NVIDIA drivers allows managing GPU’s some features like fan control, gpu reclocking or power management. But there is many restrictions about these features. NVIDIA GPU must be connected an X display directly and must coolbits enabled in X configuration, this limits many usage senarios;
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Desktop Wayland users can’t set those features because there is no Coolbits equivalent. New applications and projects begun use Wayland, some of them only brings new features for Wayland. People who want set Coolbits features have to give up those features and back to X11.
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MUXless Laptops can’t set those features it needs PRIME configuration but it can be complex for daily-usage and its impractical, also it has additional cons. Enabling NVIDIA GPU always with PRIME consumes a lot of power not practical for who people travels and working far away from plug. Switching between Wayland and PRIME configured session or PRIME and PRIME Render Offload sessions. MUXed laptops became more common day by day but still there is a lot of MUXless devices uses NVIDIA GPU’s.
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NVIDIA GPU’s were connected only PCI-e/SSE, not included a display output can’t use those features. Like servers, computing/mining rigs etc. only used for calculating or accelerating specific workloads. Those devices not connected to any display, most of them controlled by remote sessions.
Most usage cases and conditions dont’t allow set coolbits provided features. NVIDIA should provide more independent and accesible in every usage senario. There is a API called NVML, with NVML API setting some features like GPU Power Limit is possible. NVIDIA can add those features to NVML for easier access those features. Many people and workload needs different requeriments but in this time not available for many users.