M17x R3 Ok To Remove GPU and fan/heatsink?

Hello. I still have my M17x R3 from 2011 with AMD 6970M as the GPU. Recently, the card has been failing. I tried re-installing the drivers but would fail again after a few hours. Today the screen went completely black when turned on (opening alienware logo would not show). I googled and someone recommended to remove the GPU. I removed the GPU with the Fan/Heatsink and laptop is working fine with the Intel HD Graphics 3000. I am not looking to replace since I rarely play games on the laptop. Will the laptop be okay without having the fan/heatsink for the long term?

Below is the picture of the parts removed. Thank you!

http://imgur.com/a/Dpdgm

 

If the laptop functions normally in your use case then probably yes. Having something disconnected is usually safe as the connector cannot get damaged by simply existing.

 

I also have an Alienware M17xR3 on which the Intel graphic card burned out. I downloaded the service manual off Dell and used it as a guide. I bought an nVidia 680M, if I remember correctly, and followed the instructions to install the drivers from a post by J45 on some other place. I don't know whether your choice will work. The parts certainly look familiar to me. Be sure to keep all the small screws and stuff because you will need to use them with the new graphics card. Don't let Dell talk into replacing the screen if you don't need to replace it. Their support seems to have less knowledge than I have. My problem started with a BIOS POST error code of 8 beeps and a black display. Removing the olld graphics card as you did allowed me to temporarily boot with an external VGA cable to a Dell P2210 flat panel monitor until I could install the new graphics card. Please look at my fairly thread to get all the information correct. Good luck!

 

I found out that having the Dell P2210 flat panel monitor hooked up by VGA cable before booting allowed the POST to detect it and give me a higher resolution.

I found out from Dell in my other thread that the nVidia 580M and the nVidia 680M graphics cards would be suitable replacements for the M17xR3. Prices seem to range from $200 to $700.

 

Thank you to both of you +rep

 

780M is much better and works with M17x R3

@woodzstack

contact person above to buy

 

As your removing the GPU , not having the fan and heatsink there won't hurt a thing. The CPU should have it's own fan and heatsink so those will remain unaffected. Lots of people , including myself, have removed their dead GPU's to continue using their laptops while they decided to either replace the GPU or invest in a new laptop.

TLDR: You won't hurt it.