NCP-AIO Troubleshooting and Optimization Practice Question
A monitoring system reports that a DGX node's GPUs are running at reduced clocks during a long training job, and `nvidia-smi -q -d PERFORMANCE` shows the throttle reason as 'SW Power Cap'. The job's power draw is at the configured limit. Which action is MOST appropriate to restore higher clocks?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse a power-cap throttle with a thermal or clock-lock issue and attempting to override clocks instead of adjusting the power budget.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Raise the GPU power limit with `nvidia-smi -pl` to a value within the GPU's supported maximum and re-run the job.
The throttle reason 'SW Power Cap' indicates the GPU is constrained by its configured power limit. Raising the power limit to a supported value within the GPU's validated maximum allows the device to sustain higher clocks, provided cooling and power delivery can support it. This directly removes the cause of the reduced clocks rather than working around it.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Reduce the batch size so the GPU consumes less power and stays below the cap.
Why it's wrong here
Lowering the batch size reduces work per step but does not change the power limit or the throttle mechanism, and it may reduce utilization without improving clocks. The goal is to restore higher clocks, which requires addressing the power budget. Reducing batch size treats a symptom indirectly and sacrifices throughput, so it is not the appropriate remediation for a power-cap throttle.
- ✓
Raise the GPU power limit with `nvidia-smi -pl` to a value within the GPU's supported maximum and re-run the job.
Why this is correct
A 'SW Power Cap' throttle reason means the GPU is hitting its configured power limit, so clocks are reduced to stay within budget. If the hardware and cooling support it, raising the power limit to a validated value within the GPU's supported range allows higher sustained clocks, directly addressing the throttle cause. This is the correct, targeted remediation for the reported condition.
- ✗
Enable persistence mode with `nvidia-smi -pm 1` to keep the driver loaded and improve clock stability.
Why it's wrong here
Persistence mode keeps the driver resident to reduce initialization latency; it has no effect on power capping or clock ceilings. The GPU would continue to throttle under the same power limit. Because the reported reason is a power cap, not driver load latency, enabling persistence mode does not resolve the reduced clocks and is not the appropriate action here.
- ✗
Lock the GPU clocks to their maximum with `nvidia-smi -lgc` to override the throttle.
Why it's wrong here
Locking clocks does not bypass a power cap; the GPU will still be forced to reduce clocks or otherwise throttle to respect the power limit, and the lock may be ignored or cause instability. The correct approach is to address the power budget, not to pin clocks. This action misinterprets the throttle mechanism and would not reliably restore higher performance.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official NVIDIA exam blueprint
This NCP-AIO practice question is part of Courseiva's free NVIDIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the NCP-AIO exam.