What is the maximum temperature a CPU can handle?

That's a little hot but it should be okay. I've got a Pentium D 2.66Ghz dual core processor and even with an aftermarket cooler and air being drawn directly from outside the case (manifold) it will get as hot as 48°C under severe, prolonged load.

Now, if it is staying at 120 under zero or minimal load, then you do have a problem. That's probably not good if it's doing like that.

Common solution is to clear all dust out of the system and to ensure that you have proper airflow. Then if that doesn't cure it, you can try to take the stock heatsink off and clean all the old thermal compound off and replace it with newer and/or better compound.

120 may sound high but it equates to around 45c
while waiting for my watercooling to arrive my p4 was running around the 80C for a week

It's still not GOOD for it...

45 is an extremely high idle temperature. But if that is the load temperature then he's better off than I am I think...though the threshold on the older processors might be lower since they are not as fast and thusly they do not produce as much heat. I dunno...best thing to do is to email Intel for a direct answer.

Well I don't know how to tell what my CPU temperature is when the operating system is loaded only in the BIOS. But the computer is running fine and I got all the updates for it. If it works fine they don't care. It is running faster than it did since I installed a ram upgrade.

use speedfan
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download337.html

45C is pretty average for a PIII.
Max temp for a Pentium 3 733MHz is 80C

http://www.heatsink-guide.com/content.php?content=maxtemp.shtml

I wouldn't worry about it.

Thanks that software worked good. Is there a software to Underclock or Overclock the processor because my processor is a little faster than what it is suppose to be and I wanted to fix it.

Those adjustments need to be done in the BIOS.

Well that didn't seem to work. I set the ratio over the 733MHz and it still said 733MHz when the computer starts up. It does the same thing on my computer that has 933MHz even though the ratio seems to be locked and it is most likely at 733MHz the processor I had previously.

my pD940 idles at 48°C and load is at 56°C and thats totally normal even with after market cooler.

so 45°C is acceptable.

Might as well add my 2 cents worth. Mine (Athlon) runs at around 50°C and has done for quite a long time - never had a problem with it (and they are rated to 90°C anyway). 45°C is very much normal and shouldn't be a concern.

I have seen an overclocked athlon that was orignally 3GHz and overclocked to 5GHz you may have seen it before it was liquid nitrogen cooled and it's temperature was -200 something degrees celcius I don't know how good the computer was working at that temperature but that seems extreme I think.

willmon18 said:

...... it's temperature was -200 something degrees celcius .....

Click to expand...

Think whoever told you that may have been a little bit "off with the fairies" at the time.:beerchug: To get anywhere near those temps you would need liquid nitrogen and a whole lab full of apparatus. Good yarn, tho'.

Floyd provided the link to it.

How very interesting - and it does use liquid nitrogen. Wouldn't want to touch it - rip your skin off. Pretty useless in normal use, tho'.

They have overlocked a P4 in Japan to 7.1GHz a year ago :sigh:

My Socket A AMD has tolerated torturing temps of 85C for over 2 years now. Thats because I overload it so its running @ 100% CPU most of the time. Its a throw away anyway, and I expected it to last a few hours when I first tested it but upon opening up of everything yesterday, getting a computer engineer friend to check it all out; he said its still in top nick

When its 20% CPU usage, its usually at 30C though.. if it ever gets there :grin:

Disclaimer: Don't try this @ home

7.1GHz in Japan a year ago then why did they say on this website that is probally up to date that it was the new world record for 5 something GHz?

Kalim said:

They have overlocked a P4 in Japan to 7.1GHz a year ago :sigh:

My Socket A AMD has tolerated torturing temps of 85C for over 2 years now. Thats because I overload it so its running @ 100% CPU most of the time. Its a throw away anyway, and I expected it to last a few hours when I first tested it but upon opening up of everything yesterday, getting a computer engineer friend to check it all out; he said its still in top nick

When its 20% CPU usage, its usually at 30C though.. if it ever gets there :grin:

Disclaimer: Don't try this @ home

Click to expand...

you have a link to the 7.1ghz one cause i havent heard of this before ... there was an optical processor running at 6.8ghz