Hello: I do not have a good background in computers and stuff and I am hoping that someone on this forum can help me out on an issue I recently ran into with my SONY VAIO GRZ-610 Laptop. The laptop originaly had a 256 MB RAM module and last year I upgraded the total RAM to 768 MB. The performance was definitely boosted. Recently I started experiencing a very annoying sluggishness. The only thing thats different now is the RAM frequency which has dropped from 1.8 GHz to about 238 MHz. I checked this in the computer properties. I did not install a new software or any kind of hardware and I have no idea what caused this change. Any assistance is appreciated. Thank you.
That's not the RAM frequency, but the CPU speed. What it does sound like is that your CPU's clock-throttling is kicking in, which will reduce your CPU's speeds. The reason for this is most likely due to the CPU overheating or to save on battery life by not running at full speed. Weather the internal fan has become clogged or not, I can't say, but you may also want to dig around and see if you can find the controls for the clock throttling (Intel calls this feature SpeedStep) and see what the settings are. It's possible that the CPU is being overly sensative in clocking itself down.
Thanks for the reply. Now that you mention, I realize that the speed drops after running the computer for some time - about 5 minutes. But why did it start happening only recently? Besides, I also use a chill hub to cool the processor down. I wonder if I can clean up any clogging myself. Also, as far as I know, I am not running a mobile processor and I don't know if and how I can use SpeedStep. Do you think the RAM modules are working fine? Thanks again for your help.
Most likely the RAM is working fine, as B suggested sounds like a clock throttling issue. The most probably explanation I can think of is that a fan has either failed, or become heavily clogged up with dust and dirt. Maybe you've left it on a place where theres a lot of dust or its just happened over time. Try cleaning out the exterior fan grills with a soft cloth or a can of compressed air and listen for the fan. If the fan seems to be running at a higher speed than usual then its probably a heat related cause as we mentioned.
Thanks Addis for the help. I realize that the fan has been making an awful lot of noise even when running on batteries. I really wish its the clogging of the fan thats causing the sluggish behavior. I will try this solution today and will let you know. Thanks a lot for the prompt replies and help. Also, can you refer me to an information source on how to access the fan in a Sony Vaio PCG-GRZ 610? Thank you.
Don't know it specifically, but you may be able to do it yourself, there is no standard way to access laptops however. Otherwise there might be a technician who will open it and clean out everything/check the fans are operational.
Hey Addis and Big B - Thanks for the help. I cleaned my PC's fan and the metal thing that we chemies call Heat Exchangers. You were right! There was literally a thick wall of dust restricting the air flow. My PC's never worked better. The CPU temperature is well below 40C and overall I think I made the right decision posting on this forum. Thanks a lot for your time.
