Overheated CPU

[Sam0017S]

Hey guys! I've a HP VICTUS 15 (RTX3050 4GB, RYZEN 5600 16GB). It's about 1.5 years old. I changed the thermal paste just a few months back this year. But my CPU is overheating to about 102 degrees. Yeah, the poor thermals of the victus are a contributing factor too, but it shouldn't this high and the paste is also of good quality. Help me out, this might be some kind of software issue too. And note that I haven't done anything with the CPU, like throttling or maxing it out or something with software and all.

[NonSequitur777]

@Sam0017S,

Welcome to our HP Community forum!

A Ryzen 5600 reaching 102°C definitely indicates that something is wrong beyond the Victus' typical, well, thermal limitations. Since you've already repasted the CPU with good-quality thermal compound (I assume Arctic MX-4 or equivalent), let's go step by step:

1. Verify cooling fan operation and airflow:

• Make sure both cooling fans spin freely and ramp up under load (you can monitor fan RPMs using HWiNFO64).

• Blow compressed air through the exhaust vents to remove hidden dust buildup on the heatsink fins. Even a thin dust film can cause temperature spikes.

2. Check thermal paste application and heatsink seating:

• Too much or too little paste, or uneven mounting pressure, can cause poor heat transfer. If you're comfortable opening the laptop again, inspect that the heatsink makes even contact with the CPU die and that no thermal pad on nearby VRMs or GPU is displaced.

3. Confirm fan performance mode:

• Open OMEN Gaming Hub → Performance Control and make sure the Performance or Cooling Boost mode is enabled.

• Also ensure Windows Power Mode is set to "Best Performance" (so the fan curve isn't suppressed).

4. Look for software anomalies:

• In Task Manager → Details, check if any background process (e.g., Windows indexing, HP analytics, or a stuck service) is using CPU constantly.

• If you suspect a driver issue, update your BIOS and chipset drivers from HP Support Assistant or HP's driver page for your exact model.

5. Monitor temps vs. CPU load:

Use HWiNFO64 or CoreTemp to log CPU load and temperature together.

• If temps spike immediately on startup with minimal load, it's almost certainly a heatsink contact issue.

• If they climb gradually under load, airflow or fan curve tuning might help.

6. Optional mitigation:

If the system runs fine otherwise, you can apply a modest undervolt using Ryzen Controller or AMD Adrenalin Tuning to drop temps by 5–10°C safely -if available/allowed.

Expected range: Under heavy gaming or benchmarking, the Ryzen 5600 in a Victus 15 should typically stay between 85–92°C, not above 100°C. Prolonged operation above 95°C risks throttling and long-term degradation.

You may also consider using a laptop cooling pad.

If you can share your exact model number (for example, 15-fb00xx) and recent temperature logs, I can help identify whether this is a hardware or control software fault.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777