Open-source developer Krzysiek Sokolowski has created a new Linux driver that enables 12VHPWR power-connector monitoring for ASUS ROG Astral graphics cards, providing owners with detailed electrical readings for each pin of the connector.
As reported by Phoronix, the out-of-tree astral-hwmon driver sends six individual 12VHPWR pin currents and voltages into Linux’s standardized HWMON hardware-monitoring interface. This integration allows existing Linux monitoring software that supports HWMON to access the data without requiring separate proprietary tools.
Modern graphics cards with 12VHPWR connectors often include a sensor-monitoring IC. However, until now, Linux users had no way to access this sensor data. Sokolowski developed the driver around an ASUS ROG Astral card equipped with an ITE IT8915FN monitoring ASIC, making the connector’s electrical behavior visible to users.
The driver has been tested on the ROG Astral RTX 5090 OC and is expected to also work with the ROG Astral RTX 5090D OC, RTX 5090 Matrix, RTX 5090 LC, RTX 5080 OC, RTX 5090 OC White, RTX 5080 OC White, and RTX 5080 OC Hatsune Miku models. This compatibility is crucial for ASUS’s high-end Astral line users who run Linux as their primary desktop or workstation OS, allowing them to monitor their GPU’s power connector without needing to switch to another operating system.
It is important to note that astral-hwmon only monitors the connector and does not take any automatic action if a 12VHPWR failure is detected. It provides readings but does not intervene. The accompanying repository also includes astral-guard, a program designed to work alongside the kernel driver. Its rules are based on ASUS Power Detector+ and related Windows software, enabling it to issue warnings if critical behavior is detected.
This separation makes sense: monitoring tools provide visibility into voltage or current imbalances, while an optional guard utility handles alerting. This approach avoids turning the kernel driver into an automated safety system. For users, the main benefit is access to useful diagnostic information before issues escalate.
This driver does not affect performance or frame rates. Instead, it serves as ownership infrastructure—providing straightforward telemetry support that helps Linux users monitor expensive hardware through the existing HWMON framework. For ASUS ROG Astral owners, the key advantage is being able to inspect the six-pin current and voltage data directly within Linux, rather than assuming the connector is functioning properly because no visible problems appear. This is a modest but practical improvement for monitoring a component that carries significant power.
Are you running an ASUS ROG Astral card on Linux? Would per-pin 12VHPWR monitoring change how you track your system’s health?
