Sleep/Wake Issue Investigation Report

OverviewExecutive Summary

Problem Description

Your machine enters sleep when closing the lid, but exhibits issues properly waking from sleep. The screen may remain black, or the system may exhibit partial wake behavior.

HardwareSystem Configuration

Hardware Specifications

Current Power Settings

/sys/power/mem_sleep: [s2idle]      ← ONLY s2idle available
/sys/power/state:    freeze mem disk
NVIDIA Driver: 610.43.03 (proprietary)
PreserveVideoMemoryAllocations: 2    ← Enabled
UseKernelSuspendNotifiers: 1        ← Enabled

DiagnosisIdentified Issues

Primary Issues

• 1
  s2idle (Modern Standby) is broken

  Only s2idle sleep state is active. Deep S3 sleep is not available. This is the #1 cause of NVIDIA suspend issues on Dell/Alienware laptops.
• 2
  ACPI BIOS errors

  Multiple unresolved ACPI symbols in DSDT (_SB.PC00.XHCI.RHUB.SS03, SS04, method TUPC missing arguments).
• 3
  NVIDIA ACPI D-Notifier failures

  Failed to handle ACPI D-Notifier event, status=0x11 during wake indicates driver cannot properly handle ACPI power state transitions.
• 4
  spd5118 resume failures

  DDR5 SPD EEPROM I2C devices failing to resume (error -6), indicating hardware-level power state corruption.
• 5
  Intel iGPU GSC proxy timeout

  Intel iGPU's Graphics Security Controller fails to initialize, causing display output issues after wake.

Kernel Error Logs

Jul 22 19:43:43 workstation kernel: NVRM: RmHandleDNotifierEvent: Failed to handle ACPI D-Notifier event, status=0x11
Jul 22 19:43:43 workstation kernel: spd5118 18-0050: PM: dpm_run_callback(): spd5118_resume [spd5118] returns -6
Jul 22 19:43:43 workstation kernel: spd5118 18-0050: PM: failed to resume async: error -6
Jul 22 19:49:48 cachyos kernel: ACPI BIOS Error (bug): Could not resolve symbol [\_SB.PC00.XHCI.RHUB.SS03], AE_NOT_FOUND
Jul 22 19:50:08 workstation kernel: i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] *ERROR* GT1: GSC proxy component didn't bind within expected timeout

HistoryPrevious Work Completed

Documentation Created

Files Created

What Has Been Done

What Has NOT Been Done

SolutionRecommended Fixes

Implementation Priority

Detailed Fix Instructions

Fix #1: Force S3 Deep Sleep (CRITICAL)

# Check if S3 is supported
cat /sys/power/mem_sleep
# Current: [s2idle] — need to enable "deep"

# Test S3 temporarily
echo deep | sudo tee /sys/power/mem_sleep

# If successful, make permanent by adding to bootloader:
# GRUB: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="... mem_sleep_default=deep"
# systemd-boot: Add "mem_sleep_default=deep" to options line

Fix #2: Blacklist nvidiafb Module

# Create blacklist file
sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-nvidiafb.conf > /dev/null <<'EOF'
blacklist nvidiafb
EOF

# Regenerate initramfs
sudo mkinitcpio -P

# Verify
lsmod | grep -q nvidiafb && echo "FAIL" || echo "PASS"

Fix #3: Add Kernel Parameters

# Edit your bootloader config and add these parameters:
mem_sleep_default=deep acpi_backlight=vendor acpi_enforce_resources=lax

# For GRUB, edit /etc/default/grub:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash mem_sleep_default=deep acpi_backlight=vendor acpi_enforce_resources=lax nvidia-drm.modeset=1 pcie_aspm=off"

# Then update:
sudo update-grub

Fix #4: Update BIOS/Firmware

# Check current version
sudo dmidecode -s bios-version
# Current: v1.15.0 (08/06/2025)

# Check for updates
sudo fwupdmgr get-updates
sudo fwupdmgr update

# Or download from Dell Support

Fix #5: Disable Problematic Wake Sources

# View current wake sources
cat /proc/acpi/wakeup
# XHCI, RP01, RP05, RP07, RP08, RP09, RP12 are enabled (8 total)

# Toggle problematic devices (temporary - resets on reboot)
sudo sh -c 'echo XHCI > /proc/acpi/wakeup'

# For permanent fix, create systemd service:

sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/disable-wake-devices.service > /dev/null <<'EOF'
[Unit]
Description=Disable problematic wake devices
Before=sleep.target

[Service]
Type=oneshot
ExecStart=/bin/sh -c 'echo XHCI > /proc/acpi/wakeup'
ExecStart=/bin/sh -c 'echo RP01 > /proc/acpi/wakeup'
ExecStart=/bin/sh -c 'echo RP05 > /proc/acpi/wakeup'

[Install]
WantedBy=sleep.target
EOF

sudo systemctl enable disable-wake-devices.service

VerifyTesting Procedure

Test After Each Fix

1. Manual Suspend: systemctl suspend — System should sleep and wake properly
2. Lid Close Test: Close lid physically — Should sleep and wake on lid open
3. Automated Test: Run 5 suspend/resume cycles to verify reliability

Verification Commands

# After applying fixes, verify configuration:

# 1. Check sleep state (should show [deep])
cat /sys/power/mem_sleep

# 2. Verify kernel parameters
cat /proc/cmdline | grep -E "mem_sleep_default|acpi_backlight"

# 3. Check NVIDIA services status
systemctl status nvidia-suspend.service nvidia-resume.service

# 4. Verify nvidiafb not loaded
lsmod | grep -q nvidiafb && echo "FAIL" || echo "PASS"

ActionNext Steps

1. 1
   Force S3 Deep Sleep

   Test with echo deep | sudo tee /sys/power/mem_sleep, then make permanent via bootloader
2. 2
   Blacklist nvidiafb

   Create /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-nvidiafb.conf and run sudo mkinitcpio -P
3. 3
   Add kernel parameters

   Edit bootloader config to add mem_sleep_default=deep acpi_backlight=vendor acpi_enforce_resources=lax
4. 4
   Check for BIOS update

   Run sudo fwupdmgr get-updates and compare with Dell support site
5. 5
   Disable wake sources

   Create systemd service to toggle XHCI, RP01, RP05 on suspend

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