Computer overheating ?
February 9th, 2020
I’ve just experienced this incident:
My computer is relatively old (8years old) and was running fine till today, when a few minutes ago, suddently I felt there was a little difference in the noise (ventilator) coming from the central unit, then 10sec after that, the computer shut down like someone pulled the power, as at the same time, the light in my room went off for a brief moment(1sec) before coming back again, so there must have been some kind of a short circuit caused by my computer!
What was the most probable reason causing this incident ?
As the computer shut down abruptly, has Win XP logged the incident ? if yes, where can i read it ?
What software tools can i use to monitor the vital part of the computer, like temperature,… thanks for your help.
It could be possible that the power in your area went out briefly
Or, it could be possible your computer’s power supply is dying (i would say is most probable) Your scenario does not seem like a (regular) overheating pc failure. Windows normally creates a memory dump file in the event of a crash.
However, I am not sure whether or not that applies in the event of a short circuit.
ya those are not really sound like an pc overheating. Overheat should give you bsod before it shut down like no power. Or your computer freeze with wierd constant sound or no sound at all. At lease thats how I experienced with overheat.
It does sound like an electric outage. Happen to my neighborhood a few time and its not even related to the weather.
Now if it keep happening constantly then there is a problem.
If the light in your room went out briefly then it’s a supply problem and not the computer. The lighting and the sockets should be on different circuits in your house with a fuse for each in the fuse box (or fuses for upstairs and downstairs depending upon the set up). Since both your computer (which should be on the sockets circuit) and the lighting (on the lighting circuit) both lost power then it was a cut off of supply to your house that caused this. Unfortunately a cut off such as this can have varying effects on your computer from nothing at all to messing it up completely.
If it wasn’t a momentary supply cut off from outside your home then I’d get your house wiring checked.
you have a valid point! i currenly share the building with other people and the wiring is quite old; but now why did the noise of the ventilator change for approx. 3min before everything shut down? The ventilator never made such a noise eventhough it was a subtle change…..
I begin to think it comes from the PC power supply.
Hi jack … Unlikely the problem was the PC ( But u might have some now due to unexpected shutdown )
Can u reboot ok ? if so , is the unusual noise still there ?
Power supply probs and temp probs give different results … u can search Google for symptoms …
To monitor your system try this :
http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html
hope this helps …
8 years old hmmm need to replace straight forward
has the case ever been opened and blown out? are their people who smoke in close proximity to the tower?
dust bunnies and over-all dirt will cake up onto parts inside the case over time [faster if there are smoking people near the case].
change in noise of fan could mean the bearing/sleeve is drying out and starting to cause increase in “spin resistance” inside the fan.
Hi jack ... Unlikely the problem was the PC ( But u might have some now due to unexpected shutdown )
Can u reboot ok ? if so , is the unusual noise still there ?
Power supply probs and temp probs give different results ... u can search Google for symptoms ...
To monitor your system try this :
http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html
hope this helps ...
yes, everything is fine now, the problem only occured 1 time but it is enough to make me vigilant and expect major failure of the computer; i need to use the computer basically everyday so i should better be prepared in case something went wrong.
THX for the software!
8 years old hmmm need to replace straight forward
Definitly, i’ll have a new one in 1-2months, unless the current computer lets me down has the case ever been opened and blown out? are their people who smoke in close proximity to the tower?
dust bunnies and over-all dirt will cake up onto parts inside the case over time [faster if there are smoking people near the case].
change in noise of fan could mean the bearing/sleeve is drying out and starting to cause increase in "spin resistance" inside the fan.
I don’t remember the last time i opened the case…….. so i’ll do it tonight!
Where’s Chloe O’Brian when you need her?!? /Sarcasm.
On a more serious note, If the light in your room went out too, I’d say it was likely just a momentary power outage and nothing to worry about. Anyways, When you open it up for cleanup, Better use a paint brush or compressed (canned) air.
Do NOT use a hair dryer or a vacuum as they may induce static electricity and damage the motherboard.
For cleaning up the individual fans, I suggest you take em apart and use a small paint brush.
Do keep in mind that if you remove the CPU fan/heatsink, You’re gonna have to clean up the old thermal paste and re-apply!
And if you’re gonna do that, Better separate the two (fan/heatsink) and give em both a good cleanup (Especially the heatsink, As it can be a dust magnet due to it’s design!) Also, You might wanna open up the PSU and clean up it’s fan.
Normally, Doing this would void it’s warranty, But given the fact your PC is old, It’s probably a non-issue.
Do note that even if it’s all clean and dust-free, There are no guarantees it’d fix the noise (It could just be a bad fan!)
Edit: Also, After you open up the PSU, Do check what’s happening under the hood! If you see any blown capacitors, Or leakage (brown/yellow substance) then it’s definitely on it’s way out!
Depending on your case, cooling setup and parts, you can delay cleaning from 2 months to a year. That will depend on how dusty the area is. If you maintain the cooling well and a power cut occurs, you can expect the system to be partially broken.
For an 8 year old system, you can’t ask for anymore.
In some countries like India, the guys that use computers usually know what a UPS is, since power outrages are common.
But yeah, not all the people in the world upgrade as persistent as I do, once a year.