Hello, everyone. Well, my new Athlon XP 2400 chip arrived this morning. I have never removed nor installed a processor before. I asked and read up on how to do this type of upgrade and as a result, I was confident that I could do the job. The problem I have is one that I least expected. I can't unhook the single retaining clip that runs through the heatsink's centre! I've even seen a video of this being done. You just press down on the retaining clip's head in a sort of slot, I guess you can picture what I mean, and apparently lift the clip's latch away and the retaining clip should then release. Well, I have tried this several times, applying a fair amount of downward pressure then trying to lift the latch away using outward pressure. It just won't budge. Any advice/tips on how to do this would be appreciated. Thanks, Dave.
The method you described is the correct way to do it. Some clips can be a nuisance, but just be patient. Use the largest screwdriver possible that will fit into the clip, and make sure you place a rag of some sort on the motherboard around the clip so if you slip, you won't damage the board. Also, make sure you always have the board on a hard, flat surface such as a table. Never hold the board in your hands while removing the clip.
Thanks, Pelvis. Yes, I'm taking those precautions. I guess it’s just a question of knowing how far you can go in terms of applying pressure on the retainer clip head. Not having done this before, I’m wary of any damage I might do to the internal parts of the PC. I’ll press on. Dave.
Still no luck on removing this heatsink retainer clip. I've tried pushing down very hard and outwards with a screwdriver, but the clip just will not unhook. I think I've now tried every combination of pushing and pulling with the screwdriver. Exasperated!
Yeah, they do require a lot of steady pressure, and a lot more than you'd expect. If the CPU socket is toward the top of the motherboard, you might find it very useful to take the motherboard out of the case to remove/install a Socket A heatsink. It's easier to see, and you have the advantage of a completely flat surface instead of having the mounting studs supporting the mobo only.
Yes, Big Bro, I’m beginning to think taking the motherboard out to get a hard, flat surface to push against with the screwdriver may be the only option the way things are going. I just can't believe the pressure I've applied with the screwdriver - all to no avail!
everybody's right but press on (no pun intended) but such a little clip can be such a big :swear: to remove, but don't worry you are trying to remove it correctly, just keep trying
Well, I finally got the old processor out without removing the motherboard, using 2 screwdrivers - one to push down on the retaining clip, and the other inserted vertically between the heatsink and the back of the retaining clip - then by turning the latter to a horizontal position the retaining clip unhooked! I installed the chip I bought (secondhand) and it works fine. However, it was not all good news. The processor I thought I was getting should have been an Athlon XP 2400+. When I checked in "My Computer", I found out that the chip was only an Athlon XP 1800+! I think a word with the vendor is called for... Dave.
I have just read of someone installing a processor and it running at a slower speed. Do I have to change something in BIOS? Cheers, Dave
You may have to manually up the FSB of the CPU to get it to run at its rated speed, some motherboards require this for faster CPU's. I'm not sure what the rated FSB speed is but if you want you can gradually increase it until you hit the 2400+ rated speeds.
Your CPU should run at a 266Mhz FSB. You should be able to change this in the BIOS to 133 or 266 (depending on your motherboard). You might have to change this via a motherboard jumper also.
Cheers, Matt. I have had a return email from the person that sold me the chip - he assures me that it is an Athlon XP 2400+ He said I may have to update my BIOS (K7VMM+ motherboard) in order to get the chip to reach full speed. I found what I think is the correct update for the version of motherboard that I have, but on going to download the said update, the site 'warned' that you should be sure you have the right BIOS update, given the version number of your motherboard, or your system might not boot-up! Given that - I'm a bit wary about changing the BIOS. I think I'll have to do some research to make sure I get it right. I've changed the bus speed to 266 MHz in my current BIOS and the PC seems to run faster than when the setting was on 'Auto', but that could just be my imagination, and anyway, "System Properties" still reads the chip as an Athlon XP 1800+ when it should, of course, be an Athlon XP 2400+ Many thanks, Dave.
Thanks, Pelvis. I've changed the FSB to 266MHz in BIOS. Don't know how to change jumper settings on the motherboard though. I'll have to read up on that - I suppose how to do that might be in the manual (which I have). Dave.
Just check that the Jumper cap on JP3 (To the left of the northbridge chipset) is set on pins 2 and 3. This is the setting used for 133 (or 266) MHz FSB.
Hi, Pelvis. I had checked the manual before I'd actually read your above quoted post and switched the cpu jumper setting to pins 2 and 3 (133 MHz) - they were set to pins 1 and 2 (100 MHz). Well, that did the trick - the chip now reads in "System Properties" as an XP 2400+! So you were absolutely right.beer! Cheers, :beer: Dave :good:
