Windows 8 Laptop Shutting down automatically while watching 720p Videos (NO BSOD)

[jenil]

Hey all,

I am having a problem in my lenovo z560 laptop where whenevr i play 720p videos, the laptop automatically shuts itself down after a few minutes..
At first i thot it was just that one video file, but soon i realised that it was all 720p video files, but normal HDTV files work great.

So i came to the conclusion that mayb the fan was getting overheated and hence the laptop shuts down..
But after a quick google search, i realised i should see the system event log where i found this

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Can anyone please tell me what it means and how i can solve it?
I am incerasingly getting frustrated with my laptop shutting down while im watching movies or serials.

Thanking you all in advance,
Jenil

 

[Trouble]

That particular event just describes the unexpected shutdown.
You may find something more useful in events that were logged immediately preceding that event. Checking both the system and application logs.
Your suspicions with respect to temps could be relevant with respect to your GPU, CPU and or the overall system not being provided with sufficient cooling (you may want to install some software to help you monitor system temperatures) or you may have an issue with your Graphics Card driver so check your manufacturers website and see what they have in the way of an update for it.

 

[jenil]

I updated the nvidia graphics driver with no avail.. Tried flashing my bios to latest version but it still didnt solve my problem..

Here are the screenshots of my gpu temp while in idle mode, and watching 720p serial respectively...

Link RemovedLink RemovedLink RemovedLink Removed

 

[usasma]

GPU at 99ºC - not good. Should be (at max) in the 70's (or even 80's), but not in the 90's!!!.
Work on cooling solutions for the GPU - good airflow, cooler free of dust/dirt, fan working, adequate power, etc.
If still overheating, I'd suggest testing the connection between the cooler and the GPU chip for adequate thermal paste (had one of these in an OEM system once - had to burn myself once or twice before I figured it out! :0)

 

[davehc]

Is that an earlier model i3? If so, you don't have much chance of fixing it for prolonged graphic use. I had one a while back, but now I just use it for browsing or typing.

 

[jenil]

Is that an earlier model i3? If so, you don't have much chance of fixing it for prolonged graphic use. I had one a while back, but now I just use it for browsing or typing.

Itz 1st gen i3 model
I dont really play games or stuff on it..
All i use it for is browsing and watching movies n serials...
Though i gotta say i recently played and finished COD Black Ops 2 without any problem on this very laptop...

 

[davehc]

OK. If you have had it working until now, take up Usasma's suggestion. Open it up and clean it out. Watching films is pretty much graphic intensive. Perhaps, with a little mileage on the laptop, the dirty cooling system is aggravated.

 

[Jimbo22]

Get a can or 2 or compressed air and blow out all your vents and ports of the laptop and then get a chill pad or laptop cooler for the laptop. I blow my laptop out at least once a month.

 

[jenil]

OK. If you have had it working until now, take up Usasma's suggestion. Open it up and clean it out. Watching films is pretty much graphic intensive. Perhaps, with a little mileage on the laptop, the dirty cooling system is aggravated.

Agreed it is graphic intensive... But nt as intensive as playing graphic hungry game on it, which worked perfectly fine...

 

[jenil]

Get a can or 2 or compressed air and blow out all your vents and ports of the laptop and then get a chill pad or laptop cooler for the laptop. I blow my laptop out at least once a month.

I tried opening the back panel of the laptop with watevr tools i had at my disposal...
I managed to open up all but 2 of the screws as my screwdriver isnt thin enuf to reach them...
I will get another screwdriver coming home from work...
However i did manage to take a peek inside the hood..
All i could see is dust dust n dust...
The fan was full of dust as far as i could see...
Will clean it out 2day..

Here's hoping the dust is the only problem....

P.S. atleast once a month? isnt dat wayy 2 much?

 

[davehc]

As Bass said. He blows it out. Not quite such a herculean task as opening it right up.

 

[jenil]

Oh yeah missd that part

 

[davehc]

Anyway. I'd appreciate your feedback on this. It is a common problem with i3 computers.

 

[Jimbo22]

P.S. atleast once a month? isnt dat wayy 2 much?

You'd be very surprised at how fast the dust will accumulate on the fans. This also depends on how much you use the laptop, with a lot of use you'll get a lot of just build up. I wouldn't take any more chances with it, it's all ready shutting down do to high temps, which it does to protect itself. If it were mine, I'd blow it out bi-weekly.

 

[jenil]

You'd be very surprised at how fast the dust will accumulate on the fans. This also depends on how much you use the laptop, with a lot of use you'll get a lot of just build up. I wouldn't take any more chances with it, it's all ready shutting down do to high temps, which it does to protect itself. If it were mine, I'd blow it out bi-weekly.

Well i dnt really haf anything to blow the dust out.... so all i haf left is open up when such problem arises....

Anyway. I'd appreciate your feedback on this. It is a common problem with i3 computers.

Yeah will keep you guys posted....

 

[jenil]

So i managed to open up the laptop and clean the air vents, the fan and the entire laptop in general...
The temps reduced to 60c on an avg..
How ever as soon as i do some graphic using task like play videos or evn load browser, the temp shoots up and if it reaches 107, then the laptop shuts down..
sometimes it cools down automatically...
Playing even normal videos shoots the temp upto 99 or more and it shuts down..

P.S. The cooling gel found under the cooling unit had kind of melted in the centre and dried up at the edges..

 

[davehc]

So, again as originally recommended by Usasma, get down to the computer shop and buy a tube of thermal paste. It looks like, from your report, that you are heading in the right direction. The paste is not cheap and, if you read my original post on the i3, I would not guarantee a 100% result. Worth a try, though?

 

[jenil]

So, again as originally recommended by Usasma, get down to the computer shop and buy a tube of thermal paste. It looks like, from your report, that you are heading in the right direction. The paste is not cheap and, if you read my original post on the i3, I would not guarantee a 100% result. Worth a try, though?

Okay! so i bought some thermal paste and applied it to the gpu and processor and sealed the laptop...
In initial testing, for abt 10 mins, i played a 720p video, during which the temp spiked about 3-4 times and at the fourth time, it didnt cool down and reached 107 and the laptop shut down...

However i was able to achieve d minimum temp of 50 which a couple days ago was impossible!
So it didnt xactly solve the problem, bt made it a lill bttr...

I'll watch for a couple of days.. if it aggravates, den i will give it in lenovo for diagnostics and repairing...

P.S.
A guy i met for this thermal paste said that there can be various reasons for the laptop to shut down, like the fan running at low rpm or the graphics card malfunctioning... He said graphics card malfunctioning is rare so i must check the fan speed and rpm..

However he said that for checking that, there are no softwares available and that i must keep the laptop with him so that he will check it..
I'm nt sure i believe him and/or trust him..
Is there any ways to check the rpm and speed of the fan using any software?
If so any links for such software would b appreciated!!

 

[usasma]

Tell the owners of the Asus G7x series of laptops that graphics card failures are rare! We get about one a week where I work! The methods of testing are using the temperature monitors and seeing what your work has done to lower the temps. As you've put thermal paste on the GPU, you can probably check the other factors involved in cooling without having someone else do it for you. Wait for davehc to come back as he likely knows more about this than I do.

If you don't trust him, don't leave your laptop with him. What'll you do if he sells/steals it?

Here's a free tool that'll check the speeds and temps: HWMonitor CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting

 

[jenil]

Tell the owners of the Asus G7x series of laptops that graphics card failures are rare! We get about one a week where I work! The methods of testing are using the temperature monitors and seeing what your work has done to lower the temps. As you've put thermal paste on the GPU, you can probably check the other factors involved in cooling without having someone else do it for you. Wait for davehc to come back as he likely knows more about this than I do.

If you don't trust him, don't leave your laptop with him. What'll you do if he sells/steals it?

Here's a free tool that'll check the speeds and temps: HWMonitor CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting

I dont trust him in the sense that if i give him my laptop he will just say something else is the problem and will foot up the bill unnecessarily!