My Computer Is Overheating!
Everyone's heard the stories, and many have had it happen to them. The dreaded "Thermal Shutdown". Once you're finished reading this article, you will have a thourough understanding of what causes overheating and how to stop it.
The first thing that causes your computer to overheat is having too many processes running all at once. To check if this is the problem, simply start your task manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and navigate to the "Performance" tab. If you are not running any big programs, other than Internet Explorer, then your CPU usage should be anywhere between 0-10%. If it is above this, I reccomend going to the "Processes" tab and seeing which of your processes is taking up the most resources. If you see a process that is using a lot of CPU or memory, then I would reccomend googling it to see if it is a virus, or if you need it. After doing this, if your computer is still running hot, you can move on to step two.
Step two is to give your computer a cleaning. If you have a laptop, I reccomend buying a can of compressed air, or using an air compressor's nozzle. First, shutdown and unplug your computer. Next, put the tip of the nozzle in your air intake, and spray. If you are using a compressor, make sure that you do not have a lot of air flow, just enough to get the dust out. You should see some dust or dirt particles get blown out. Do this to all of your air intakes, and to any other vents. Now, turn your computer back on and see how it runs. If you have a desktop computer, you should remove the cover before you blow any air into the case, as dust will just re-settle if you do not. When you open the cover, you will see a heatsink. If you do not know what this looks like, just think of a fish's gills with a fan on top. You will want to blow out all of the dust from the heatsink, and then any other component that seems to be dusty. You can now turn your desktop on.
If a lot of dust was present, and you blew it out, your problem is probably fixed. If your computer is still running hot, then I reccomend seeing just how hot it actually runs by downloading and installing SpeedFan. This program is available for download here: SpeedFan If Speedfan says that your computer is anywhere between 30 and 50 degrees, then you do not have a problem, however anywhere above 50 degrees signals that you may have a problem.
The next step in troubleshooting would be to download the most up-to-date BIOS software from the manufacturer's website. Doing this can usually fix many other problems that you are having with your computer as well. Just be sure to get the right one though, as even being one number off could render your PC useless.
After trying all of this, the next step would be to buy a laptop chill pad, or install a bigger fan in your desktop's case. A chill pad usually brings your laptop's temperature down by anywhere from 5 to 30 degrees. As chill pads go, I reccomend the Cooler Master U2 available at Best Buy, Futureshop, Walmart and a few other online stores. Your desktop on the other hand, should not be running as warm as your laptop. If you have a desktop running over 50 degrees, then you should check with the manufacturer and see if they will repair it on warranty.
Hopefully your computer is purring like a kitten and running nice and cool once you've finished this tutorial.
The first thing that causes your computer to overheat is having too many processes running all at once. To check if this is the problem, simply start your task manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and navigate to the "Performance" tab. If you are not running any big programs, other than Internet Explorer, then your CPU usage should be anywhere between 0-10%. If it is above this, I reccomend going to the "Processes" tab and seeing which of your processes is taking up the most resources. If you see a process that is using a lot of CPU or memory, then I would reccomend googling it to see if it is a virus, or if you need it. After doing this, if your computer is still running hot, you can move on to step two.
Step two is to give your computer a cleaning. If you have a laptop, I reccomend buying a can of compressed air, or using an air compressor's nozzle. First, shutdown and unplug your computer. Next, put the tip of the nozzle in your air intake, and spray. If you are using a compressor, make sure that you do not have a lot of air flow, just enough to get the dust out. You should see some dust or dirt particles get blown out. Do this to all of your air intakes, and to any other vents. Now, turn your computer back on and see how it runs. If you have a desktop computer, you should remove the cover before you blow any air into the case, as dust will just re-settle if you do not. When you open the cover, you will see a heatsink. If you do not know what this looks like, just think of a fish's gills with a fan on top. You will want to blow out all of the dust from the heatsink, and then any other component that seems to be dusty. You can now turn your desktop on.
If a lot of dust was present, and you blew it out, your problem is probably fixed. If your computer is still running hot, then I reccomend seeing just how hot it actually runs by downloading and installing SpeedFan. This program is available for download here: SpeedFan If Speedfan says that your computer is anywhere between 30 and 50 degrees, then you do not have a problem, however anywhere above 50 degrees signals that you may have a problem.
The next step in troubleshooting would be to download the most up-to-date BIOS software from the manufacturer's website. Doing this can usually fix many other problems that you are having with your computer as well. Just be sure to get the right one though, as even being one number off could render your PC useless.
After trying all of this, the next step would be to buy a laptop chill pad, or install a bigger fan in your desktop's case. A chill pad usually brings your laptop's temperature down by anywhere from 5 to 30 degrees. As chill pads go, I reccomend the Cooler Master U2 available at Best Buy, Futureshop, Walmart and a few other online stores. Your desktop on the other hand, should not be running as warm as your laptop. If you have a desktop running over 50 degrees, then you should check with the manufacturer and see if they will repair it on warranty.
Hopefully your computer is purring like a kitten and running nice and cool once you've finished this tutorial.