Make sure your computer's keeping its cool

Laptop keeping its cool?

To be clear I'm not suggesting your laptop should take a dip to cool off!

I've seen heat and fan noise issues affecting several of my clients now and thought it'd be helpful to share my thoughts and some recommendations on this topic of laptop/desktop cooling problems, the most common causes and what can be done about them.

Excess heat's much more prevalent with laptops because, by their very nature, they've got a lot of components packed tightly into a relatively small enclosure and consequently, heat dissipation is a bigger challenge. However under normal circumstances that heat dissipates effectively enough to maintain a 'healthy' internal ambient temperature. With desktop computers there's typically a lot more space within the outer casing for a larger volume of air to flow around and keep things cool. So heat build-up isn't normally such an issue. That said, desktops do still need to be attended to. So read on. 

There are a couple of factors which will directly impact the normal cooling process; I see and deal with both quite frequently. The first is a physical issue and is the build-up of a layer of household dust and fluff within the computer's cooling/ventilation system. In most computers there's an active cooling system which is driven by a small, thermostatically controlled fan. i.e. the fan only spins up when the internal temperature rises above a pre-determined threshold, prompting a need for more cooling. It's also possible that the fan has a variable speed which increases when further higher heat thresholds are reached/exceeded. You're most likely aware of this fan from both the noise it generates and the plume of warm exhaust air it pushes out across the desk when running at full speed.

The next factor typically arises if you're hosting a lot of software or apps on your computer. By having lots of apps running in the background you're giving the computer's CPU a heavy workload to manage before you even start to browse the web or type that email. Malware is another possible and most unwelcome contributor to your computer's background workload. This heavy workload, in turn, results in the CPU generating more heat which results in a need for more cooling, hence the cooling system is more frequently called upon to keep the temperature down.

So if your computer's internal fan is constantly on and its drone is apparent it's possible that one or more of the above factors is contributing to that situation. The question is: what can be done to address that?

Air vents on the underside of a laptop should,
ideally, be clean and free of dust and fluff as above.

For the dust/fluff build-up aspect, with the computer powered off, just take a look at the inlet/outlet vents around your computer's casing to see if there's any sign of an accumulation of dust hindering air flow. Any that's there can normally be cleared using a clean paint brush. For a desktop computer that's tucked away under a table or desk it's worth making the effort to pull it out to gain access to the back. That's normally where the main cooling fan is located and there's probably a vent or perforated section to the case where the fan draws in or blows out air. Just check that the vents are not blocked or obstructed by dust or anything else. Clean any accumulated dust off with a paint brush. For a more serious build-up of dust it may be appropriate to disassemble the computer to enable a more complete and thorough clean. But caution is needed if going there. If unsure seek help from a trained technician.

For the malware aspect, it makes perfect sense to have good internet security software that's actively scanning for and preventing infections at all times. For those who are happy to go with the subscription-free option I'd say Avast Free is probably the best one currently available. For the subscription based products Kaspersky Internet Security is generally highly regarded for its very good detection rate.

In Windows 8 the Control Panel entry (highlighted
in yellow) to access and remove apps looks like this.

For the software clutter aspect take a good look at what's installed and remove anything that's not needed or essential. Note. If you're unsure about what's a valid candidate for removal best err on the side of caution and leave it be. To see a list of what's installed go to the Control Panel and then,depending on which version of Windows on your computer go to Add/Remove Programs (Windows XP), Programs & Features (Windows Vista & Windows 7) or Programs (Windows 8). As a general guideline anything from Microsoft, your computer's vendor or your internet security app is best left alone. All others are potential candidates for removal. Again, if unsure about doing this seek help.

Old school fraud masquerading as something official

If you're here looking for a solution to the Your Computer Has Been Locked banner screen then this article should give some general pointers and info. Please comment if you have something constructive to add or found this article to be helpful.

This is a new twist in the type of malware infection that’s on the loose at the moment. Everything about this rogue app is designed to intimidate its unsuspecting victims (there have been many) into believing that there’s something official about the basis for his or her pc being locked. However it’s nothing more than theft, fraud, crime or whatever seems most appropriate to describe this kind of low-life activity.
In this example the computer has been well and truly hijacked and with no apparent way of getting rid of the on-screen message or regaining control of the infected pc. Furthermore the victim is being asked to send a payment of 100GBP to buy the release. Alas the needed solution will not be found by making the payment. Instead it’ll result in the criminals behind this fraud getting credit card and, most likely, other valuable personal information with which to attempt to commit further crimes.
The solution here is to find the most appropriate way to clear the infection from the pc without having to completely wipe the system with a reinstall of Windows. So we turn to using one or possibly more anti-malware apps.
The above pc, running Windows Vista, had to be restarted into safe mode to enable the necessary control to be regained. Having got this far it was then possible to use SurfRight’s HitMan Pro to perform a scan of the infected pc. Multiple infected files in various locations on the hard drive were discovered and cleaned. Further infected files were detected during a subsequent scan using MalwareBytes Antimalware scanner.
Perhaps not all of those infected files were associated with the ransomware but, of course, all needed to be removed for obvious reasons.
Following this disinfection the pc could be restarted normally with no apparent damage to the Windows operating system, user data or the installed apps. A lucky escape? Not so easy to discover is what information may have been harvested from the infected pc. So follow-up actions include resetting passwords on all important accounts. e.g. online banking and shopping. The other priority follow-up was to invest in better internet security software. Kaspersky and BitDefender are the vendors of what is considered to be the best currently available.
It’s priggish to say this, I know, but prevention is always better than cure!