WoW on MBP and possible issues due to overheating.

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Level 1

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WoW on MBP and possible issues due to overheating.

I'm a proud new owner of a Late '08 Model of the MBP (MacBook Pro), and I'm a more-than-casual player of World of Warcraft. My issue is that when I play WoW, my CPU temperature sky-rockets up past 100 degrees Celsius. I keep watching my fan speeds using iStat Pro, and it takes my fans a few minutes to come up to speed and bring the temperature back down to around 80. I've caught my temp at 109 degrees Celsius and since this has happened my MBP has started acting up.

Every once in a while I will be playing WoW and the screen will darken from top to bottom, and a message will appear in several different languages stating that I need to restart my computer by holding down the power button for several seconds or by hitting the rest button. How concerned should I be about this? I've still got coverage with my apple care plan till '11. But I don't want to cause unnecessary damage even if it is covered. Is there software that I can use to maintain the temperatures, how can I check to see if there has already been damage caused by the heat, and what are my best options to keep my CPUs Cool while running demanding programs?

MacBook Pro (late '08), Mac OS X (10.5.6), 2.8GHz, 4GB RAM, 300GB HD@7200RPM

Posted on Dec 28, 2008 6:31 PM

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Answer 1

S.U.

Level 6

9,601 points

Dec 28, 2008 7:36 PM in response to PatchVP

Welcome to Apple Discussions!

It sounds like you are experiencing kernel panics. A good place to start would be with the following:

http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/kernelpanics.html

Good luck!

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Answer 2

PatchVP Author

Level 1

0 points

Dec 30, 2008 6:41 PM in response to S.U.

I'm in the middle of a big move, and I will definitely go through what I can to figure out what is currently wrong with my MBP, but in the meantime, there is still the same issue of overheating. I am still looking for a solution to this problem that would undoubtably re-emerge if I got all the other bugs taken care of. So in the interest of not damaging a new fix, I would like to find a solution to the problem now before I fix everything.

Besides buying an external laptop cooler, is there any software I can install and run to kick the fans on high, sooner? And maybe be something that Apple is ok with. Because the fans DO eventually stabilize the temperature, but only after I've gone up past 100 degrees Celsius.

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Answer 3

parry_pb

Level 2

290 points

Dec 30, 2008 10:37 PM in response to PatchVP

It is not supposed to overheat and crash like that. The fact that it does means that it is defective in some way or the other. Please do not hesitate to take it back to the nearest Apple Store or call Apple support and let them advise you.

These are not the problems that can be fixed by the user - the laptop is under warranty and Apple will do their best to fix it for you for free if they determine it is defective.

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Answer 4

PatchVP Author

Level 1

0 points

Dec 31, 2008 12:14 AM in response to parry_pb

Not to undermine mine your post but too many users of the late '08 MBP with the faster Processor and 4Gigs RAM who put their machines through several hours of heavy use (World of Warcraft, Video/Animation Rendering, some other graphics intense games) have the very same issue for it to be single laptop issues.

I'm not going to say the MPB wasn't designed with high-loads or proper venting in mind, but I believe the temperature control software could use some tuning up. If the fans kicked in to "high gear" when the temperature passed 85, I don't think it'd ever reach 90.

Looking around at other users posts, it doesn't seem to be an irregular thing for the new MBPs to reach temperatures in excess of 100 degrees Celsius.

I know there is some software out there that people are using to take over the fan control and do it themselves, which is fine for them, but I don't want to do anything with my MBP that Apple would not recommend. Hence my posting in this forum.

Assuming I know what I'm talking about with venting, fans, and scanning forums, is there anyone who can suggest a trusted software package or a tried and proven laptop cooler? Prefer AC power but will use USB if the product is THAT good.

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Answer 5

Scerri

Level 1

20 points

Dec 31, 2008 3:44 AM in response to PatchVP

SMCfancontrol and Fan Control are both trusted third-party software which lets you control MBP's fans.

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Answer 6

LKY

Level 1

0 points

Dec 31, 2008 5:57 AM in response to PatchVP

I ran into the exact same issue as you had, the best way would be limit the frame rate per secon by typing "/console maxfps 40" in standard WoW chat box. (Blizzard recommended either at 30 or 40, totally up to you, when it goes over 30fps human eye won't be able to notice the difference anyway.)

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html;jsessionid=06A9A6E72328F3436B3F9D5 E463FE732.app25_02?topicId=4028094861&sid=1

SMC fan control helps lowering the temperature of MBP, but it'll wear out the fan even sooner because of running on higher RPM.

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Answer 7

GN

Level 1

40 points

Jan 1, 2009 9:02 AM in response to PatchVP

I had this problem for a bit too (Horde FTW! :P) but since upgrading to an Intel X-25 80GB SSD, my entire computer has run RIDICULOUSLY cooler.

Anyways, go to Apple and tell them/ show them. They will exchange it.

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Answer 8

Vivek V.

Level 3

624 points

Jan 1, 2009 12:11 PM in response to LKY

LKY wrote:
I ran into the exact same issue as you had, the best way would be limit the frame rate per secon by typing "/console maxfps 40" in standard WoW chat box. (Blizzard recommended either at 30 or 40, totally up to you, when it goes over 30fps human eye won't be able to notice the difference anyway.)

Hey LKY, thanks for the tip. How would we undo that command supposing we use and want to return it back to the normal setting?

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Answer 9

samuel1

Level 2

150 points

Jan 1, 2009 1:17 PM in response to Vivek V.

I installed SMC fan control on my mac and I never let it top 74C at the very very most after hours of playing COD4. Under standard load I'm looking at 60C, and idle its 40-45C. Something wrong with it if its getting that hot, even mine never hit that before SMC fan control. I thought core 2 duo's shut down at like 109C?

Message was edited by: samuel1

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Answer 10

Vivek V.

Level 3

624 points

Jan 2, 2009 9:12 AM in response to samuel1

Hey samuel1, with SMC fan control, supposing say I keep my settings the way you keep yours for wow, is there like a reset to default fan settings button or something of that nature that I can click when I'm done playing? And, supposing I uninstall it do the settings revert back to default? Thanks buddy

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Answer 11

Vivek V.

Level 3

624 points

Jan 2, 2009 11:38 AM in response to Vivek V.

Nevermind, I just downloaded it. A lot has changed since the last time I used it, it now has savable settings, so I can easily alternate between gaming and non-gaming setups.

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Answer 12

PatchVP Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 2, 2009 12:26 PM in response to PatchVP

Now that's the kind of response I was looking for 😀 Thanks guys! And I never knew about the script to slow down the FPS, also a plus!

Glad this thread helped others too, Horde FTW indeed 😀

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