[manu08]

My computer is heating up a lot. It's about a year old. Please help, the processor zone goes upto 85 degrees celcius. My computer specs have been given below. I am using intel desktop control center to monitor my computer temp etc.

Alienware desktop PC
3.00 Ghz with HT
1GB Ram at 400Mhz running in dual channel mode
128MB GeForce FX 5700 Ultra
80GB HDD, 7200Rpm
17" LCD Monitor
Two front fans + one side fan(left panel) + two back fans + Power supply fan + Graphics card fan + Processor fan = 7 fans

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Wow! You'd think with 7 fans you wouldn't have a processor cooling problem.
It's a year old and the problem could just be dust/dirt clogging the cooling vents of the processor. A defective fan is also a possible cause, especially if it has started to spin a lot slower than normal. If you feel comfortable removing the case, I would eyeball the insides and check for dust/dirt and a possible slow moving processor fan.

Are you also running a lot more processes at boot up then you use to be?

Ron

[Major Payne]

Wow! You'd think with 7 fans you wouldn't have a processor cooling problem.
It's a year old and the problem could just be dust/dirt clogging the cooling vents of the processor. A defective fan is also a possible cause, especially if it has started to spin a lot slower than normal. If you feel comfortable removing the case, I would eyeball the insides and check for dust/dirt and a possible slow moving processor fan.

Are you also running a lot more processes at boot up then you use to be?

Ron

[manu08]

Well yeah i think 7 fans is quite a lot cs my bro's compaq is working fine (well for those specs) with just two fans...neway yeah i cleaned it all up...d only thin dat i am suspectin is the power supply fan...it seems to be working slower dan d processor fan (accordin to AIDA32 & Intel Desktop Control Center), could you tell me whether (if taken an avg. speed) 1770rpm is slow for a power supply fan....dats wat mine is spinnin at where as the processor fan is spinning at 2880rpm....ya i've got much more stuff loading at boot up...how exactly do you recommend cleaning the computer perfectly.....

[Major Payne]

Have you tried reconfiguring the Intel Desktop Control Center to see if you can optimize your gaming parameters? I take it that's why you have the AlienWare PC. Possibly playing with the settings will bring down the processor temp...especially if you lighten its load somewhat. Might check out this : Optimizing Control Panel

Ron

[manu08]

I made the setting to factory defined preset : High and now lots of changes have come up, and i do think the temperature has been brought down, well i hope at least BUT i'm kind of scared now cause the specification the software is showing is more than what i am supposed to have so i think it has been overclocked. I have attached a screenshot of the settings it is showing now so please look at it and tell me if you think i should change it back. Would leaving it overclocked have a higher chance of it getting damaged.
Thanks for the help:)

[attachment=110:attachment]

[Major Payne]

Would leaving it overclocked have a higher chance of it getting damaged.
Thanks for the help:)[attachment=110:attachment]

Finally got a chance to look at pix. Had to go to 1280x1024 to see it clearly.

As far as I know your temps seem to be close to the ballpark figures. I take it that these are the settings in the "Gaming Mode"? There are some other parameters you could change, but I don't know what you have on your PC, i.e., like changing the PCI value may affect legacy devices you may have. How are the temps in "Quiet Operation"? Do they get lower?

Some people like overclocking, but Intel does not recommend it in any way, shape or form. Personally, I don't like doing it. The Desktop Control Center was meant to be a monitoring utility only according to Intel. Have you checked to see if you have the latest version of the Control Center?

Ron

[manu08]

Well, i say intel's recommendation is very very good cause now my computer is not booting up. I mean from the time i press the button to switch it on there is no display, the computer comes on though. My guess is that something is wrong with the BIOS and i have tried to recover it but kind of didn't work so could you help me here now please and also tell me what would be the worst thing that i should be ready to claim that has happened to my computer. I have checked all cables and they are fine.

[Major Payne]

... the computer comes on though. My guess is that something is wrong with the BIOS and...

Are you able to get to your BIOS settings at all? What do you mean by computer comes on? That you get POST signals, power light is on, you can hear hard drive spin up, you have video displayed...what??? Can you boot into safe mode ok? You said you tried to recover, but didn't mention steps taken. Hopefully, you can boot into BIOS and reset sytem to default values and go from there. Right now I am at pre-morning coffee stage so will wait for your answers.

Ron

[manu08]

Well, my lights come on, the fans start spinning and there is no display. I recovered the BIOS with the help of the manual but am getting numerous kinds of errors each time i boot up. I called Alienware and they assisted me with help but we couldn't as of yet resolve the problem. I will be receiving a call on monday from them with furhter instructions. In case your curious the error we are trying to fix is of the processor heating up cause there was a error "The system shut down due to thermal problems (overheating)" or something like that. After that i reset the CMOS and it boot up:), all this was happening while i was on the phone with Alienware technical support and the technician said for me to restart my computer but it did not restart (after it had boot up) so he kind of guessed that it was my processor again & then asked me to check if the heatsink was attached properly & i noticed that it was not so i told him & from there he tried to talk me through re-attaching the heatsink properly but we couldn't manage so he will be calling me on monday helping me in a more detailed way of re-attaching the heatsink properly. There you go, that's what i've been through. If you know any website that could possibly help me further with re-attaching the heatsink please let me know of them.
Thanks for the help.

[Major Payne]

This may not be much help, since it is not covering your motherboard, but check these out while you wait for Monday's call. They'll give some idea of what and how to do it :

Reattaching Heatsink with Pix

or

Also with pix.

Hope this helps a little.

Ron

[manu08]

Actually that did help, thanks. My overheating problem did not get solved and i came up with three conclusions. Well what i tried doing to see if it would stop my computer from overheating was....re-attached the heatsink (dunno if its perfect though), re-applied the heatsink thermal paste & also cleaned my computer and neither of them resolved it.
My 3 coclusions are that :
1. either my processor is spoilt and has to be replaced and that's why is heating up so much
2. i need to switch from thermal paste to a thermal pad (if its possible)
3. the heatsink is not properly installed and is still loose.

Now please advise me on what you think about those conclusions or whether you have any of your own and what i should start with to try and resolve this.
Thanks.

[manu08]

Actually that did help, thanks. My overheating problem did not get solved and i came up with three conclusions. Well what i tried doing to see if it would stop my computer from overheating was....re-attached the heatsink (dunno if its perfect though), re-applied the heatsink thermal paste & also cleaned my computer and neither of them resolved it.
My 3 coclusions are that :
1. either my processor is spoilt and has to be replaced and that's why is heating up so much
2. i need to switch from thermal paste to a thermal pad (if its possible)
3. the heatsink is not properly installed and is still loose.

Now please advise me on what you think about those conclusions or whether you have any of your own and what i should start with to try and resolve this.
Thanks.

[Major Payne]

My 3 coclusions are that :
1. either my processor is spoilt and has to be replaced and that's why is heating up so much
2. i need to switch from thermal paste to a thermal pad (if its possible)
3. the heatsink is not properly installed and is still loose.

Now please advise me on what you think about those conclusions or whether you have any of your own and what i should start with to try and resolve this.
Thanks.

1) If you are able to boot up and your programs are not freezing right after boot up and you are able to function, then your processor is more than likely ok. When mine over heated because of a faulty fan, it would freeze everytthing right after boot up. I'm surprised it survived the troubleshooting, but pc is still working fine after a fan replacement.

2) Thermal paste, if properly applied, will work fine. I've been in electronics all my life and never had a problem. Original areas must be cleaned before reapplying. Too much applied is not a good thing.

3) Don't know whether your hinksink is using clips or screws to hold it in place, but you probably would have noticed if it was loose after reattaching. If it snaps in with clips, I'm sure it's ok.

I hope you changed the overclocking.

The Intel Control Console lets you set all fans on. I would set it so that all of them run continously and see how that works. I think it also sets minimum trip points for when fans cycle on. Let me know how this goes.

Ron

[manu08]

Well, all my fans are neway running continous. What other thing could be causing my computer to overheat then? Is it worth replacing the heatsink and having a look or doubtful that would help?

[tazz1964]

Hi
it could be the way you have your fan setup on the why they blow in or out you may be causing the air flow to not flow right pass your processor and this can make your pc overheat try setting your fans up like this.
Two front fans blowing in to case
One side fan blowing into case
Two back fans blowing out of case