computer

[Jason32]

Is it with the stock heat sink or an after-market one? Does the heat sink fan actually work?

[Christian M. Hanson]

Jason32 wrote:

Is it with the stock heat sink or an after-market one? Does the heat sink fan actually work?

I fixed the issue.. Upon closer inspection, the computer was never cleaned.. I removed a blanket of dust, one inch thick, from under the CPU fan, using q-tips.. CPU Temp is 30 C and steady..

Thank you Jason, without your suggestions, I never would of looked!

[VADM JT Kerry]

Mr. Hanson,
Sorry that this is so long but bear with me.

It could be with processor and heat. And, it was my first thought when I heard the beginning of your desciption, but because there were two hours of use before it shut down, there are two other possibilities - the memory and the video card. Usually the power supply will affect other areas of the system, like have the OS shut down USB ports to conserve power (Dells are notorious for under powering business classed systems - which the USB problem is the first sign.) The HDD has 2 major wear points - the boot sector and local e-mail client storage files, which also doesn't follow the pattern. The is usually the death nell sound of a dying HDD inthese cases - kathunk, kathunk.

Normally, if the processor is the culprit the heat cycle of the bootup process, which is very energy and processor intensive will heat up the processor enough to shut it down within a couple of minutes of reaching GUI/the desktop. AMD multicore processors are fairly resilient, locking a program up rather that blue screening. I looked up the spec for the temp on that processor and it is rated at max 70 deg C ( http://products.amd.com/en-us/DesktopCPUDetail.aspx?id=556&f1=&f2=&f3=&f4=&f5=&f6=&f7=&f8=&f9=&f10=&f11=&f12= ) the normal idle is about 50 to 55 deg C on the 45nm processors and normal usage peak would be 10 deg more. So, I don't think it is your processor on this system.

The questions I have are threefold: One, does it happen consistantly while in a particular program, and, if so, which program? And two, do you have a bunch of programs open at once and is there a tipping point? These question, depending on the answer would point to a bad stick of memory.
My last question is, after booting does it happen over time with random circumstances irregardless of what is open, but more so the period of elapsed time, and immediately upon logging in from reboot the system shuts down? If this is the case, you have an improperly overclocked video card, or some other defect within the video card. Some of the overclocking software that comes with the drivers of the video cards are configured to save the settings independantly of the software - directly on the card, which can make it difficult to reverse. Also, sometimes you get a flaw in the GPU or the card memory that can react this way. If you have another video card, you can test the system and see if it runs 24 hours with an normal, manual shutdown at the end.

If it happens with the different video card, I would start testing the memory by rotating the memory DIMMs into slot 1 (a poor man's version of a memory tester), if the system shuts down quicker from a cold boot, you may have to replace one or two sticks of memory (2 stick if they are dual channel - these require matching pairs). You should make the stick of memory as they are tested in slot one somehow so you know that it has been in that position - start by marking the one that is presently before you boot up and move it to a differnet location - in dual channel you would put it in slot 2 or 3 depending on the board specs or the color coding of the memory - like colors belong together. If the slot clips are all the same color, the board may not support dual channel (which is rare on boards manufactured after after about 2006).

I know this is a lot of info, but this is what I get paid to do, day in and day out. So, if you have any questions, please send me a PM and we will arrange time to go on Vent. Because I'm a Technician, and not a clerk. I suck at typing, and it is easier on me to talk out your problem and troubleshoot as we talk. No offense to our fine and very functional website.

I hope this helps. If you need more assistance, send the PM and we'll get on Vent.

Happy trails,
JT

[Christian M. Hanson]

Thanks JT for the massive info! It was a pretty simple fix.. All I had to do was remove a blanket of dust, that was between the CPU fan and the CPU! Air was not able to flow to the CPU because of the barrier!

Simce i've cleared it, I've had no issues, and the internal temps are normal!

The only thing I need now is a new graphics card, and i'm thinking on this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161387

[VADM JT Kerry]

That looks like a pretty good card. I've never bought HIS brand. If you get it let me know how you like it. I scrolled to the bottom of the page and noticed XFX brand. I've had good luck with their cards.

JT

[Christian M. Hanson]

FLTCPT JT Kerry wrote:

That looks like a pretty good card. I've never bought HIS brand. If you get it let me know how you like it. I scrolled to the bottom of the page and noticed XFX brand. I've had good luck with their cards. JT

If I'm not mistaken it's identical to the HIS? I may buy the XFX brand, since it's about $10 cheaper.

[VADM JT Kerry]