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CoolerDash 🐧

This tool is to display real-time sensor on an AIO liquid cooler with integrated LCD displays.

Developed this tool because the LCD display of my NZXT Kraken 2023 under Linux did not meet the desired expectations.
Use it successfully myself – maybe it will help you too! ❤️

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Features

• Extends the LCD functionality of CoolerControl with additional features.
• Support for additional sensor values, and a sophisticated, customizable user interface.
• Two display modes:
  • Dual Mode (default): Shows CPU and GPU temperatures simultaneously
  • Circle Mode (beta): Alternates between CPU and GPU every 5 sec. - optimized for round high-resolution displays (>240x240px)

Special thanks to @codifryed, the founder of CoolerControl

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System Requirements

• OS: Linux
• CoolerControl: Version >=2.2.2 REQUIRED - must be installed and running Installation Guide
• CPU: x86-64-v3 compatible (Intel Haswell+ / AMD Excavator+)
• LCD: AIO liquid cooler LCD displays (NZXT, etc.)

See the Supported Devices for confirmed working hardware. In principle, all devices supported by CoolerControl/liquidctl should work with CoolerDash. You can submit a device confirmation to help expand the list.

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Installation

Arch Linux

• Using an AUR helper:

# STEP 1: Install
yay -S coolerdash-git
#OR any other AUR helper

# STEP 2: Enable/Start CoolerDash sytemd service
systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl enable --now coolerdash.service

All Distributions

• Manual installation:

# STEP 1: Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/damachine/coolerdash.git
cd coolerdash

# STEP 2: Build and install (auto-detects Linux distribution and installs dependencies)
make install

# STEP 3: Enable/Start CoolerDash sytemd service
systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl enable --now coolerdash.service

For manual installations, make sure all required dependencies are installed correctly. Manual installations need to be updated manually.

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Configuration

CoolerControl Setup:
In CoolerControl GUI → Device and Sensor → Select CPU and GPU sensors → Set LCD display to Image/gif

Start Service:

systemctl enable --now coolerdash.service

Configuration:
Edit /etc/coolerdash/config.ini then restart: systemctl restart coolerdash.service

Display Modes:

• Dual (default): CPU + GPU simultaneously (all displays)
• Circle: Alternates CPU/GPU every 5s (round displays >240x240px)

Enable Circle Mode: Edit config.ini → [display] section → mode=circle
CLI override: coolerdash --circle or coolerdash --dual

Note

See Configuration Guide for all options.

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Advanced Usage

Service Management

# Service control
systemctl enable --now coolerdash.service  # Enable and Start!
systemctl start coolerdash.service         # Start
systemctl stop coolerdash.service          # Stop
systemctl restart coolerdash.service       # Restart
systemctl status coolerdash.service        # Status + recent logs

# Journal log
journalctl -u coolerdash.service

# Live logs
journalctl -xeu coolerdash.service -f

Build Commands

make            # Standard C99 build
make clean      # Clean up
make install    # System installation with dependency auto-detection
make uninstall  # Remove installation (service, binary, files)
make debug      # Debug build with AddressSanitizer
make help       # Show all options

Manual Usage

# Run manually (with minimal status logging)
coolerdash

# Run with detailed verbose logging
coolerdash --verbose
# or short form:
coolerdash -v

# Force specific display mode
coolerdash --dual      # Force dual mode (CPU+GPU simultaneously)
coolerdash --circle    # Force circle mode (alternating CPU/GPU)

Debugging Steps

# 1. Check CoolerControl status
systemctl status coolercontrold
curl http://localhost:11987/devices

# 2. Test CoolerDash manually (with clean output)
coolerdash

# 3. Test CoolerDash with detailed verbose logging
coolerdash --verbose
# or short form:
coolerdash -v

# 4. Debug build for detailed information (if needed)
make debug && coolerdash --verbose

# 5. Check service logs (STATUS messages always visible)
journalctl -xeu coolerdash.service -f

# 6. View recent logs with context
journalctl -u coolerdash.service -n 50

The systemd service must be stopped before running manually to avoid conflicts:

systemctl stop coolerdash.service

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Troubleshooting

Installation Issues

If you see errors like "conflicting files" or "manual installation detected" during Arch/AUR makepkg -si, CoolerDash was previously installed manually via make install.

Solution:

sudo systemctl stop coolerdash.service
sudo make uninstall

Remove any leftover files:

sudo rm -rf /opt/coolerdash/ \
            /usr/bin/coolerdash \
            /etc/systemd/system/coolerdash.service

sudo systemctl stop coolerdash.service
sudo make uninstall
sudo rm -rf /opt/coolerdash/ /usr/bin/coolerdash /etc/systemd/system/coolerdash.service

Check CoolerControl devices

liquidctl --version
# Expected: liquidctl v1.15.0 (or newer)

curl http://localhost:11987/devices | jq

{
      "name": "NZXT Kraken 2023",
      "type": "Liquidctl",
      "type_index": 1,
      "uid": "8d4becb03bca2a8e8d4213ac376a1094f39d2786f688549ad3b6a591c3affdf9",
      "lc_info": {
        "driver_type": "KrakenZ3",
        "firmware_version": "2.0.0",
        "unknown_asetek": false
      }
}

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Documentation

• Configuration Guide - All configuration options
• Supported Devices - Confirmed working hardware
• Display Modes Guide - Dual and Circle mode reference
• Developer Guide - Architecture and API integration
• Display Detection - Display shape detection
• CoolerControl API Guide - API module documentation

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Community & Support

Questions or ideas? Join our Discussions or open an Issue.

Support the project: ⭐ Star this repo • 🐛 Report bugs • 🔄 Share with others • 📝 Contribute •