Removing a CPU

[CoR]

I'm afraid to remove my CPU from the mother board! :o I heard the stock thermal soulution and others will harden to CPU, and possibly damage CPU if not removed correctly. I have a P4 2.66Ghz 478 pin cpu. Can someone give me information/tips on removing this CPU And preventing damage to it during removal? (everything is stock Heatsink fan ect.)
Thanks

[saphalline]

I heard the stock thermal soulution and others will harden to CPU, and possibly damage CPU if not removed correctly.Only if it's very, very, very old! I once did that to a Pentium 60. Tried to get the heatsink off, but it was glued on pretty good. When I finally got it off, a piece of the CPU came with it! :eek:

Don't worry, tho, heatsinks haven't been glued on for years. Nowadays, Intel/AMD stock heatsinks come with thermal pads which don't stick to a CPU nearly enough to break it. For your Socket478 P4, you should see two levers on top of the heatsink/fan unit. Pull those up. The heatsink/fan unit will now be loose - pull it off the CPU. Now as you look at the bare CPU, you'll notice that its socket also has a lever on the side. Pull that up (to a 90-degree angle) and you should see part of the socket and the CPU shift to the side slightly (about 1mm). The socket is now unlocked, and you are free to safely take the CPU out of the socket. Don't bend any pins and it will be fine. :D

[CoR]

Thermal pad well i'll be, I thought it was some type of paste.
Now after I remove the CPU can I put the heatsink back on CPU without any addition thermal paste/tape. (just use same thermal pad?)
Thanks.

[ziba-june]

You better change it, its going to cost you a few $ but in the long run it will save you CPU.

[david eaton]

Use of a new thermal pad or thermal compound is vital.
All traces of the old pad.compound must be removed first.
Scrape(gently!) with a plastic scraper, then wipe off the rest using a lint free cloth moistened with either isopropyl alcohol or methylated spirit.

Use only a very small amount of compound, spread evenly over the processor die, and wipe a smear of compound onto the heatsink, and wipe it off again . This is to fill any minute scratches in the surface of the heatsink. For even better results, the heatsink should be lapped first, to ensure that the base is dead flat.
If you want to lap the heatsonk, there is a good explantion of how to to do it in this thread (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=20431&highlight=lapping)

[rond36]

Be careful removing the heat sink. After you flip the tension levers you may want to twist it a little to break it loose from the CPU before you undo the clips and pull up to remove it.

When I built the PC below I installed the stock HSF and used it for about a week until I recived my new Thermalright HS.

When I went to remove the stock HSF the CPU came out of its socket stuck to the bottom of the heat sink and I bent 4 pins on the CPU when I sat the HSF down on the table a little hard not knowing my CPU was under it :eek:

My first thought was where in the **** did my CPU go. I found it and removed it from the stock HSF fixed the pins and put it aside while I removed the motherboard to install the new HSF.

[CoR]

bringing up a old thread because theres no need to start a new thread.

I've removed my cpu, the removal went very smoothly. However once i removed the heatsink i noticed the cpu looks sliver with black spots on it as does the bottom of heatsink. Is this just traces of the thermal pad? I'm a bit spooked. Also, is lapping a need when replacing the cpu/heatsink?
Thanks.

[CoR]

Here is what it kind of looks like. Don't mind my bad psp skills. Is there anything to look for on a cpu to see if its still usable?

[Whyzman]

Is this thread a continuation of a previously discussed problem??

Why are you pulling the heatsink?? Just curiosity, or is there something wrong with your computer??