Laptop 90C while gaming

Have you ever experienced a full system shutdown right in the middle of playing a video game? This could be caused by a plethora of faults, but one very common reason for a PC to shut down is when the CPU reaches unsafe temperatures.

When a CPU reaches a temperature it deems unsafe, a safety mechanism triggers called thermal throttling. A thermal throttle reduces the maximum processor usage because its exceeded safe operating temperatures. This causes the CPU to run slower and generate less heat, allowing the cooling solution to catch up.

This sudden slowdown is often what causes sudden full system crashes.

Running a component outside of its safe operating temperature is not only warranty-voiding but also extremely detrimental to its integrity and longevity, and is just generally an all-around bad idea. Overheating CPUs, if left unchecked, also have the potential to damage CPU sockets, rendering motherboards useless.

If all of this sounds scary, dont worry, it can be easily prevented. Here are some easy ways to reduce CPU temperatures and stop overheating.

In most cases, modern PCs choose to shut downwhen the CPU exceeds a specific manufacturer-defined temperature, to prevent the PC from becoming an expensive and extremely dangerous electrical fire. This failsafe ensures both you and your PC are safe and your PC is protected from further thermal damage.

Regardless of this failsafe, high operating temperatures that are still within the maximum operating temperatures but higher than desirable can cause both CPU and motherboard damage over time, and severely reduce the longevity of the CPU. This model applies to all PC components the higher the constant temperature the less time its probably going to live.

This is a very open question and depends on a lot of variables such as where the PC is located, the case, the CPU, the CPU cooler and, how many fans the PC has to name but a few.

A standard gaming PC [if you can even standardize such a thing] should be seeing temperatures between 158°F [70°C] and 176°F [80°C] while under heavy CPU load.

But obviously, the more efficient your cooling solution and the lower your CPU temperature when under load the better. If you can get a CPU temperature of 114°F [46°C] under load then great, your CPU will thank you in the long run. You can find the best CPU temperature monitoring software here.

One extremely simple way to ensure acceptable CPU temperatures is to have the correct airflow configuration within your PC. Of course, open airflow cases are excluded because theyre an entirely different beast, but for your normal PC cases there are a few configurations you need to understand.

First, we have Positive pressure: this configuration puts more air into your PC than is being exhausted, so theres hot air almost stagnating within the PC. The opposite of this is the negative pressure configuration that consists of more air being exhausted from the PC case than is entering. This creates a pocket of void space that ideally wed like a nice stream of air to fill.

These two configurations are less than ideal. The only way it would work efficiently is if you had access to and full control of every single fan to compensate for either the positive or negative difference.

The ideal configuration is neutral pressure meaning you have just as much air entering as you have exhausting, creating a flow of air that doesnt get caught up or stagnate inside your PC case.

Cable management is a factor in not just CPU temperature control but overall temperature control. Messy cables can disrupt a clean flow of air and create object resistances we dont need when trying to create a free-flowing efficient cooling environment. Keep those cables in check.

Another common reason for CPU temperatures to skyrocket is by situating your system in a poorly ventilated area. Regardless of how efficient your airflow configuration is, or how well-rated for airflow your case is, your CPU will get hot if you dont have any cool fresh air getting to it in the first place.

Fans are solely responsible for the intake and exhaustion of air to and from your PC, so its imperative that you keep them well maintained. Fans experience much higher air exposure than most PC components as theyre the only hardware responsible for pushing air through your PC. All this air exposure brings with it dust and debris. Like everything else in your house fans get dusty and require regular cleaning. Dont be ashamed, PCs in the cleanest of houses still get dusty, it really is inevitable. All this dust can cause more than a few problems, from electrical issues to fan failures, and you dont want any of these things happening.To clean your fans [and the rest of your PC] simply take it outside and clean it out with a can of compressed air. If youre an avid gamer and feel youre going to be doing this a lot, its perfectly acceptable to buy a compressor of some sort to save you buying a can of air every few weeks.

Remove any screws securing your side panel to your PCs chassis.

Remove the side panel itself and any dust filters you wish to clean.

Now using your compressed air, blower, or compressor, remove the dust from your PC being careful to place your PC in a well-ventilated area and a place you dont mind getting a little dusty.

Make sure you never allow the fans to spin when blowing them as this can cause damage to the fans motor they dont like to spin when unpowered.

Dont forget about blowing dust out of the PSU, as this is the component thats most likely to suffer a damaging short at the hands of excessive dust build up.

Perform another quick once-over of the PC to remove all the residual dust created by cleaning the fans and the PSU.

Replace the side panel and any accompanying screws.

Theres been a long-standing debate in the PC space that open-air cases are advantageous in terms of airflow. This is, however surprisingly, counterintuitive as open-air cases cause a few more issues than they fix. However, they do look amazing when done right.Without a closed directional system the cooling capabilities become more inefficient. The open case also invites in much more dust due to the absence of various filters. Because of these simple facts, open-air cases are out. Unless youre fine with cleaning your PC every week or so.

Theres been a long-standing debate in the PC space that open-air cases are advantageous in terms of airflow, they are however surprisingly counterintuitive as open-air cases cause a few more issues than they fix, they do however look amazing when done right.

Without a closed directional system the cooling capabilities become more inefficient, the open case also invites in much more dust due to the absence of various filters.

Due to these few simple facts, open-air cases are out. Unless youre fine with cleaning your PC every week or so.

Reapplying thermal paste can work wonders when attempting to lower your CPU temperatures. Thermal paste becomes dry and cracks when left unchanged for long periods of time. As its a thermally conductive compound its also subject to thermal decomposition so the more you use it the lower its longevity. You can increase the life span and efficiency of your thermal paste by purchasing higher quality product, but generally thermal paste should last a few years. This number is subjective and situational so we wont outline how long thermal paste is supposed to last. We will however, advise that you change your thermal paste once every one to one and a half years, to ensure proper performance. Or if you remove your cooler for any reason its always best to reapply. If youre unsure about the logistics of applying thermal paste, check out this article on how to properly apply thermal paste.

Stock coolers are great for the bare minimum cooling capacity, the coolers that work just well enough to be functional. You shouldnt expect to get respectable CPU temperatures with mediocre cooling solutions at best, though. Installing aftermarket cooling solutions can get a little pricy at the high end, but the difference in temperature can be night and day. Of course, there are budget options available but as with anything, budget options have limitations. Better to go with a CPU cooler with no compromises like the ASUS Ryujin II for example, especially if you plan on overclocking your CPU. AIO or [all in one] coolers work magic in terms of reducing CPU temperatures and keeping them at bay. AIO coolers offer an excellent mid-way between the sometimes disappointing performance of air coolers in comparison to liquid-based coolers, and the scarily daunting custom water cooling solutions. AIO installations follow the same basic models and you can find a tutorial in the article outlined above, just in case you run into any issues.

Reapplying the thermal paste can work wonders when attempting to lower your CPU temperatures, thermal paste becomes dry and cracks when left unchanged for long periods of time. As its a thermally conductive compound its also subject to thermal decomposition so the more you use it the lower its longevity.

You can increase the thermal pastes life span and the efficiency of said paste by purchasing higher quality paste. but generally, thermal paste can already withstand a number of years of use but this number is subjective and situational so we wont outline how long thermal paste is supposed to last.

We will however, advise that you change your thermal paste once every one to one and a half years, to ensure proper performance. Or if you remove your cooler for any reason its always best to reapply.

If youre unsure about the logistics of applying thermal paste, check out this article on how to properly apply thermal paste.

How many fans do you have in your PC? if the answer is three or less, you could probably benefit from an additional fan or two [providing your case supports extra fans]. We outlined the importance of airflow configurations earlier but if you can, you should add more fans to your airflow setup. Youll be adding a stronger airflow aiding your PC in achieving a lower operating temperature.

Cable management is imperative to none restrictive airflow as we mentioned earlier. One aspect that can help with cable management is using a fully modular PSU. Knowing the difference between None, Semi and Fully modular PSUs is important and outlined in our article here. If youre unsure what PSU is right for you, why dont you take a look at our best PSU for gaming feature?

Manually adjusting the CPU fan or fan curve in your motherboards BIOS [basic input-output system] can work well when attempting to keep high CPU temperatures at bay. By default, CPU fan control is set to Auto this curve profile is designed to be a hybrid between noise and effectiveness. In general, allowing the motherboard to control the CPU fan speed based on a temperature variable is smart and effective, but theres some cooling performance to be had by simply adjusting the curve. If youre a headset gamer and arent phased by a little extra noise erupting from your PC then you can achieve better temperatures by creating a more airflow heavy curve. But of course, having your CPU fan spinning at 100% speed for the foreseeable future will do nothing for its longevity. Contrarily, if youre a gamer more conscious of noise, you can try adjusting the curve more steadily. The next few steps may look scary, especially if youre not accustomed to navigating a motherboard BIOS. You do have the potential to break your PC in here, but if you follow the steps closely youll be just fine. Your motherboard layout will look slightly different, but most have access to fan controls in the Easy mode section. If youre unsure just look up your motherboard manual or check out: How to check what motherboard you have.

Manually adjusting the CPU fan or fan curve in your motherboards BIOS [Basic input-output system] can work well when attempting to keep high CPU temperatures at bay.

By default, CPU fan control is set to Auto this curve profile is designed to be a hybrid between noise and effectiveness. In general, allowing the motherboard to control the CPU fan speed based on a temperature variable is smart and effective, but theres some cooling performance to be had by simply adjusting the curve.

If youre a headset gamer and arent phased by a little extra noise erupting from your PC then you can achieve better temperatures by creating a more airflow heavy curve. But of course, having your CPU fan spinning at 100% speed for the foreseeable future will do nothing for its longevity.

contrarily if youre a gamer more conscious of a noise-riddled gaming rig, you might want to try adjusting the curve more steadily.

The next few steps may look scary, especially if youre not accustomed to navigating a motherboard BIOS. You do have the potential to break your PC in here, but if you follow the steps closely youll be just fine.

Your motherboard layout will look slightly different, but most have access to fan controls in the Easy mode section. If youre unsure just look up your motherboard manual or check out: How to check what motherboard you have.

NOTE:At 50%, you should have cool temperatures with low processes and idle speeds. Make sure you adjust the temperatures when gaming to maintain low temperatures.