Add power settings for the lighting, bump to 1.4.0

New Power page:
- toggle for the firmware's 30 s keyboard backlight timeout
- idle timeout for keyboard and lightbar, separately for AC and battery;
  predatord watches all input devices and restores the lighting on the
  next input
- battery rules: dimmed keyboard brightness, keyboard off, lightbar off

The rules only change what is sent to the hardware; the saved lighting
settings stay untouched.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -1,5 +1,24 @@
 # Changelog
 
+## 1.4.0 – 2026-10-07
+
+### Added
+- **Power page** with energy settings for the lighting:
+  - toggle for the firmware's automatic keyboard backlight switch-off after 30 s
+    (moved here from the System page)
+  - turn keyboard and lightbar off after a configurable idle time, separately for AC and battery
+    (never, 30 s … 30 min); any keyboard, touchpad or mouse input turns them back on
+  - on battery: reduced keyboard brightness, keyboard lighting off, lightbar off
+
+## 1.3.0 – 2026-10-07
+
+### Added
+- **Predator key opens the app.** The key produces no input event on Linux (its usage code is
+  outside the range the keyboard declares), so predatord listens on the keyboard's vendor HID
+  report instead and opens Predator Control in the active desktop session
+- Choose the key's action on the System page: open the app, switch to the next performance mode,
+  or do nothing
+
 ## 1.2.0 – 2026-10-07
 
 ### Added

README.md

@@ -83,6 +83,17 @@ Keyboard RGB and performance profiles work without the module.
 
 Uninstall with `sudo pacman -R predator-control` (package) or `sudo ./uninstall.sh` (add `--purge` to also delete your settings).
 
+## Power settings
+
+The **Power** page controls when the lighting switches off: the firmware's 30-second backlight
+timeout can be disabled, a custom idle timeout can be set separately for AC and battery, and on
+battery the keyboard can be dimmed or turned off and the lightbar disabled.
+
+## Predator key
+
+Pressing the **Predator key** opens Predator Control, just like PredatorSense on Windows.
+On the **System** page you can instead make it switch to the next performance mode, or disable it.
+
 ## Updates
 
 Installed via the pacman package, Predator Control updates itself: the service checks for new

install.sh

@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
 #   sudo ./install.sh --no-deps  skip package installation (non-Arch distros)
 set -euo pipefail
 
-VERSION="1.2.0"
+VERSION="1.4.0"
 MODULE="predator-wmi"
 SRC="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
 PREFIX="/usr"

kernel/dkms.conf

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 PACKAGE_NAME="predator-wmi"
-PACKAGE_VERSION="1.2.0"
+PACKAGE_VERSION="1.4.0"
 BUILT_MODULE_NAME[0]="predator_wmi"
 DEST_MODULE_LOCATION[0]="/kernel/drivers/platform/x86"
 MAKE[0]="make KVER=${kernelver} KDIR=${kernel_source_dir}"

packaging/arch/PKGBUILD

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 #   sudo pacman -U predator-control-*.pkg.tar.zst
 
 pkgname=predator-control
-pkgver=1.2.0
+pkgver=1.4.0
 pkgrel=1
 pkgdesc="PredatorSense replacement for Acer Predator laptops: performance modes, fans, keyboard RGB, lightbar, battery (Qt app + Plasma widget)"
 arch=('any')
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ install=predator-control.install
 source=()
 
 _src="$(realpath "$startdir/../..")"
-_modver=1.2.0
+_modver=1.4.0
 
 package() {
     cd "$_src"

plasmoid/org.predatorcontrol.panel/metadata.json

@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@
         "Id": "org.predatorcontrol.panel",
         "License": "GPL-2.0-only",
         "Name": "Predator Control",
-        "Version": "1.2.0",
+        "Version": "1.4.0",
         "Website": "https://git.mrblake.cc/MrBlake/Cachy-Predator-Keyboard"
     },
     "X-Plasma-API-Minimum-Version": "6.0",

predator_control/__init__.py

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 import os
 
-__version__ = "1.2.0"
+__version__ = "1.4.0"
 
 APP_NAME = "Predator Control"
 RUN_DIR = os.environ.get("PREDATOR_CONTROL_RUN_DIR", "/run/predator-control")

predator_control/daemon.py

@@ -25,6 +25,8 @@ import traceback
 from . import CONFIG_DIR, CONFIG_PATH, SOCKET_PATH, STATE_PATH, __version__
 from . import hardware as hw
 from . import updater
+from .hotkey import HotkeyListener, launch_in_session
+from .idle import IdleWatcher
 from .keyboard import EFFECTS, NUM_CELLS, Keyboard
 
 DEFAULT_CONFIG = {
@@ -49,6 +51,14 @@ DEFAULT_CONFIG = {
     "battery": {"limit": None},   # None = leave the firmware state alone
     "keyboard_presets": {},
     "updates": {"auto_check": True, "interval_hours": 6},
+    "predator_key": "open",       # open | cycle_profile | none
+    "power": {
+        "idle_off_ac": 0,         # seconds without input until lighting turns off, 0 = never
+        "idle_off_battery": 120,
+        "battery_brightness": 100,   # keyboard brightness on battery, % of the normal value
+        "battery_lights_off": False,
+        "battery_lightbar_off": False,
+    },
 }
 
 
@@ -98,6 +108,9 @@ class Daemon:
         self.update_info = None
         self.update_error = None
         self._update_checking = False
+        self.idle = IdleWatcher(self._activity)
+        self.lights_idle = False
+        self.on_ac = True
 
     # ---------------------------------------------------------- Configuration
     def _load_config(self):
@@ -130,8 +143,35 @@ class Daemon:
             self.errors[key] = str(e)
             return None
 
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------- Power rules
+    def keyboard_effective(self):
+        k = dict(self.config["keyboard"])
+        p = self.config["power"]
+        if self.lights_idle or (not self.on_ac and p.get("battery_lights_off")):
+            k["effect"] = "off"
+        elif not self.on_ac and p.get("battery_brightness", 100) < 100:
+            k["brightness"] = int(k["brightness"] * p["battery_brightness"] / 100)
+        return k
+
+    def idle_timeout(self):
+        p = self.config["power"]
+        return int(p.get("idle_off_ac" if self.on_ac else "idle_off_battery") or 0)
+
+    def update_idle(self):
+        t = self.idle_timeout()
+        idle = t > 0 and self.idle.idle_seconds() >= t
+        if idle != self.lights_idle:
+            self.lights_idle = idle
+            log("Lighting %s" % ("off (idle)" if idle else "restored"))
+            self.apply_keyboard()
+
+    def _activity(self):
+        if self.lights_idle:
+            with self.lock:
+                self.update_idle()
+
     def apply_keyboard(self, cfg=None):
-        k = cfg or self.config["keyboard"]
+        k = cfg or self.keyboard_effective()
         frame = bytes.fromhex(k.get("frame") or "") if k["effect"] == "perkey" else None
         self._try("keyboard", self.kbd.apply, k["effect"], hex_to_rgb(k["color"]),
                   k["brightness"], frame, int(k.get("effect_id") or 0))
@@ -140,8 +180,11 @@ class Daemon:
 
     def lightbar_effective(self):
         lb = dict(self.config["lightbar"])
+        if self.lights_idle or (not self.on_ac and self.config["power"].get("battery_lightbar_off")):
+            lb["mode"] = "off"
+            return lb
         if lb.get("sync_keyboard"):
-            k = self.config["keyboard"]
+            k = self.keyboard_effective()
             lb["brightness"] = k["brightness"]
             if k["effect"] == "off":
                 lb["mode"] = "off"
@@ -177,6 +220,9 @@ class Daemon:
     def restore(self):
         log("Restoring settings")
         bat = hw.battery()
+        self.on_ac = bat.get("ac_online", True)
+        self.idle.last_input = time.monotonic()   # e.g. after resume: lights on
+        self.lights_idle = False
         if self.config["profile"].get("auto_switch"):
             self.apply_profile_for_power(bat.get("ac_online", True))
         self.apply_fans()
@@ -235,6 +281,7 @@ class Daemon:
             "lightbar_effective": self.lightbar_effective(),
             "fan_curve_applied": self.curve_applied,
             "battery_limit": self.battery_limit,
+            "lights_idle": self.lights_idle,
             "update": self.update_info,
             "update_error": self.update_error,
             "update_status": updater.status(),
@@ -277,6 +324,18 @@ class Daemon:
             self._last_try = time.time()
             self.check_update_async()
 
+    def predator_key(self):
+        action = self.config.get("predator_key", "open")
+        if action == "open":
+            if not launch_in_session(["predator-control"]):
+                log("Predator key: no active graphical session to open the app in")
+        elif action == "cycle_profile":
+            with self.lock:
+                ch = hw.profile_choices()
+                cur = hw.get_profile()
+                nxt = ch[(ch.index(cur) + 1) % len(ch)] if cur in ch else ch[0]
+                self._try("profile", hw.set_profile, nxt)
+
     def loop(self):
         while True:
             try:
@@ -294,7 +353,11 @@ class Daemon:
                         log("Power source changed:", "AC" if ac else "battery")
                         if self.config["profile"].get("auto_switch"):
                             self.apply_profile_for_power(ac)
+                    if ac != self.on_ac:
+                        self.on_ac = ac
+                        self.apply_keyboard()  # battery lighting rules
                     self.last_ac = ac
+                    self.update_idle()
                     self.fan_curve_tick()
                     self._ticks += 1
                     if self._ticks % 20 == 1:
@@ -328,6 +391,23 @@ class Daemon:
                 merge(self.config["updates"], {k: a[k] for k in ("auto_check", "interval_hours") if k in a})
                 self.save_config()
                 return {}
+            if cmd == "set_power":
+                p = self.config["power"]
+                for key in ("idle_off_ac", "idle_off_battery", "battery_brightness",
+                            "battery_lights_off", "battery_lightbar_off"):
+                    if key in a:
+                        p[key] = a[key]
+                p["battery_brightness"] = max(0, min(100, int(p["battery_brightness"])))
+                self.save_config()
+                self.update_idle()
+                self.apply_keyboard()
+                return {}
+            if cmd == "set_predator_key":
+                if a["action"] not in ("open", "cycle_profile", "none"):
+                    raise ValueError("unknown action")
+                self.config["predator_key"] = a["action"]
+                self.save_config()
+                return {}
             if cmd == "restore":
                 self.restore()
                 return {}
@@ -511,6 +591,8 @@ def main():
     signal.signal(signal.SIGTERM, lambda *_: (server.server_close(), sys.exit(0)))
     signal.signal(signal.SIGUSR1, lambda *_: threading.Thread(target=lambda: (d.lock.acquire(), d.restore(), d.lock.release())).start())
     threading.Thread(target=d.loop, daemon=True).start()
+    HotkeyListener(d.predator_key, log).start()
+    d.idle.start()
     server.serve_forever()
 
 

predator_control/gui/app.py

@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ PAGES = [
     ("fans", "Fans"),
     ("rgb", "RGB Studio"),
     ("battery", "Battery"),
+    ("power", "Power"),
     ("system", "System"),
 ]
 
@@ -591,6 +592,92 @@ class RgbPage(Page):
             self.lb_speed.setValue(lb["speed"])
 
 
+IDLE_CHOICES = [(0, "Never"), (30, "30 seconds"), (60, "1 minute"), (120, "2 minutes"), (300, "5 minutes"),
+                (600, "10 minutes"), (900, "15 minutes"), (1800, "30 minutes")]
+
+
+class PowerPage(Page):
+    def __init__(self, win):
+        super().__init__(win)
+        self.lay.addWidget(_title("Power", "Energy settings for the keyboard lighting and lightbar"))
+
+        fw = Card("Firmware backlight timeout")
+        self.fw_timeout = QCheckBox("Turn the keyboard backlight off after 30 s without input (firmware)")
+        self.fw_timeout.clicked.connect(lambda v: (win.backend.run("set_firmware", name="kbd_timeout", value=bool(v)),
+                                                   QTimer.singleShot(800, lambda: win.backend.run("get_firmware"))))
+        fw.body.addWidget(self.fw_timeout)
+        fw.body.addWidget(_muted("This is the built-in automatic switch-off of the laptop. Turn it off to keep the "
+                                 "lighting on permanently, or use the adjustable timeout below instead."))
+        self.lay.addWidget(fw)
+
+        idle = Card("Turn lighting off when idle")
+        g = QGridLayout()
+        self.idle_ac = QComboBox()
+        self.idle_bat = QComboBox()
+        for combo, key, label in ((self.idle_ac, "idle_off_ac", "On AC power"),
+                                  (self.idle_bat, "idle_off_battery", "On battery")):
+            for val, text in IDLE_CHOICES:
+                combo.addItem(text, val)
+            combo.activated.connect(lambda _=0, c=combo, k=key: win.backend.run("set_power", **{k: c.currentData()}))
+        g.addWidget(QLabel("On AC power"), 0, 0)
+        g.addWidget(self.idle_ac, 0, 1)
+        g.addWidget(QLabel("On battery"), 1, 0)
+        g.addWidget(self.idle_bat, 1, 1)
+        g.setColumnStretch(2, 1)
+        idle.body.addLayout(g)
+        idle.body.addWidget(_muted("Keyboard and lightbar turn off after this time without keyboard, touchpad or "
+                                   "mouse input, and come back on with the next input."))
+        self.idle_state = _muted("")
+        idle.body.addWidget(self.idle_state)
+        self.lay.addWidget(idle)
+
+        bat = Card("On battery")
+        h = QHBoxLayout()
+        h.addWidget(QLabel("Keyboard brightness"))
+        self.bat_bright = _slider(10, 100, 100)
+        self.bat_bright.setSingleStep(10)
+        self.bat_bright_l = QLabel("100 %")
+        self.bat_bright.valueChanged.connect(lambda v: self.bat_bright_l.setText("%d %%" % v))
+        self.bat_bright.sliderReleased.connect(lambda: win.backend.run("set_power", battery_brightness=self.bat_bright.value()))
+        h.addWidget(self.bat_bright, 1)
+        h.addWidget(self.bat_bright_l)
+        bat.body.addLayout(h)
+        bat.body.addWidget(_muted("Percentage of your normal keyboard brightness while running on battery."))
+        self.bat_off = QCheckBox("Turn the keyboard lighting off completely on battery")
+        self.bat_off.clicked.connect(lambda v: win.backend.run("set_power", battery_lights_off=bool(v)))
+        bat.body.addWidget(self.bat_off)
+        self.bat_lb = QCheckBox("Turn the lightbar off on battery")
+        self.bat_lb.clicked.connect(lambda v: win.backend.run("set_power", battery_lightbar_off=bool(v)))
+        bat.body.addWidget(self.bat_lb)
+        self.lay.addWidget(bat)
+        self.lay.addStretch(1)
+
+    def showEvent(self, e):
+        super().showEvent(e)
+        self.win.backend.run("get_firmware")
+
+    def firmware(self, fw):
+        v = fw.get("kbd_timeout", {})
+        self.fw_timeout.setEnabled(v.get("value") is not None)
+        self.fw_timeout.setChecked(bool(v.get("value")))
+        self.fw_timeout.setToolTip(v.get("error", "") or "")
+
+    def update_state(self, st):
+        p = st["config"].get("power", {})
+        for combo, key in ((self.idle_ac, "idle_off_ac"), (self.idle_bat, "idle_off_battery")):
+            if not combo.view().isVisible():
+                i = combo.findData(p.get(key, 0))
+                if i < 0:
+                    combo.addItem("%d seconds" % p[key], p[key])
+                    i = combo.count() - 1
+                combo.setCurrentIndex(i)
+        if not self.bat_bright.isSliderDown():
+            self.bat_bright.setValue(p.get("battery_brightness", 100))
+        self.bat_off.setChecked(bool(p.get("battery_lights_off")))
+        self.bat_lb.setChecked(bool(p.get("battery_lightbar_off")))
+        self.idle_state.setText("Lighting is currently off because the laptop is idle." if st.get("lights_idle") else "")
+
+
 class BatteryPage(Page):
     def __init__(self, win):
         super().__init__(win)
@@ -674,6 +761,19 @@ class SystemPage(Page):
         self.fw_card.body.addWidget(_muted("Values are stored in the laptop firmware (EC/BIOS)."))
         self.lay.addWidget(self.fw_card)
 
+        key = Card("Predator key")
+        kr = QHBoxLayout()
+        kr.addWidget(QLabel("When the Predator key is pressed"))
+        self.key_action = QComboBox()
+        for val, text in (("open", "Open Predator Control"), ("cycle_profile", "Switch to the next performance mode"),
+                          ("none", "Do nothing")):
+            self.key_action.addItem(text, val)
+        self.key_action.activated.connect(lambda: win.backend.run("set_predator_key", action=self.key_action.currentData()))
+        kr.addWidget(self.key_action)
+        kr.addStretch(1)
+        key.body.addLayout(kr)
+        self.lay.addWidget(key)
+
         upd = Card("Updates")
         self.upd_head = QLabel("")
         self.upd_head.setObjectName("big")
@@ -722,7 +822,7 @@ class SystemPage(Page):
 
     def firmware(self, fw):
         for name, info in fw.items():
-            if "label" not in info:
+            if "label" not in info or name == "kbd_timeout":   # shown on the Power page
                 continue
             if name == "usb_charging":
                 w = self.fw_boxes.get(name)
@@ -782,6 +882,8 @@ class SystemPage(Page):
             err = ("\n\n⚠ %s" % st["update_error"]) if st.get("update_error") else ""
             self.upd_text.setText("Installed version %s · last check %s%s%s" % (st.get("version"), when, err, extra))
             self.upd_install.hide()
+        if not self.key_action.view().isVisible():
+            self.key_action.setCurrentIndex(max(0, self.key_action.findData(st["config"].get("predator_key", "open"))))
         self.upd_auto.setChecked(st["config"].get("updates", {}).get("auto_check", True))
         a = st["available"]
         yes = lambda v: "✔" if v else "✘"
@@ -828,7 +930,8 @@ class MainWindow(QMainWindow):
         self.nav = QButtonGroup(self)
         self.pages = {}
         classes = {"home": HomePage, "performance": PerformancePage, "fans": FansPage,
-                   "rgb": RgbPage, "battery": BatteryPage, "system": SystemPage}
+                   "rgb": RgbPage, "battery": BatteryPage, "power": PowerPage,
+                   "system": SystemPage}
         for key, label in PAGES:
             b = QPushButton(label)
             b.setObjectName("nav")
@@ -901,6 +1004,7 @@ class MainWindow(QMainWindow):
         elif cmd == "get_firmware":
             self.pages["system"][0].firmware(result)
             self.pages["battery"][0].firmware(result)
+            self.pages["power"][0].firmware(result)
             return
         else:
             self.statusBar().showMessage("Applied", 2000)

predator_control/hotkey.py

@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+"""Predator key listener.
+
+The PH16-71 Predator key produces no input event: its keyboard usage (0xC9) is outside the
+range the keyboard declares, so the kernel drops it. The key is also reported on the
+vendor report 4 of USB interface 2: `04 81 ff` on press, `04 00 00` on release.
+"""
+
+import os
+import pwd
+import select
+import subprocess
+import threading
+import time
+
+from .keyboard import HOTKEY_INTERFACE, find_hidraw
+
+PRESS_PREFIX = b"\x04\x81"
+
+
+def active_session_user():
+    """(uid, name) of the active graphical session, or None."""
+    out = subprocess.run(["loginctl", "list-sessions", "--no-legend"],
+                         capture_output=True, text=True).stdout
+    for line in out.splitlines():
+        sid = line.split()[0] if line.split() else None
+        if not sid:
+            continue
+        props = dict(l.split("=", 1) for l in subprocess.run(
+            ["loginctl", "show-session", sid, "-p", "Active", "-p", "Type", "-p", "User", "-p", "Name"],
+            capture_output=True, text=True).stdout.splitlines() if "=" in l)
+        if props.get("Active") == "yes" and props.get("Type") in ("wayland", "x11"):
+            return int(props["User"]), props["Name"]
+    return None
+
+
+def launch_in_session(args):
+    sess = active_session_user()
+    if not sess:
+        return False
+    uid, name = sess
+    # runs in the user's systemd manager, which carries WAYLAND_DISPLAY/DISPLAY on Plasma
+    r = subprocess.run(["systemd-run", "--quiet", "--user", "--machine=%s@.host" % name, "--collect",
+                        "--unit=predator-control-launch-%d" % int(time.time() * 1000)] + args,
+                       capture_output=True, text=True)
+    return r.returncode == 0
+
+
+class HotkeyListener(threading.Thread):
+    def __init__(self, on_press, log):
+        super().__init__(daemon=True)
+        self.on_press = on_press
+        self.log = log
+
+    def run(self):
+        while True:
+            path = find_hidraw(HOTKEY_INTERFACE)
+            if not path:
+                time.sleep(5)
+                continue
+            try:
+                fd = os.open(path, os.O_RDONLY)
+            except OSError as e:
+                self.log("hotkey: cannot open %s: %s" % (path, e))
+                time.sleep(5)
+                continue
+            last = 0.0
+            try:
+                while True:
+                    select.select([fd], [], [])
+                    data = os.read(fd, 64)
+                    if not data:
+                        break
+                    if data.startswith(PRESS_PREFIX) and time.monotonic() - last > 0.4:
+                        last = time.monotonic()
+                        try:
+                            self.on_press()
+                        except Exception as e:
+                            self.log("hotkey: %s" % e)
+            except OSError:
+                pass  # device vanished (suspend/replug) – reopen
+            finally:
+                os.close(fd)
+            time.sleep(1)

predator_control/idle.py

@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+"""Input activity watcher used for the 'turn lighting off when idle' feature."""
+
+import glob
+import os
+import select
+import threading
+import time
+
+
+class IdleWatcher(threading.Thread):
+    """Tracks the time of the last keyboard/touchpad/mouse event on any input device."""
+
+    RESCAN = 30  # seconds between scans for new devices (hotplug, resume)
+
+    def __init__(self, on_activity=None):
+        super().__init__(daemon=True)
+        self.last_input = time.monotonic()
+        self.on_activity = on_activity
+
+    def idle_seconds(self):
+        return time.monotonic() - self.last_input
+
+    def _open_all(self, fds):
+        for path in glob.glob("/dev/input/event*"):
+            if path in fds.values():
+                continue
+            try:
+                fds[os.open(path, os.O_RDONLY | os.O_NONBLOCK)] = path
+            except OSError:
+                pass
+
+    def run(self):
+        fds = {}
+        next_scan = 0.0
+        while True:
+            if time.monotonic() >= next_scan:
+                self._open_all(fds)
+                next_scan = time.monotonic() + self.RESCAN
+            if not fds:
+                time.sleep(5)
+                continue
+            ready, _, _ = select.select(list(fds), [], [], 5)
+            active = False
+            for fd in ready:
+                try:
+                    if os.read(fd, 4096):
+                        active = True
+                except BlockingIOError:
+                    pass
+                except OSError:
+                    os.close(fd)
+                    fds.pop(fd, None)
+            if active:
+                self.last_input = time.monotonic()
+                if self.on_activity:
+                    self.on_activity()

predator_control/keyboard.py

@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import threading
 ACER_VID = 0x04F2
 KNOWN_PIDS = (0x0117, 0x011A)
 LED_INTERFACE = 3
+HOTKEY_INTERFACE = 2   # vendor report 4 carries the Predator key
 NUM_CELLS = 128
 
 OP_BEGIN = 0x88
@@ -57,7 +58,7 @@ def checksum(body7):
     return (0xFF - (sum(body7) & 0xFF)) & 0xFF
 
 
-def find_hidraw():
+def find_hidraw(interface=LED_INTERFACE):
     """Path of the hidraw node of the LED interface, or None."""
     for node in sorted(glob.glob("/sys/class/hidraw/hidraw*")):
         try:
@@ -76,7 +77,7 @@ def find_hidraw():
         devpath = os.path.realpath(os.path.join(node, "device"))
         # .../1-7:1.3/0003:04F2:011A.0004  -> interface number from the parent
         iface = os.path.basename(os.path.dirname(devpath)).rsplit(".", 1)[-1]
-        if iface == str(LED_INTERFACE):
+        if iface == str(interface):
             return "/dev/" + os.path.basename(node)
     return None