Laptop troubles, any advice? (Fixed! I think)

[Hyperspace Industries]

I think I broke my laptop, it ran ksp perfectly a few months ago, but now it struggles. I think this is because I constantly left my laptop plugged in, through night and day, which must have degraded it.

It takes a few minutes to launch word, let alone ksp, when I first got it, it could run ksp mostly easily, and word launched in an instant. 

What should I do?

Is there any solution cheaper than getting a new one?

Edited October 28, 2021 by Hyperspace Industries
Fixed, I think

[linuxgurugamer]

Most likely the vents are clogged, and it's overheating

Get a can of compressed air and blow out the vents.  Try to blow in the exhaust, and be ready for a cloud of dust.

Edited October 27, 2021 by linuxgurugamer

[Hyperspace Industries]

2 hours ago, linuxgurugamer said:

Most likely the vents are clogged, and it's overheating

Get a can of compressed air and blow out the vents.  Try to blow in the exhaust, and be ready for a cloud of dust.

Having trouble finding a can (3rd world country), could my local hardware store's air compressor work? Or would that blow it inside out?

[Elthy]

That extreme of an slowdown sounds like a software-issue. This could be an overloaded system that runs out of ram or a virus that mines cryptocurrency. The best remedy would be to reinstall windows.

[linuxgurugamer]

1 hour ago, Hyperspace Industries said:

Having trouble finding a can (3rd world country), could my local hardware store's air compressor work? Or would that blow it inside out?

That would be much too strong at full blast.  Aircan is best since it won't overdo it, but if you can regulate the output of the compresser, you can test against your hand.  It shouldn't hurt, and should only make a small dimple on your skin if you are blowing it from an inch away

Beyond that, at @Elthysaid above, it could be a software issue.  Virus, or something else

[Hyperspace Industries]

2 hours ago, Elthy said:

That extreme of an slowdown sounds like a software-issue. This could be an overloaded system that runs out of ram or a virus that mines cryptocurrency. The best remedy would be to reinstall windows.

Would a virus slowly slow the computer down over months? If it would just have one giant drop off a cliff in performance, then we can rule that out. It slowly went slower and slower over time.

[Nuke]

never owned a laptop that didnt eventually cook itself off at some point.  the thermodynamic margins are so thin on these things that any degradation in performance from the heat management system can be lethal to the machine.

2 hours ago, Hyperspace Industries said:

Would a virus slowly slow the computer down over months? If it would just have one giant drop off a cliff in performance, then we can rule that out. It slowly went slower and slower over time.

virus, ha! it was probibly a windows update.  and my virus scanner acts more like a virus than my eth miner. 

4 hours ago, linuxgurugamer said:

That would be much too strong at full blast.  Aircan is best since it won't overdo it, but if you can regulate the output of the compresser, you can test against your hand.  It shouldn't hurt, and should only make a small dimple on your skin if you are blowing it from an inch away

Beyond that, at @Elthysaid above, it could be a software issue.  Virus, or something else

a lot of these coolers are sealed end to end for compactness and ease of cleaning. i dont think it would hurt it too much. i recommend going in through the exhaust side to reduce the risk of damaging the fans. do check any documentation you can find for your laptop, try to find a service manual. 

Edited October 27, 2021 by Nuke

[linuxgurugamer]

1 hour ago, Nuke said:

never owned a laptop that didnt eventually cook itself off at some point.  the thermodynamic margins are so thin on these things that any degradation in performance from the heat management system can be lethal to the machine.

I've had plenty of laptops, have pretty much worked on laptops for 20 years.  Never had this problem.  Any decent laptop will have enough cooling, and will throttle down if it gets too warm.

1 hour ago, Nuke said:

a lot of these coolers are sealed end to end for compactness and ease of cleaning. i dont think it would hurt it too much. i recommend going in through the exhaust side to reduce the risk of damaging the fans. do check any documentation you can find for your laptop, try to find a service manual. 

Umm, it's rather difficult to cool if the fins are sealed.  And if you read above, I _did_ say to blow in the exhaust port.

[Nuke]

1 hour ago, linuxgurugamer said:

I've had plenty of laptops, have pretty much worked on laptops for 20 years.  Never had this problem.  Any decent laptop will have enough cooling, and will throttle down if it gets too warm.

Umm, it's rather difficult to cool if the fins are sealed.  And if you read above, I _did_ say to blow in the exhaust port.

when i mean sealed i mean they are usually a continuous tunnel that never touch any of the electronics from the inside (thermal interface is usually through a heat pipe or vapor chamber), so its pretty safe to vacuum or blow out so long as you take care not to damage the fans. static is really not an issue if you have the laptop grounded (just plug it, the cooling unit is usually grounded internally). like i said check the service manuals to make sure the geometry is what you think it is. last laptop i owned went tango uniform literally a week after the warranty expired. when i opened it up to see if i could fix it, it was alarmingly clean, never did find the cause of death. the battery was good and every part i salvaged was functional, including the cpu. i really didnt want to shell out for a new mobo.  

Edited October 28, 2021 by Nuke

[Hyperspace Industries]

Well, I updated my laptop and it loaded word nearly instantly, but ksp is more of a struggle than before the problems started, and also, my fans are eerily quiet, with occasional clicks. Should probably go visit the hardware store.

[Gargamel]

1 hour ago, Hyperspace Industries said:

with occasional clicks.

Fans aren't supposed to click.....

Yes, your local hardware store should have canned air.   Worst case scenario is they can order it from a bigger store in the city if you're a ways out there.  

[adsii1970]

1 hour ago, Hyperspace Industries said:

Well, I updated my laptop and it loaded word nearly instantly, but ksp is more of a struggle than before the problems started, and also, my fans are eerily quiet, with occasional clicks. Should probably go visit the hardware store.

I had a laptop do this once before. Here's what I did to solve the problem:

• Get a can of air as @Gargamel has said. Not knowing what part of the mud ball you call home, you can get them at any hardware store, electronics store, or any department store.
• Turn off your laptop. Don't ever use the can of air on a laptop (or any other electronic device) that's on.
• Get a paper clip, unbend it and straighten it out. Insert it in the small circular hole to open the CD/DVD tray (if your laptop has one).
• Take the can of air and blow out every spot on your laptop where there is an opening.
• This step is optional: I always take my vacuum cleaner to the same openings. The Dirt Devil I purchased about five years ago actually came with a small tool specifically for electronics. I use it on my desktop, too. It's amazing how much dust will accumulate inside a PC tower/laptop.

The clicking can be caused by several things. it could be:

• There's so much dust accumulation obstructing the blade and the dust buildup (think dust-bunny sized obstruction) is causing the blades to bend, striking the cooler frame.
• There's a small piece of non-computer/non-electronics debris (like a piece of Doritos). This happens to my daughter occasionally. It's amazing when you play a game in bed, while snacking, how much crud ends up inside the laptop...

Anyhow, hope this helps.

 

17 hours ago, Hyperspace Industries said:

Would a virus slowly slow the computer down over months? If it would just have one giant drop off a cliff in performance, then we can rule that out. It slowly went slower and slower over time.

Yes, a virus (or viruses) would. Also, spyware would do the same.

[adsii1970]

20 hours ago, Hyperspace Industries said:

Having trouble finding a can (3rd world country), could my local hardware store's air compressor work? Or would that blow it inside out?

I want to apologize for not reading this part of your post before I posted my previous answer.

• AVOID THE TEMPTATION to use a soda straw and the mentality of I have a set of lungs, I'll blow it out myself! This is always a bad idea. It introduces saliva (slobber) into the guts of your computer. Sure, a can of air can introduce a little frost and moisture. But that's minuscule compared to human slobber. Oh, and anything you've eaten or drank within the last thirty minutes is now plastered to the components inside your computer.
• If possible, and I know this is a bit more challenging, maybe you could open up your laptop and use a set of small paintbrushes (think craft and hobby sized) to clean the dust and other debris off the fan(s).

A standard vacuum cleaner can work but you do not want to apply a lot of direct suction to the laptop. That can cause as much harm as using the air compressor at the hardware store. But if you are able to get a can of air, you can use the vacuum cleaner hose and crevice tool and put an old sock over it. Cut a hole in the center of the part of the sock over the crevice tool to allow any debris to be sucked into it. The sock material reduces the suction so it is not as focused to destroy the components but still allows you to be able to clean your electronics (or other delicate items, such as model kits).

[Hyperspace Industries]

Status update: Tried to open my laptop up, but even when I removed all the screws it wouldn’t budge. Power went out (blame South Africa) and now I have no wifi, my phone has data, but my laptop does not...

But this is all eclipsed by GOOD NEWS!!!!

While searching for something (either screwdrivers or smaller brushes) I found in what was my dad’s old office, and is now my workshop, what appears to be a laptop cooling pad.  Could it keep my laptop barely functioning?

[Geonovast]

First of all... verify that it's actually overheating.

Install a piece of software that monitors cpu temp and see if it's actually even running hot.  Your fans may be quiet because the thing is just not running hot.

Slow opening software?  Clicking noise?  These are telltale signs that you have a dying harddrive (if you have a harddrive in the system)  The actual specs of your system would help greatly.

Get CrystalDiskInfo and run a S.M.A.R.T. test on your drive(s).

Cooling pad may help a tiny bit if your fans are dying.  It won't help if the heatsink fins are plugged up.  I've found that cooling pads are more of a placebo than anything.  Even if it helps, it will be a bandaid.  If your fan(s) is/are dying, they need to be replaced.

But before you dive head first into dealing with an overheating problem, make sure you have an overheating problem in the first place.

 

[Hyperspace Industries]

50 minutes ago, Geonovast said:

verify that it's actually overheating.

I think, perhaps, that I was thinking on the wrong lines when I said it was silent, because I was applying the fan noise when not playing ksp to when I am playing ksp. Also, that clicking noise is very quiet, and I am fairly certain that I heard it the first time I fired my laptop up. The laptop seems to feel just as hot as normal, I think I was overreacting due to it being slow.

I also am fairly certain now, because ksp is currently loading perfectly (after removing a few mods), that all the slowness was caused by skipping a few thousand updates, as it ran exactly like normal after updating. 

Sorry for wasting everybody's time, but thanks a lot for the help!