My wife's computer just died. When I push the power button it stays on for a few seconds, then shuts off completely. This is a homebuilder 8 year old computer. I am thinking power supply. Can it be something else?
Also check your thermal paste or pad (it doesn't last forever before it gets hard and cracks). Inspect the heat sinks and make sure they aren't matted with dust or have lifted from the motherboard for some reason. I have seen screw seats pull out of the board and soldered hooks come loose and let a heat sink lift in a corner.
Early this morning I took the cover off and did a close examination. The heatsink/fan was half off of the CPU and the paste was dried up. The fasteners that hold the heatsink on are rotting away. Can they be replaced, or must I replace the entire cooler?
#4. "RE: Computer shuts off" In response to daniell (Reply # 3) Mon Nov-20-17 01:36 PM by Ttech
Pictures would definitely help here. If you can't do that, at least give us something to go on, the model of the motherboard, processor, whether it's a heatsink you got with the processor, or a third party, rotted parts are plastic or metal. We don't know anything about the hardware at this point.
Behind every good computer... is a jumble of wires 'n stuff.
#7. "RE: Computer shuts off" In response to daniell (Reply # 6) Mon Nov-20-17 03:55 PM by GreyFalcon
That is a LGA775 socket and I don't see any reinforcement for the cooler on the back of the board unless it was something that came with the cooler. Is it the X bracket that is failing or were there threaded sockets pressed into the board. The only picture I can find with any detail is on Newegg and it just shows the back of the board with holes in it. That would lead me to suspect there was an X bracket with threads that failed. It might be replaceable. https://www.amazon.com/uxcell-Heatsink-Cooling-Backplate-Motherboard/dp/B00GN7Z20W I don't do Intel so I'm not really as familiar with the boards but the plastic retention plate on Amazon looks like it would fail from years of heat.
#9. "RE: Computer shuts off" In response to daniell (Reply # 8) Mon Nov-20-17 07:57 PM by GreyFalcon
Looks like the back plate bracket, a clean heat spreader and some arctic silver should have you going for another eight years. I think those processors were pretty good at protecting themselves from overheating.
QUOTE: Looks like the back plate bracket, a clean heat spreader and some arctic silver should have you going for another eight years. I think those processors were pretty good at protecting themselves from overheating.
I do not think that the holes in the MB are threaded. How does it attach?
