Laptop shutting off on its own, how to stop this

My laptop (running XP) has been shutting off automatically for a few months now. The laptop is a Gateway 450ROG that I've had for over six years. The shutting off seems to be due to the computer getting too hot, as it usually happens while watching streaming video or having multiple tabs open in Firefox. I clean the fan regularly, but I guess the thing's just getting old. Is there anything I can do in Windows setting or in BIOS to raise the temp at which it shuts off? I don't want to fry the motherboard, but it's annoying to have the thing constantly turning off when I don't want it to.

 

If, and ONLY IF you are sure the shutdowns are heat related, take the machine apart (carefully), clean out the complete heatsink assembly, and reapply a quality heat sink goop.

do not attempt this without having a copy of the service manual at hand. you'll need this to guide you through the disassembly and (more important) the reassembly. Don't lose track of the bazillion of tiny screws you are going to take off. they all have to go back on, in the correct sequence.

The shutdowns could be power supply-related too. Does the machine do an orderly shutdown or does it just drop?

 

A six year old laptop is already considerably past it's intended life. As mentioned, you could try taking the whole thing apart and really cleaning the heatsinks and fans as best as possible.

But if you continue to have problems then you would likely be out of luck. Such an old machine could have countless issues. Either way, I recommend making sure you keep your data backed up just in case it dies completely.

 

+1 to information above. Even cleaning regularly it's amazing how gross computers can get internally. In my old Toshiba, i found I could keep the fans perfectly clean, as visible from the outside, yet internally dust bunnies would be blocking airflow to it anyway. As also suggested, backups are a lifesaver and slow growing problems are great reminders to make it.

A notebook cooler will do wonders as well. It's just a base with fans that sits under the laptop, helping to draw hot air away from the laptop.

I really wouldn't suggest looking for a method to adjust the shut-off temp. In all likely hood, it will reach the higher temp anyway. The result is a trade-off between an extra few minutes of streaming video in exchange for an elevated risk of hardware destruction.

However, it's worthwhile perusing the BIOS to explore if any relevant power options are available to you. For example, if the BIOS has an option for "cool" versus "quiet", ensure it's set to "cool". (Note that I don't know if your laptop has such a feature, just suggesting to check for it.)

You could also install a program like SpeedFan to monitor the temp, allowing you to temporarily curb hot activities. Refer to Resource Monitors in The Free Software thread for software of this type.

 

I have used a laptop for 3 years, and it had that problem, so i needed to clean the laptop fan. Lots of dust in there, if you havent cleaned the laptop before that is more than likely the problem. You can also check the cpu temps before cleaning opening it up

 

It just drops all of a sudden. The fan will turn on full speed for a few seconds, then the computer just blinks off all at once. Thanks for all your feedback. I've tried doing a proper disassembly and cleaning in the past but wasn't able to--older laptops can be very difficult to take apart. I'll see if the manual has instructions for disassembling (last I checked I couldn't find any). I know I'm long overdue for an upgrade, but I'd like to keep this one running for a bit longer if possible. Gotten kind of attached to it