and I'll try to help if I can. You can contact me by opening an issue, or following the link on my profile.

Wish everyone the best of luck!