For the latter the answer is usually simple and obvious: if you’re notebook is overheating you’ll feel it or hear it. Since notebooks are compact computers there is less ventilation and your body makes direct contact with the casing so any increase in internal temperature will translate in an increase of external temperature. While all this may seem common sense, the truth is a lot of casual notebook owners are clueless as to whether their laptop is overheating or not, let alone their desktop PC. This is why the first step in caring for your hardware is to monitor it.
Monitoring software
There’s a plethora of hardware monitoring software out there but not all of them deliver. Providing a comprehensive list of a detailed review of the software isn’t the goal of this article so only one Windows app will be mentioned that has throughout time provided consistent and reliable results across a variety of hardware: HWMonitor.
So, what heats and and why?
Any electrical unit uses a part of its required power to perform the task it was designed for and the rest usually is outputted as thermal energy. In layman’s terms every part of your computer that uses electrical current will also warm up. The more power it uses the hotter it will get. This temperature is reported to sensors spread out in various components. The components which usually matter the most are also the ones that usually pack thermal sensor: the CPU, the graphics card and hard disks. The following principle applies to all three: the more you stress your hardware the hotter it gets.
CPUs design has improved a lot throughout the years and various technologies like Intel’s SpeedStep or AMD Cool’n’Quiet underclock CPU’s to lesser frequencies in order to heat up less when idle or under small computing loads. Usually, unless you’re overclocking, box coolers should be enough. Otherwise it might be time you stocked up on a bigger, fancier cooler, some thermal paste and considered radiator equipped memory modules (since those heat up as well).
GPUs usually reach the highest temperatures of any other computer component, be they notebook or desktop. That's why GPUs usually come equipped with their own fans that supplements the heatsink. GPUs usually run idle and rather cool unless your hardware-encoding HD video or playing video games.
While HDD’s don’t use anywhere near as much power as any of the other aforementioned components they do have moving parts: disc platters that spin at very high rates (usually 7200rpm but can be more) that generate heat. They are by far the cheapest hardware to replace in case of failure, however, while CPUs and GPUs can be easily swapped with newer parts the data on your HDD that has accumulated throughout its lifetime may turn out to be priceless and irreplaceable. That is why the next article will focus on keeping your hard-drives cool and healthy.
Stay tuned for Care for your Hardware: Heatstroke (Part 2).