Prevent Screen Dimming On Battery Power HP Pavilion Ubuntu 14.04

Are you experiencing the frustration of your screen automatically dimming when you unplug your power cable on your HP Pavilion running Ubuntu 14.04 LTS? This is a common issue, and fortunately, there are several methods to ensure your screen maintains maximum brightness even when running on battery power. This comprehensive guide will walk you through various solutions, providing step-by-step instructions to regain control over your screen brightness settings. Maintaining consistent screen brightness is crucial for various tasks, including graphic design, video editing, and even general productivity. When the screen dims unexpectedly, it can disrupt your workflow and cause eye strain. Understanding the underlying causes and implementing the appropriate solutions will help you optimize your viewing experience.

Understanding the Issue: Power Management Settings

Before diving into the solutions, it's essential to understand why this automatic dimming occurs. Most laptops are configured with power management settings designed to conserve battery life. One of the most significant power consumers is the screen, so operating systems like Ubuntu often reduce screen brightness when the laptop is running on battery. This is a default behavior intended to extend the battery's runtime, allowing you to work longer without needing to plug in. However, for users who prioritize screen brightness over battery conservation, this can be a nuisance. There are situations where you might need to maintain maximum brightness regardless of the power source. For instance, if you're giving a presentation, working in a brightly lit environment, or simply prefer a brighter display for visual clarity, disabling automatic dimming is necessary. This guide addresses these concerns by providing multiple methods to adjust your power settings and brightness controls. By tweaking these settings, you can customize your laptop's behavior to suit your specific needs and preferences, ensuring an optimal balance between battery life and screen visibility. Power management settings are crucial for optimizing laptop performance, but they shouldn't compromise your ability to work comfortably. Therefore, learning how to adjust these settings empowers you to take control of your device.

Method 1: Using the Power Manager

Ubuntu's built-in Power Manager provides a graphical interface to adjust power settings. This is often the easiest and most straightforward method for preventing automatic screen dimming. Here's how to do it:

1. Accessing Power Settings: First, open the System Settings. You can usually find this by clicking the gear icon in the top-right corner of your screen and selecting "System Settings." Alternatively, you can search for "System Settings" in the Unity Dash.
2. Navigating to Power: In the System Settings window, locate and click on the "Power" icon. This will open the Power settings panel, where you can configure various power-related options.
3. Brightness Settings: Within the Power settings, look for the "Brightness" section. Here, you should see options related to dimming the screen on battery. The exact wording might vary slightly depending on your Ubuntu version, but you'll typically find a setting like "Dim screen when inactive" or "Reduce brightness on battery."
4. Disabling Automatic Dimming: Uncheck any boxes or toggle switches that enable automatic dimming. This will prevent the system from automatically reducing the screen brightness when you unplug the power cable. You may also find a slider that controls the level of dimming. Ensure this slider is set to the maximum brightness level if you want the screen to remain at full brightness. Disabling automatic dimming ensures that your screen stays bright, but it's essential to remember that this will consume more battery power.
5. Additional Settings: Explore other settings in the Power Manager. You might find options related to screen blanking, suspend mode, and other power-saving features. Adjust these to your preferences. For instance, you can set a longer inactivity period before the screen blanks or disable automatic suspending to prevent interruptions while you're working. Customizing power settings allows you to fine-tune your laptop's behavior to match your workflow and usage patterns.
6. Testing Your Changes: After making your adjustments, unplug your power cable and observe whether the screen dims. If you've correctly disabled the automatic dimming feature, the screen should remain at the brightness level you set. If the screen still dims, double-check your settings and ensure you've unchecked all relevant boxes or toggles. Testing your changes is a crucial step to confirm that your adjustments have the desired effect. If the problem persists, move on to the next method.

Method 2: Using dconf Editor

The dconf Editor is a powerful tool that allows you to directly modify system settings. This method provides a more granular level of control and is particularly useful if the Power Manager doesn't offer the specific settings you need. Here's how to use it:

1. Installing dconf Editor: If you don't have dconf Editor installed, you can install it from the terminal. Open a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T and run the following command:

   sudo apt-get install dconf-editor
   

   Enter your password when prompted and press Enter to proceed with the installation. Installing dconf Editor gives you access to a wider range of system settings that aren't available through the graphical interface.
2. Launching dconf Editor: Once installed, you can launch dconf Editor by typing dconf-editor in the terminal and pressing Enter, or by searching for it in the Unity Dash.
3. Navigating to Power Settings: In the dconf Editor, navigate to the following path:

   org > gnome > settings-daemon > plugins > power
   

   This path contains settings related to power management, including screen brightness.
4. Adjusting Brightness Settings: Within this directory, you'll find several settings related to brightness. Look for keys such as idle-brightness, idle-dim-time, and use-time-for-policy. These settings control how the screen dims when idle and when running on battery. Adjusting brightness settings in dconf Editor requires careful consideration, as incorrect modifications can affect system stability.
5. Disabling Automatic Dimming:
   • idle-brightness: This setting determines the brightness level when the system is idle. Set this to -1 to disable idle dimming. A value of -1 indicates that the brightness should not be adjusted when idle.
   • idle-dim-time: This setting specifies the time (in seconds) after which the screen dims when idle. Setting this to 0 will prevent dimming.
   • use-time-for-policy: This setting controls whether the system uses time-based policies for power management. Uncheck this box to disable time-based dimming.
6. Applying Changes: Changes made in dconf Editor are applied immediately. There's no need to save or restart your system. Applying changes immediately makes dconf Editor a powerful tool for real-time system adjustments.
7. Testing Your Changes: Unplug your power cable and check if the screen still dims. If you've correctly adjusted the settings in dconf Editor, the screen should remain at the desired brightness level. If not, review your settings and ensure you've made the appropriate modifications. Testing your changes after using dconf Editor is crucial to ensure that the adjustments have the intended effect and haven't introduced any unintended issues.

Method 3: Using xrandr Command

The xrandr command is a command-line utility for configuring display settings. This method is particularly useful for advanced users who prefer working in the terminal or need to create scripts for automating display configurations. Here's how to use it:

1. Opening a Terminal: Open a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T. The terminal is your gateway to interacting with the system using commands.
2. Identifying Your Display: First, you need to identify the name of your display. Run the following command:

   xrandr | grep