RGB control for ASUS Vivobook HID LampArray keyboards on Linux
VRGB is a lightweight Linux CLI utility for controlling RGB keyboards on certain ASUS laptops that expose the HID LampArray interface.
Why this exists:
I bought a Vivobook S14 and put Fedora on it for school and work. Fn brightness worked, but the keyboard was stuck on white and none of the usual ASUS RGB tools did anything. After digging into it, I found the keyboard wasn’t using the typical ASUS control path at all. It exposed a HID LampArray device instead.
VRGB is just a small script built around that discovery to get simple RGB control working on Linux without touching the kernel or running a daemon.
The project was developed and validated on:
ASUS Vivobook S14 (S5406SA-WH79)
Keyboard controller: ITE5570
Unlike some RGB tools, VRGB does not rely on kernel patches, vendor utilities, background daemons, controller hacks, or reverse-engineered Windows drivers. VRGB simply communicates with the keyboard controller through the Linux HID subsystem.
Control path:
vrgb.py
↓
/dev/hidrawX
↓
ITE5570 keyboard controller
↓
RGB lighting
Current stable release: v0.2.2
- Static RGB color control
- Fine brightness scaling (0–100%)
- Firmware autonomous mode toggle
- OEM rainbow toggle (sudo required)
- Debug diagnostics
- Persistent configuration
- Installer and uninstaller included
- Non-root daily usage via udev permissions
- Optional KDE autostart restore
Currently validated on:
- ASUS Vivobook S14 (S5406SA)
- Keyboard controller: ITE5570
- Interface: HID LampArray (Usage Page 0x59)
Example device identifiers:
HID_NAME=ITE5570:00 0B05:19B6
HID_ID=0018:00000B05:000019B6
VRGB scans available hidraw devices and selects the matching ASUS keyboard controller automatically.
Other ASUS laptops using the same controller may work but require testing. Community reports are more than welcome. If vrgb works (or doesn't work) on your system, please click the Hardware Compatibility Reports issue below and post your vrgb --debug status output. This will help the project immensely.
See community reports here:
vrgb-dev#1
Clone the repository and run the installer.
git clone https://github.com/vrgb-dev/vrgb.git
cd vrgb
chmod +x install.sh
./install.sh
After installation log out and log back in so group permissions apply.
Show Current Status
vrgb status
Set RGB Color
vrgb set RRGGBB [brightness %]
Example:
vrgb set 00aa55 65
Change Brightness
vrgb brightness 80
Turn Lighting Off
vrgb off
Restore Saved State
vrgb restore
Enable firmware lighting (Firmware Autonomous Mode)
vrgb auto on
Return control to VRGB:
vrgb auto off
OEM Rainbow Mode (requires sudo)
sudo vrgb rainbow on
sudo vrgb rainbow off
Debug Mode
vrgb --debug status
About
vrgb about
Install Binary
sudo install -m 755 vrgb.py /usr/local/bin/vrgb
Create Access Group
sudo groupadd -f vrgb
sudo usermod -aG vrgb $USER
Install udev Rule
Create:
/etc/udev/rules.d/99-vrgb.rules
Contents:
SUBSYSTEM=="hidraw", KERNELS=="i2c-ITE5570*", MODE="0660", GROUP="vrgb"
Reload udev
sudo udevadm control --reload-rules
sudo udevadm trigger
Log out and log back in afterward.
Create:
~/.config/autostart/vrgb.desktop
Contents:
[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Exec=/usr/local/bin/vrgb restore
Hidden=false
NoDisplay=false
X-GNOME-Autostart-enabled=true
Name=VRGB Restore
Comment=Restore keyboard RGB state
./uninstall.sh
Removes:
- /usr/local/bin/vrgb
- the udev rule
- optional autostart entry
Planned roadmap:
- profile support
- expanded ASUS hardware compatibility
- GUI frontend
- breathing / fade effects
With future updates in mind, this project will aim to continue to be as efficient and lightweight as possible.
v0.2.2
- Improved CLI help output
- Installer/Uninstaller validation
- Confirmed non-root HID access
- Release packaging
v0.2.0
- automatic hidraw detection
- debug mode
- persistent config
- installer script
v0.1.0
Initial prototype with static RGB and brightness control.
MIT License