Something seriously wrong with my GPU, please help!

Ok I've had this laptop for about a month, overclocked to 615/900 and never seen a temperature greater than 79 celsius. Usually idles around 58-65. However this evening when I got back I saw Rivatuner was reading around 75 degrees idle. Wierd I thought, must be a small error. Well I tried loading up a game, and within a minute the temperature shoots up to over 100 degrees! I was shocked and just a few minutes ago, my laptop actually shut itself down! Upon reboot I checked rivatuner and it read 120 degrees! I am seriously freaking out, how could this happen?? I tried a system restore but it's not solved. I'm using 169.28 driver, though I really don't know, the driver's served me well so far. In fact everything's been well until tonight. Please help!

 

Return to you stock clocks and see if that reduces the temperature.

 

Tried removing the OC?

 

where are you using it? because it could be that the fan vents are blocked out!

 

Ok I resetted to default. I ran 3Dmark and within 10 seconds I knew something was wrong. Not only was I getting 10 FPS when I usually get over 30, but I exited and Rivatuner read 100 degrees. It's idling now at 76 degrees. God what's happening....

I'm trying to think of anything that might help. My laptop is on my desk as always, I've never seen graphics tears/artifacts. The bottom of the laptop feels warm to the touch but not blazing hot...

A few days ago my computer detected a trojan in a winrar file, but it was deleted right away. That's all I can think of really....

 

Was your fan spinning up fast at those high temps?

 

Check if dust is blocking your vents, and make sure your fans are working properly. It could also just be a freak defect that reared its ugly head randomly, in which case if you have a warranty you should be able to get it fixed with no issues.

 

Yes thats what i was about to say.. Check that your fans are working properly and nothing is obstructing the vents. Its unlikely dust since the temps just spiked up as of today but its always good to check.

Try booting on safemode so it will only load minimum drivers and programs (not sure if you can check GPU temps though)

 

I suggest you delete every trace of an overclocking program (delete even the log files) and return your notebook for warranty repairs for a check-up.

 

Is there a way to run a diagnostic check on the GPU? I want to know if this is a hardware issue or a software issue.

 

You didn't answer the question about the fan... Is it running?

 

One way to completely rule out a software problem... recovery or clean install. If you have a ext HDD you can make a backup image of your current drive.

Get rid of Rivatuner and double check the GPU stats using a different program

 

Sorry, yes the fan is running. I ran 3Dmark for 10 seconds, pressed escape. The fan was running, rivatuner read 95 degrees. I stopped because chances are the laptop would just do an emergency stop at that rate...

 

You have a problem... Try elevating the back with a stick of gum or something similar. Run 3DMark06 again. Then, if that doesn't work, clean out the air vents. My Dell barely gets 65 on full load.

 

I called Dell, I will be sending it in for diagnostic tests. It's just so wierd that it happens so suddenly, especially to a new, premium laptop. What did I do wrong? Did I overclock too much? The defaults were 475/700, I clocked to 600/900. I had never seen a temperature greater than 79 or so, and that was once when I played Bioshock for 4 hours. Now it's idling at 71 degrees...and running any game is impossible.

I had also never seen tears/artifacts, which I've read are signs that you're overclocking too much/overheating. And all this after coming home after work when it was fine the day before!

Is there anything I should do before sending it off? The box should arrive tomorrow, I'll uninstall rivatuner.

 

Im suprised they didnt ask you to do a recovery/clean install to rule out a software issue.

You should have uninstalled rivatuner and all traces of it then clean the registry.

 

Well.. the first thing i would want to say is... Calm down. All your reply sounds so rush. I'd suggest you to check your fan slowly and properly like everyone else said, not just check if its spinning but also check if its spinning at the right speed.

If there's no problem, I'll suggest you to send it back to Dell after you clear all the trace of you overclocking if you don't know how to fix it.

It sounds more like a hardware issue to me or the thermal paste is dry out.

 

I thought overclocking the GPU voids the warranty?

 

OCing no, damage due to OCing will on the other hand.

 

Well you never mentioned if there was a bunch of dust/lint obstructing your vents which is what it probably was, slow down and read what people post.

After that it must be a hardware/heatsink malfunction.

But really, if you've had the system in a very dusty area for more than a month it is the most likely culprit.

Glad Dell is willing to fix it for you.