My laptop gets extremely hot and randomly shuts down after about 30 minutes of use. The fan is running constantly at full speed. Is it dying?
Your laptop is almost certainly not dying. It is overheating because the internal cooling system is clogged with dust. Over time, dust accumulates on the heatsink fins and blocks airflow. The fan runs at maximum speed trying to compensate, but eventually the CPU hits its thermal limit (usually around 100 degrees Celsius) and triggers an emergency shutdown to protect itself. The fix depends on your comfort level. The easiest approach is to use a can of compressed air and blow it into the exhaust vents (the side or back where hot air comes out) in short bursts. This dislodges some dust. For a more thorough cleaning, you can open the bottom panel of the laptop (usually 6-10 Phillips screws), locate the fan and heatsink, and carefully clean out the dust with compressed air and a soft brush. If the laptop is 3+ years old, the thermal paste between the CPU and heatsink may also need replacing. Fresh thermal paste (Arctic MX-5 is a great choice, costs $8) can drop temperatures by 10-20 degrees. Also make sure you are using the laptop on a hard flat surface, not on a bed or couch which blocks the intake vents.
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