GPU power limit set
Fix Degraded State error 14 ("GPU Power Limit Set") and error 15 ("GPU Power Unavailable") on desktops and laptops, including vendor power modes like Armoury Crate.
What it means: Customers pay for a card's full performance, so before each container job Salad compares the power your GPU is currently allowed to draw with what the card supports. Error 14 means the allowed limit is set below what we support; error 15 means the power settings couldn't be read at all (usually a driver problem). Either one stops container jobs until it's fixed.
Why it happens:
- Desktop: a power limit or undervolt set in MSI Afterburner, the vendor's tuning app (ASUS GPU Tweak, EVGA Precision), or a saved "quiet" profile that re-applies at startup.
- Laptop: the vendor's operating mode (Silent, Balanced, Performance) caps the GPU's power budget. The "GPU mode" / MUX switch setting (Ultimate, Standard, Eco) does not control power - it only chooses which GPU drives the screen, so changing it won't clear the error. Running on battery or on a USB-C charger also cuts the limit sharply.
- Error 15: the driver can't report power at all, typically after a bad driver install.
What to do
Set the vendor's operating mode to maximum performance
- ASUS: Armoury Crate > Operating Mode > Turbo (in Manual mode, push the GPU power sliders - base power and Dynamic Boost - to maximum).
- MSI: MSI Center > User Scenario > Extreme Performance.
- Lenovo: Lenovo Vantage / Legion Toolkit > Performance mode.
- Razer, Acer, Dell, HP: the equivalent in Synapse, PredatorSense/NitroSense, Alienware Command Center or OMEN Gaming Hub.
Use the original charger
Plug in the barrel-plug charger that came with the laptop. Battery and USB-C power limit the GPU hard.
Windows power mode
Settings > System > Power & battery > Power mode > Best performance. This one is often the missing piece even when the vendor mode is already on Turbo.
Check and retry
Open a Command Prompt and run nvidia-smi -q -d POWER. Current Power Limit should sit at or near Max Power Limit.
Then restart Salad or click Retry.
Reset your tuning software
In MSI Afterburner or your vendor's app, set Power Limit to 100% and all offsets to 0 (the Reset button). Check that no profile is set to apply at Windows startup.
Check with nvidia-smi
Open a Command Prompt and run nvidia-smi -q -d POWER. Current Power Limit should match Max Power Limit (or be
close to the card's rated power). If it's much lower with nothing applied, a profile is still loading somewhere - check
the startup tab of your tuning app and Windows Startup apps.
Error 15: reinstall the driver
If the command prints N/A for the limits, or Salad reports error 15, do a clean driver reinstall: How to reinstall your GPU drivers.
Retry
Click Retry on the notification or restart Salad.
Undervolting
Undervolting that keeps the card at its stock clocks is fine for gaming but still shows up as a reduced power limit to the check. If you want container jobs, run the card at stock while Chopping.
Still stuck?
Send Salad Support the output of nvidia-smi -q -d POWER, your laptop or GPU model and the operating mode
you've set, and your logs folder zipped (how to find it).
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