[lodan]

ok, so my computer is shutting off on its own... at first i thought to clean the fans and the heat sink.. so i did that.. afterwards i hear this high pitched sound that seems to either be comeing from the processor or power supply, since they are so close to eachother... it still shuts off when it try to run windows normaly, right now im in safe mode with networking...i ran the set up to check to see if the processor temp was ok, its runing at about 185 degrees farenheit, i did see that the 3.3v was hitting 3.65 or so and was making the bracet go red...

its a pentium 4 with windows xp..

does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[maxibhoy]

Your problem is heat. 185 fahrenheit is far too hot. Check that your cpu fan/heatsink is attatched correctly and clean the fan/heatink of any dust. Also remove side panel and if you can blow a house fan into the case and see if this improves the situation.

 

[lodan]

well so far ive done everything but the house fan part, ill re-check the the heatsink to make sure they are connected correctly, i also had a nother question, i noticed theres a silicon like substance between the processor and heat sink, now do i need to replace that when i put the heat sink back on or is it fine as it is?

 

[maxibhoy]

Actually maybe blowing the fan in just now isn't necessary just now as it's quite obvious what the problem is. Check your temps in the bios also to make sure you have an accurate reading. And i would remove the heatsink/fan and reinstall with some arctic silver. Then consider getting a new one. I love the Zalman flower one. They keep the cpu FREEZING!!.

 

[maxibhoy]

i also had a nother question, i noticed theres a silicon like substance between the processor and heat sink, now do i need to replace that when i put the heat sink back on or is it fine as it is?

Yes this MUST be replaced. Idealy you should clean off the existing paste with alcohol but if you don't have pure alcohol just clean it off well with a damp cloth.(Only touch the top of the cpu where the paste is) then dry it thoroughly before applying a fresh layer of thermal paste. Artic silver is the best. Just a thin layer but cover all areas of the top of the cpu.

 

[johnpost]

ok, so my computer is shutting off on its own... at first i thought to clean the fans and the heat sink.. so i did that.. afterwards i hear this high pitched sound that seems to either be comeing from the processor or power supply, since they are so close to eachother... it still shuts off when it try to run windows normaly, right now im in safe mode with networking...i ran the set up to check to see if the processor temp was ok, its runing at about 185 degrees farenheit, i did see that the 3.3v was hitting 3.65 or so and was making the bracet go red...

its a pentium 4 with windows xp..

does anyone have any suggestions?

that high pitched sound often is the fan bearings at the end of their life.

stopping the blades will stop the noise if it's that fan's bearings.

if you tap the spinning blades it may reset the fan rotor and make
the noise go away atleast momentarily or for a while.