T410 overheat auto shutdown

[Tim-ANC]

Sometime ago my wife used a software on her T410 to convert DVD movies to video files for the kids' portable players. This stressed the GPU and caused an overheat auto shut down. TP Fan control showed CPU temp at 95C when shut down commenced. This still happens occasionally when she's uses heavy graphics processing. The machine runs hot in general even using high fan RPM.

I think a component change is in order and suspect the GPU. Any other ideas? Would extra RAM help?

[theterminator93]

Have the heatsinks/fans been cleaned recently? Are you using TPFC to max out your fan speeds over a certain temp (e.g. 65 or 70C)?

[Tim-ANC]

Good question and thanks. Yes I have opened it and cleaned the fan. (A skill I've developed as a long time TP owner). TPFC on full manual and she uses a cooling tray too.

Heatsinks? What should I do with these?

[jayton4]

Likely the thermal compound needs to be changed. Remove the heatsink/fan assembly as described in the HMM. Clean off old residue with rubbing alcohol. Apply either a thin layer of thermal paste or use a thermal pad.

[Tim-ANC]

Likely the thermal compound needs to be changed. Remove the heatsink/fan assembly as described in the HMM. Clean off old residue with rubbing alcohol. Apply either a thin layer of thermal paste or use a thermal pad.

Would a thermal paste problem make such a difference? I need to get the temp down at least 20C. I'm apprehensive about applying new because of the cautions about using too much. What is a thermal pad?

[jayton4]

If that is indeed your problem, which it may not be, then yes it can make that big of a difference. It is my opinion that from what you described, that it would be the next step to take, assuming the fan is working properly.

What rpm are you seeing when the fan is set to the highest in tpfancontrol?

For my T410 with i5-560m and Nvidia NVS 3100m, I can run "IntelBurnTest" and "Video Card Stability Test" at the same times and it never shuts off. It stays right close to 95 C when stress testing it and remains on.

A couple of more options would be to use an application like "Process Lasso" to throttle the video converting program, or go into your power settings and limit the Processor to 80%. If she is just converting video, you could turn off the Nvidia graphics and just use Intel graphics to keep things cooler.

[precip9]

I have found that some table surfaces trap more heat than others. In this house, curiously, one of the worst is a hardwood table with a glossy finish. An air gap helps enormously.

Put two plastic milk bottle caps under the rear legs.

[Tim-ANC]

I'm embarrassed.

I was trying to check fan RPM yesterday to answer jayton4's question. I noticed after increasing fan speed with TPFC the fan exhaust flow would not increase. No change in airflow. I shut the machine down and blew compressed air through the inlet and exhaust ports. A lot of dust came out. I thought I had cleaned it recently but now that I think about it, it has been some time since I cracked it.

Before, trying to get live game center feed on nfl.com the CPU temp would quickly shoot up passed 90C with TPFC manual fan speed 7 at 7000 RPM. Now it holds steady around 45C in BIOS mode.

I ignored a basic troubleshooting principle: Always start with the most likely cause and never make unsubstantiated assumptions.

Thanks all. Next test will be converting video. Again jayton4, I appreciate your advice here. I'll get some thermal paste and do a proper cleaning too. Time to do this with my other machines as well.