While troubleshooting a small-form-factor desktop, you observe that it powers on, shows the manufacturer logo, and then shuts itself off within about 90 seconds. Inside the UEFI hardware monitor you watch the CPU temperature climb rapidly past 95 °C, yet the CPU and case fans are spinning at full speed and are free of dust. Which of the following is the most likely cause of this symptom?
The heat sink is not making proper contact with the CPU or is missing effective thermal compound
The installed memory is running at an unsupported XMP profile
The motherboard's CMOS battery is nearly depleted
The power supply's +12 V rail is sagging under load
A system that overheats in under two minutes despite working fans usually has poor thermal transfer between the CPU heat spreader and the heat sink. If the heat sink is not firmly latched or the thermal compound has dried out, heat cannot be removed quickly enough, and modern motherboards issue a thermal shutdown once the CPU reaches a critical temperature. A failing power-supply rail could cause shutdowns but would not drive the CPU temperature sky-high; unsupported RAM speeds and a weak CMOS battery do not create rapid thermal spikes.
Ask Bash
Bash is our AI bot, trained to help you pass your exam. AI Generated Content may display inaccurate information, always double-check anything important.
What is thermal compound, and why is it important for a CPU?
Open an interactive chat with Bash
How do you check if the heat sink is properly installed on the CPU?
Open an interactive chat with Bash
Why do modern motherboards perform thermal shutdowns under high temperatures?