Toshiba shut down for no reason?

[kiwi74]

Does anyone have any idea why a toshiba satellite laptop would shut down of its own volition? This only seems to happen whilst running an antivirus scan or playing a dvd or cd. Is this a bios problem? I have cleaned the fans etc but to no avail. I know in previous models there was a bios upgrade for this problem. Any assistance gratefully received.

 

[mainegeek]

kiwi74,
This is most likely a heat issue. You stated that you cleaned the fans but the heatsink is really where the dust gets packed in.The fins on the heatsink are very close together and require a good cleaning with air. Try blowing using compressed air into the vent on the back instead of on the fans. This will force any lint toward the fan area where you might be able to pluck them out with tweezers or a probe.Then continue to blow back and forth from the fan towards the back vent. You may also be able to get to part of the fan through the removable access panel on the bottom of the laptop.

 

[kiwi74]

Thanks mainegeek, I'll try that. Sounds about right as the problem has been getting more frequent recently. Appreciate the reply.

 

[battmain]

You might find more info over in the Toshiba support forums that is specific to your model. You'll find the link from the main toshiba website. When my Toshiba did the shutdown thing, they increased the amount of heat sink compound between the chip and the heat sink. That worked for a while, then they created a new bios which slowed the chip a bit. Hasn't shutdown in a while.