Curse

MrSin · Jun 08, 2011, 03:36 AM // 03:36

Hello to all those reading this,

I have been having a strange issue that only occurs when I play GW, even more odd is that it only happens when I do certain things in GW.

The issue: Laptop turns off due to overheating

When: during a VQ run (hero team if it matters) in crystal desert, southern shiverpeaks, During FA match (once only), during HA match (once only) and UW run (hero team).

All settings are on the lowest possible, altho i am able to play on high settings. The overheating only happens when I am in the above mentioned areas (FA and HA happened only once during a match). I dont have any explanation for it, so Im turning to you for ideas on how to prevent it or even fix it...

the strangest issue is the inconsistency. I did UW with Heros and it overheated after about 45min (the overheating time is consistent throughout), but a week later i retried UW and nothing happened after 3 hours (except dying a horrible death due to failing a quest lol), and the other day i paid for a UW-HM run which lasted 1hour and NOTHING happened...
Same in VQ runs, those 3 above mentioned spots each had 1 zone that kept overheating my laptop, all others have been VQed (right now with consets to speed up things ive finished all VQ)

FA and HA matches were strange, the HA match i wasnt even fighting the other human team yet. FA was the moment the match started. (FA and HA dont follow the 45min rule like the VQs due for overheating)
the odd part is that doing a VQ run in other areas causes no issues

so...i dont get it, i have NOTHING extra running in the background of my laptop, if i restart my PC and avoid doing the things that caused my laptop to overheat it will go on for hours without issue...

any advice, opinions, thoughts, ideas would help in aiding me to resolve this bizarre issue

Thank you for your time
MrSin

gremlin · Jun 08, 2011, 12:21 PM // 12:21

If your sure the shutdown is an overheating issue I would say dust might be the problem.

Dust building up esp on the fans heat sinks etc so have a cleanup. session.

Other than that is there enough ventilation, maybe consider getting one of those laptop bases with extra fans.

My experience of laptops is pretty limited but dust is always the enemy on any computer.

When I get problems I turn on my vista sidebar where I have apps that monitor temp fan speeds and processor activity.
If I can see the graphics card, processor and system temps are within limits I can rule out overheating and look elsewhere.

Quaker · Jun 08, 2011, 03:12 PM // 15:12

You didn't say what sort of graphics you laptop has. If it's Intel graphics, that could be part of the problem. There used to be a sticky on here about tips & tricks for various Intel integrated graphics types.

MrSin · Jun 09, 2011, 01:45 AM // 01:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quaker

You didn't say what sort of graphics you laptop has. If it's Intel graphics, that could be part of the problem. There used to be a sticky on here about tips & tricks for various Intel integrated graphics types.

well...it says ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics Up to 1408 MB HyperMemory

if that means anything to you as it means nothing to me >_>

but i dont get why it happens in those certain situations and not when i do anything besides it O.o

gremlin · Jun 09, 2011, 02:31 AM // 02:31

Probably has some dedicated memory of its own and then uses system memory up to the amount stated, this is common.

Dedicated memory is better as it usually gives better performance than a card having to take memory from elsewhere.

In any case its an ATI card and they are now part of the AMD company not intel so shouldn't be a problem.

Showtime · Jun 09, 2011, 03:47 AM // 03:47

it's HEAT

the more graphically intensive, the more heat will build up. don't run a scan, music, and msgs at the same time you are gaming. the cpu has to process all those things and will generate more heat. one other thing that generates heat is the hard drive cuz of the spinning disc/motor. BUT it's mainly the cpu/graphic chipset you have to worry about.

VIRUS
there are also viruses that can cause the cpu to work over time. that will make it overheat or slow down drastically.

scan your computer for viruses/malware. malwarebytes is a good/free program to start with.

DUST
besides bad design or a something wrong with the laptop, it's usually dust or improper use. dont use it on bed or lap where it can't breathe. ambient temperature can also be a problem especially in summer.

turn off computer and use some compressed air to blow out the dust from the vents. you can use a vacuum along with it to suck dust away. sometimes they need to be opened and cleaned. check youtube for vids on this or pay someone to do that if compressed air doesn't work. don't try cleaning it when it's on because you can damage the fan and if that fan dies, you could ruin the laptop.

FAN
if fan is broke or choked with dust, it can stop running. check for airflow and how it sounds. you remember how it sounded new, if it sounds different, it probably has too much dust. it could be dying or dead. a very small amount of laptops and desktops come with passive cooling. no fans. you probably don't have one of those.

Google is your friend
youtube is your guide
newegg amazon etc can get you replacement parts.

Quaker · Jun 09, 2011, 02:23 PM // 14:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrSin

...it says ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics

That would be ATI/AMD integrated graphics, which eliminates glitches due to Intel.
So, it's probably simple overheating. It can happen at particular times/places because some areas of GW use more graphics routines than others.
One suggestion, besides "clean the dust out", would be to go to the Graphics tab in the GW options menu and try the "Auto Detect" button.

MrSin · Jun 12, 2011, 02:46 AM // 02:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quaker

That would be ATI/AMD integrated graphics, which eliminates glitches due to Intel.
So, it's probably simple overheating. It can happen at particular times/places because some areas of GW use more graphics routines than others.
One suggestion, besides "clean the dust out", would be to go to the Graphics tab in the GW options menu and try the "Auto Detect" button.

the auto detect is unnecessary to use since I have manually placed all options to the lowest options once this issue started happening, and it hasnt stopped the overheating

auto detect usually puts the settings mid-high range for me.

also, dust was my first suspect, but i regularly vacuum every possible opening around the laptop at least once a week. Virus scanners bring back nothing, if i play other games like SC2 i never have heating issues.

Quaker · Jun 12, 2011, 03:21 PM // 15:21

If the laptop has an internal fan, make sure it's running.

Actually, although you say it's 'overheating', how did you determine that heat is the problem? It could simply be a component failure - it could even be a 'thermal' fault, which is a fault, such as a bad solder joint, that only acts up when it warms up (but not necessarily "over" heats.)

It could of course, be related to overheating, but at this point you would need to open the laptop up and check that the CPU and GPU heatsinks are clean and properly installed and that the thermal paste under them is properly applied. (Not a fun prospect if you haven't done it before.)

You could try removing and re-installing the RAM to eliminate bad connections there.