Question Can faulty RAM cause processor overheating or is it something else in my machine?

[pnvr8e]

I have a Gateway W350A with:
-3GB(1GB +2GB, both 667) of RAM
-T-1628 Motherboard
-Windows 10
-Turion x2 65 TL-60

I noticed that with 3GB, the machine has a tendency to crash and the processor is around 50degrees C. A few days ago it was running fine but the crashes have returned.

The power supply it came with(19v and 3.4a), not OEM, frequently heated up just like the crashes. The 19v 4.5a power supply I'm using now was initially more stable but just as hot. I thought that as more apps were run, the laptop needed more power which the first power supply could not give but even this does not seem to hold.

I tried running it with just 1GB and it doesn't crash but is unusably slow. With 2GB(1+1), it is still slow and I don't remember if it crashes. Anything less than 3GB seems to be cooler judging by the exhaust of the fan specially at 1GB

If my 2GB stick is faulty, can it cause the processor to heat up to the point that the machine crashes? Will more RAM at 4GB lessen the load on the processor thus less heat too? I have funny feeling that this machine can take up to 4GB but anything beyond 1GB causes it to heat up and crash.

I've ordered 2 2GB sticks to maximize the RAM on the machine and to replace the 2GB stick that I have if it is faulty.

I've already replaced the power supply and hard drive to figure out the cause of the crashes. Now its the RAM's turn. The processor will be the final component I will test/replace and if that doesn't work the motherboard won't be worth replacing for the low price that I got this laptop.

Can running an advanced OS with other apps cause the processor(its already a decade old) to overheat to despite already removing Win10's bloatware and other apps that I don't need?

 

[julienruc]

If you're suspecting a CPU heating isssue I would suggest reapplying thermal paste first. And take it from there.

As for the potential faulty RAM, you're only option is to run a memtest.

 

[julienruc]

I just realised that we are talking about a laptop here. Highly recommend repaste and cleaning the fan + fan holes and verifying if fans are working correctly.

 

[pnvr8e]

fan is still clean, will remove old paste and repaste though. thanks!

 

[julienruc]

Hope that solves it. Fingers crossed

 

[pnvr8e]

i have not yet changed the thermal paste, currently doing an mdsched test... very slow but processor temp peaked at only 39degrees C... on the 1gb stick.

 

[pnvr8e]

temp peaked at 45degrees C then shutdown, test was unfinished

 

[pnvr8e]

trying the 2gb stick now, temp in high 30s but not exceeding 40.

 

[pnvr8e]

did the test with the 2gb stick like this. temp was in high 30s but never exceeded 40. test was completed, no errors.

now will do the same with the 1gb stick.

 

[pnvr8e]

did the same for the 1gb stick, completed and passed. for any difference in temperature, it was just 1-2degrees with occasional quick peaks over 40.

with both ram sticks ok and the same for the hd and power supply, what else could i do? i checked on the turion 2x 64 tl-60 working temps and at 40-50C of mine, this processor should/could reach 95!

so why does mine crash at half the max temp?

i came across under volting in one of the sites about this procesaor. since my psu had a variable voltage switch, i lowered it down from 19 to 12, before trying an app that would do this, and the laptop worked! worked better, i'd say. it has been on for roughly an hour and in that time i've watched a 20min youtube video. the temp from the vent is 40-50 but certainly feels cooler than from what it was when it was on 19v. the fan speeds up every now and then too but does not go on 'overdrive' as much as it used to with the higher voltage.