Random in-game lag/crashing= CPU or cooling Problem?

pandaking33

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Mar 5, 2010
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Hey, I recently started playing a game called WarRock again. It is a game that I have played for literally years, with no lag or anything. However, this time it is different. My computer is getting heavy frame lag, that seems to be random. My frames per second will drop from a recorded 130 to 15-40 fps. The spikes do not last very long; most of the time they only last up to 30 seconds. I should also note that the lag is not dependant on my graphics settings; I lag the same on the very highest settings as I do on the very lowest.

I have tried everything that I know of to fix this. I have defragmented, searched for spyware, reinstalled the game, used programs that close all unnecessary processes, and optimized my computer in every way I can think of. After all of this didn't work, I reformatted my computer. But this was also to no avail.

The only thing that DID stop my lag thus far, was updating my drivers for my AMD processor. However, after doing this my computer would completely turn off after 15-30 minutes of play. This leads me think that my problem has something to do with my processer's software.

I have had my computer for almost three years now, and it is a laptop, so it could possibly be that my hardware is simply getting worn out. But WarRock is a very low end game, and I think I should be able to run it on low settings AT LEAST, seeing as I have run it on high for years. My friend and I have a clue that my CPU is over heating, because I downloaded a program that measured the temperatures of my hardware, and my CPU got up to ~95 degrees Celsius when playing the game. I have not ran the program with the non-updated driver.

My system specs are far from spectacular, but they've always been enough in the past to run games like oblivion and COD4 moderately:
AMD Turion 64 mobile Technology ML-34 ~1.8GHz
1.00 GB of RAM
NVIDIA GeForce Go 7900 GS

Any suggestions?


 
Heat is the likely cause; laptop cpu heatsinks aren't designed for the stress of gaming, and the cpu is likely slowing down to prevent the extra heat from damaging the cpu. You could check pricewatch or newegg and look for a copper heatsink, which might help some. Another fix is to buy a container of specially designed canned solvent. Mine is called perfect duster, sold at frys for around $3. It contains a solvent that evaporates quickly leaving no residue. Cleaning the heatsink fan might be all it needs.
 

Vampyrbyte

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Sep 2, 2009
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Almost definitly a cooling issue. Try cleaning dust away from the vents on your laptop. Use compressed air or something similar. You should be able to pick it up from a model shop or maybe even a supermarket.
Also make sure your laptop can "Breathe" so to speak. Use it on your desk or flat surface. Its suprising how much they can heat up when being used on your Bed or Lap or something soft. Seeing as you are playing an FPS you are probably doing this already though.