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Macbook overheating, fan noisy.
- Thread starter sdawgisinthebui
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Locum is a process that is active when you are emptying the trash or moving files. Your computer is likely running slowly because files are being moved or the trash is being emptied. Your computer is not overheating. If it was overheating, it would turn itself off to prevent damage.
Activity & Temperature
In the future, you can try MenuMeters, so you won't have to make a trip to the Activity Monitor ever so often, if you wonder how much of your cores, RAM hard drive activities, and internet data are being used.
Also, Intell is right; recent and current Macs will force shut down if the computer runs too hot. smcFanControl, another utility, can give you the ability to control your fan speed, as well as tell you how hot your MacBook is running. Anything over 60-65°C means you should keep your eye on the temperature and your activities, but it shouldn't be too much of a worry
(I had my Core i7 MBP running a little over 70°C for over two hours, unintentionally once, and it ran fine, but that's pretty darn hot).
In the future, you can try MenuMeters, so you won't have to make a trip to the Activity Monitor ever so often, if you wonder how much of your cores, RAM hard drive activities, and internet data are being used.
Also, Intell is right; recent and current Macs will force shut down if the computer runs too hot. smcFanControl, another utility, can give you the ability to control your fan speed, as well as tell you how hot your MacBook is running. Anything over 60-65°C means you should keep your eye on the temperature and your activities, but it shouldn't be too much of a worry
(I had my Core i7 MBP running a little over 70°C for over two hours, unintentionally once, and it ran fine, but that's pretty darn hot).
They can get up to 97C before problems start happening. But will shut down around 95C.
Wow, that's very impressive! I remember having a 1.5GHz 12.1-inch PowerBook G4; it got up to about 75°C easily, and had serious issues. Before it finally died, I had to put a container of ice under it to keep it cool because I didn't have any thermal compound, and I was not as experienced with hardware as I am today.
A week or so later, I replaced the logic board and sold it on eBay.
Oh, absolutely. My friend, who currently owns a MacBook C2D I refurbished and sold to her almost two years ago, had overheating issues. That thing was running up to 87°C, so I told her to bring it over immediately so I could remedy that, and now, it runs great after some hardware maintenance.
But to be honest, I kinda miss the ol' Apple days.
Your Mac is not overheating. The Intel processors used in Macs are designed to automatically shut down to prevent damage if they truly overheat. CPU Tjmax = 105C, GPU Tjmax = 100C on i3, i5, i7 processors. (Source: Intel) If you're not already using it, iStat Pro will give you accurate readings of your temps and fan speeds, among other things.
Unless there is a rare defect in a Mac, most temps are well within the normal operating range, considering the workload being put on it. Websites with Flash content, games and other multimedia apps will put higher demand on the CPU/GPU, generating more heat. This is normal. If you're constantly putting high demands on your system, such as gaming or other multimedia tasks, expect temps to rise and fans to spin up accordingly. It's just your Mac doing its job to maintain temps within the normal range.
It is also quite normal for your Mac to become extremely hot to the touch during intensive operations. The aluminum body transfers heat more effectively than other materials used in computer casings, so you will feel the heat more. This doesn't indicate that it's overheating and will not harm the computer to be hot to the touch.
Your fans are always on when your Mac is on, spinning at a minimum of 2000 rpm (for MBPs) or 1800 rpm (for MBAs, MBs and minis). iMacs have 3 fans with minimum speeds in the 800-1200 range. They will spin faster as needed to keep temps at a safe level. If they're spinning up without increased heat, try resetting the SMC. (PRAM/NVRAM has nothing to do with these issues, so resetting it will not help.)
The intake and exhaust vents are in the back of the computer near the hinge on all Mac notebooks. The iMac vent is a slot on the back near the top of the computer. Make sure the vents remain unblocked to allow your computer to perform at its best.
Learn about the fans in your Mac
Apple Portables: Operating temperature
For Flash-related issues:
Unless there is a rare defect in a Mac, most temps are well within the normal operating range, considering the workload being put on it. Websites with Flash content, games and other multimedia apps will put higher demand on the CPU/GPU, generating more heat. This is normal. If you're constantly putting high demands on your system, such as gaming or other multimedia tasks, expect temps to rise and fans to spin up accordingly. It's just your Mac doing its job to maintain temps within the normal range.
It is also quite normal for your Mac to become extremely hot to the touch during intensive operations. The aluminum body transfers heat more effectively than other materials used in computer casings, so you will feel the heat more. This doesn't indicate that it's overheating and will not harm the computer to be hot to the touch.
Your fans are always on when your Mac is on, spinning at a minimum of 2000 rpm (for MBPs) or 1800 rpm (for MBAs, MBs and minis). iMacs have 3 fans with minimum speeds in the 800-1200 range. They will spin faster as needed to keep temps at a safe level. If they're spinning up without increased heat, try resetting the SMC. (PRAM/NVRAM has nothing to do with these issues, so resetting it will not help.)
The intake and exhaust vents are in the back of the computer near the hinge on all Mac notebooks. The iMac vent is a slot on the back near the top of the computer. Make sure the vents remain unblocked to allow your computer to perform at its best.
Learn about the fans in your Mac
Apple Portables: Operating temperature
For Flash-related issues:
- Find your Flash version and make sure it's the latest version available.
- Install ClickToFlash (Safari), Flashblock (Firefox) or FlashBlock (Chrome) to control which Flash content plays on websites.
- Use the YouTube HTML5 Video Player to watch YouTube videos, when available. (May impact fullscreen viewing. See link for details.)