Q: I just installed an NVIDIA GeForce 5500 graphics card on my computer, and ever since I installed it, my machine decides to reboot at any random time without warning. Anyone have any idea what might be going on? A few of you have said it's a heat problem, but I already am running my machine with the case open and I have an air conditioner just a few feet away, so I can't see how it would be overheating.
A: Well it could be overheating as the others have stated. Even with air conditioning and an open case, the graphics card can overheat because of poor attachment to the heatsink (can be fixed by applying thermal paste--people have stated that Article Silver 5 Thermal Paste have dropped their graphics card's temperature for a little more than 10 degrees Celsius. ) It can overheat especially if you have passive cooling (graphic card does not have a fan attached to it) If it does have a fan, download riva tuner and set the the graphics card's fan to maximum speed. It may be a bit louder but pay attention if it still crashes. If it does, it's not an overheating problem. http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?det=163 Secondly, it could be a Drivers problem. Try updating your drivers to the most recent. Also enable it to show Blue Screen of Death upon system failure. This can be done by -Right click My computer -Select Properties -Hit the Advanced tab on the top -Hit the Settings button on the Startup and Recovery section -Uncheck the box on the "Automatically Restart" The next time your computer has the problem, it should show a blue screen with additional information on your problem. If your graphics card driver is on most recent, it may be a possibility that the graphics card is damaged and you may need to replace it.