Bug#1121192: kworker: Events_unbound, kworker processes, continually using CPU.

From	Ben Hutchings <ben@decadent.org.uk>
Newsgroups	linux.debian.bugs.dist, linux.debian.kernel
Subject	Bug#1121192: kworker: Events_unbound, kworker processes, continually using CPU.
Date	2026-02-08 19:30 +0100
Message-ID	<MmhHH-gITn-3@gated-at.bofh.it> (permalink)
References	<LTX61-eUYQ-1@gated-at.bofh.it> <MlTcl-gqXM-1@gated-at.bofh.it> <LTX61-eUYQ-1@gated-at.bofh.it> <MlTcl-gqXM-1@gated-at.bofh.it>
Organization	linux.* mail to news gateway

Cross-posted to 2 groups.

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On Sat, 2026-02-07 at 10:14 -0600, Benjamin Martin wrote:
> Package: linux-image-6.16.3+deb13-amd64-unsigned
> Followup-For: Bug #1121192
> X-Debbugs-Cc: ben.75@bmg7.com
> 
> Answer is yes to both of your questions.
> 
> It is kinda hard to explain but mainly I will be working on my computer when I
> notice that the average frequency will be pegged at the top (4.4ghz in my
> case),

CPU power saving depends on both frequency and idle states (where much
of the CPU is stopped entirely).  On x86 CPUs it's often better to run
at high frequency for short periods and spend more time in idle state.

Most tools showing you the average frequency don't take into account the
time spent in idle state where the frequency is effectively 0.

Have you measured actual power usage and compared the old and new kernel
versions?

> If I open system monitor I will see these 3 processes at the top of the
> list. This may last for a few minutes and then my computer will go back to
> idle.

Again you have looked at some numbers and decided they are bad, but what
is the real problem?

> Also when using browsers, both Brave and Firefox, depending on the website I
> will notice high CPU usage, such as scrolling through facebook but not limited
> to that website.
[...]

Yes, modern web sites are very resource-intensive, but what makes this a
Debian bug?

Ben.

-- 
Ben Hutchings
This sentence contradicts itself - no actually it doesn't.

Thread

Bug#1121192: kworker: Events_unbound, kworker processes, continually using CPU. Benjamin Martin <ben.75@bmg7.com> - 2026-02-07 17:20 +0100
  Bug#1121192: kworker: Events_unbound, kworker processes, continually using CPU. Ben Hutchings <ben@decadent.org.uk> - 2026-02-08 19:30 +0100
    Bug#1121192: kworker: Events_unbound, kworker processes, continually using CPU. Benjamin Martin <benjamin@bmg7.com> - 2026-02-09 14:00 +0100

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