Computer Update

[the_gneech]

GORT is back in the land of the living at the moment. Right now my tentative diagnosis is overheating. I found Buddha-hairs and dust-bunnies clogging up the ventilation ports, and shutting the machine down for several minutes and restarting seems to have fixed it. At least for now.

We'll see what it's like tomorrow!

-The Gneech

Comments

[raishi-fox.livejournal.com]

You're going to want to open it up, or have someone else do it if you aren't comfortable digging around inside computers, and make sure all the internal fans and heat sinks are clear as well. If there's enough dust and such to clog the vents on the case, it will -always- someone find its way into the computer too, and it can be even worse there. My girlfriend's computer was "dying" last week, just kept shutting down on her. The problem turned out to be the CPU heat sink had so much dust clogged in it, it looked like it had been dropped in mud. No airflow, no cooling, no computer.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

I've got no philosophical problem with opening computers, but workspace is an issue. ;P I suspect I will be committing surgery on it this weekend as you describe, however. :)

-The Gneech

[radbaron.livejournal.com]

In the meantime....

BACKUP BACKUP BACKUP!!!!

Because you dont want to find out in 2 weeks time that the grinding noise was an overheated bearing on the HD, causing you to lose all your pictures, emails, account informations, level 58 characters and wonderful secret recipes.

Is the desktop on the floor? If so, is it carpet flooring? A small piece of wood about 1" per side larger than the computer footprint will help wonders with airflow.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Backups, I've got. :) And strangely enough, my desktop is actually on, y'know, my desktop.

-TG

[the-mcp.livejournal.com]

What I like to do to help keep stuff like that out of the case is to stick squares of furnace-filter material over the vent openings, especially any openings with fans pulling air in rather than out. Yes, the result isn't the most aesthetically-pleasing thing in the world, but it's a lot easier to just peel off and replace a couple of squares of material held on with painters tape than it is to have to keep opening up the case to blow dust out of the heat sinks and replace clogged fans. :)