Computer powers off

Dimear · 08-20-2004, 11:08 AM

I'm having a problem where my computer powers off after a while (while I'm using it to play games mostly). I think it may be temperature related, as it seems worse when I've been using it for a couple of hours and on hot days. When it shuts off, it won't turn back on for several minutes. Even if I unplug it, and plug it back in a minute later, it doesn't always turn back on right away.

I haven't changed anything in the system recently - this started happening about a week ago and has been getting worse. I've run virus checks. I think it's hardware related, but I don't really know how to debug this problem. Are there utilities I can run that will tell me what the problem is?

Here's my system:
Epox EP-8RDA+ motherboard
AMD Barton 2500+ processor (cooling fan is spinning)
1 GB ram (2x crucial DDR 333)
ATI Radeon 9500 pro video card (cooling fan is spinning)
Antec True480 power supply (both cooling fans are spinning)

I've removed the case cover, and have a big house fan blowing straight into the case. This supplements the 4 other case fans that are working. But I still have the problem, particularly when playing Star Wars Galaxies (a fairly graphics intensive game).

When my system boots, I can see the temperature of the CPU and case, and watch the fan speeds for the case, cpu, and power supply. I notice that if I watch long enough (several minutes), the CPU gets up over 85C, and the fan speeds all increase a lot. I don't know how hot things get when I actually load windows or play the game.

I suspect that either the CPU is getting too hot and shutting down, or the power supply or video card are having temperature related problems. Can anyone please give me advice on how to debug or fix this? I'd replace a part if I knew it was a problem, but don't want to replace too many parts if I don't know that they're bad. Thanks in advance...

- Dimear

Xtant · 08-20-2004, 11:11 AM

Yeah 85c is pretty smokin' hot even for an AMD. I'd suggest removing the heatsink and cleaning it out of any dust etc. Then clean off any thermal compound on it and the CPU and putting on some fresh thermal paste like Arctic Silver. Good luck

Dimear · 09-16-2004, 10:09 PM

Just wanted to say thanks for the good advice. I took out the heatsink, and found that there was a thick layer of dust behind the fan. So even though it was spinning, it was pretty much worthless - wasn't pushing air anywhere useful. I'm sure cleaning that out made a huge difference. I also cleaned out the old thermal compound and used some Arctic Silver Ceramique. End result is that the processor now runs at a much more reasonable 50 C. Thanks.

08-20-2004, 11:08 AM	#1 (permalink)
Dimear Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Colorado Posts: 7 OS: Win 2000 pro	Computer powers off I'm having a problem where my computer powers off after a while (while I'm using it to play games mostly). I think it may be temperature related, as it seems worse when I've been using it for a couple of hours and on hot days. When it shuts off, it won't turn back on for several minutes. Even if I unplug it, and plug it back in a minute later, it doesn't always turn back on right away. I haven't changed anything in the system recently - this started happening about a week ago and has been getting worse. I've run virus checks. I think it's hardware related, but I don't really know how to debug this problem. Are there utilities I can run that will tell me what the problem is? Here's my system: Epox EP-8RDA+ motherboard AMD Barton 2500+ processor (cooling fan is spinning) 1 GB ram (2x crucial DDR 333) ATI Radeon 9500 pro video card (cooling fan is spinning) Antec True480 power supply (both cooling fans are spinning) I've removed the case cover, and have a big house fan blowing straight into the case. This supplements the 4 other case fans that are working. But I still have the problem, particularly when playing Star Wars Galaxies (a fairly graphics intensive game). When my system boots, I can see the temperature of the CPU and case, and watch the fan speeds for the case, cpu, and power supply. I notice that if I watch long enough (several minutes), the CPU gets up over 85C, and the fan speeds all increase a lot. I don't know how hot things get when I actually load windows or play the game. I suspect that either the CPU is getting too hot and shutting down, or the power supply or video card are having temperature related problems. Can anyone please give me advice on how to debug or fix this? I'd replace a part if I knew it was a problem, but don't want to replace too many parts if I don't know that they're bad. Thanks in advance... - Dimear

08-20-2004, 11:11 AM	#2 (permalink)
Xtant Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 144 OS: XP Pro	Yeah 85c is pretty smokin' hot even for an AMD. I'd suggest removing the heatsink and cleaning it out of any dust etc. Then clean off any thermal compound on it and the CPU and putting on some fresh thermal paste like Arctic Silver. Good luck

09-16-2004, 10:09 PM	#3 (permalink)
Dimear Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Colorado Posts: 7 OS: Win 2000 pro	Just wanted to say thanks for the good advice. I took out the heatsink, and found that there was a thick layer of dust behind the fan. So even though it was spinning, it was pretty much worthless - wasn't pushing air anywhere useful. I'm sure cleaning that out made a huge difference. I also cleaned out the old thermal compound and used some Arctic Silver Ceramique. End result is that the processor now runs at a much more reasonable 50 C. Thanks.