Quote Originally Posted by Beskar View Post
Physical. Some n00b tech guy thought it was dirt and scrubbed it off and he also damaged the fan fastening too, so only 3 pins hold it in place opposed to 4.
Did he use a belt sander? I can't imagine the amount of force required to do that. When I was installing my new CPU a month or so back, I had to put my weight into the lock mechanism for it to snap into place.
Quote Originally Posted by Beskar View Post
No, it doesn't shut off randomly or anything. It is slightly overclocked so it might simply be that making it run warmer but it is around 4 years old so it would be cheaper simply to replace then to bother getting new heatsink or fan for it since the new alternatives in the budget range would run just as fast or better and be far cooler.
If it works you can wait for the AMD Bulldozer vs Intel Ivy storm, or you can just get an i5 now. Your call.