hi,
i have an Athlon XP 2500+
also have a Radeon A9550 128 MB on AGP port; and a 512MB RAM stick.
the cpu temp at start up is about 50C
with time, it starts rising and reaches up to 64C.
i didn't noticed it earlier untill i started to have spontaneous restart probs.
are these temperatures normal?
(the ambient temps being 30C)
thx

Not quite. The upper one is too high which would explain the spontaneous restarts.

Cooler is always better, & those temps seem a bit high.
Start with your room...what's the room temp?
Where's your cpu located? In a cabinet? Take it out.
Have you cleaned the inside lately?
Dust is a slow killer to components.
Are all your fans working? How many? Located where?
The list goes on....

Also, make sure that the CPU's fan is blowing into the heatsink, thermal compound was applied to the heatsink and the CPU die, and the heatsink is securely mounted and correctly installed with no air gaps underneath it.

If those and the items mentioned by Ray are ok, then the CPU may need a more powerful cooling fan and/or a more efficient heatsink.

Something is definitely wrong here. In addition to what has been said, I will add that the AthlonXP 2500+ was one of the least hot AthlonXP's ever produced. There's no reason it should be that hot.

As i've been away from net for some time so couldn't post back. Thanks for all the comments.

The ambient, hence room temp is quite low here these days: about 30-32C. There wasn't any such prob in the summer when temps were comparatively higher (40-45C). Nevertheless, i'll make sure if i can make it more cooler by cleaning and checking the heat sink.

This PC is infact not in my current use; it is in another city where i work; and where i don't have an internet access with it. So i can't respond promptly.

Anyway, thanks again.

Yeah, there's some problem specifically with the CPU cooling here. Maybe dust, maybe the HSF unit needs to be removed and redone. The real clue here is that your CPU temp is a whopping 34C above your case temp! :eek: As you have guessed, this is not normal. CPU temps are normally about 20C above the case temp (at full load) which means that your system is getting enough cooling, but not your CPU.

So, check the CPU's HSF unit for dust and to make sure it's flush on top of the CPU. Then report back.

In addition, check that both of the plastic ears on the CPU's socket are not broken, the heatsink's metal hold down clips are not broken, the clips are securely fastened to the ears, and the thermal compound has not oozed out from between the CPU and the heatsink.

Also, make sure the CPU's cooling fan running at full speed. You can check this in BIOS if the fan has a 3-wire connection to the MB.
And check that all adjustable CPU fan speed options are disabled in BIOS.

If those are ok, then clean off the old thermal compound from the heatsink and CPU die, and apply Arctic Silver.

If still no luck, then the CPU may be defective.