Mac mini exceeding 200F

[Wafflepi]

i use stat menus to view my temps and control the fan, when doing light tasks like viewing quicktime videos, and browsing the web on a hot day (outside temp: 90F) i see my Mac mini temps go to about 200F. Im using dual monitors and I'm afraid that my Intel CPU will fry itself! Any help is greatly appreciated.

It is also worth mentioning that i put icepacks on the computer (making sure that the water doesn't go anywhere) and although that helps with the heat of touching the computer the sensors still report ridiculous values. Thanks again.

 

[grcar]

i see my Mac mini temps go to about 200F. Im using dual monitors and I'm afraid that my Intel CPU will fry itself!

I can only comment on what other people have reported. Some say the sensors can go to 100 degrees safely; perhaps they mean 100C, which would be roughly the same as your 200F. Some people claim a mini will shut down to protect itself from overheating (mine did not). Apple minis and laptops do have a tendency to overheat and burn out. I would be a little concerned about driving two monitors because the graphics chip seems to be more susceptible to overheating than the cpu chip. The heating problem also depends on which model-year you have. The mid-range 2011 seems to be the worst. The 2014 models have chipsets that idle at half the wattage of the earlier models; presumably they fix the overheating problem. Incidentally there are several threads that discuss overheating of minis. One is named "how to keep a mac mini from overheating?" and another is "Mac mini mid-2011 2.5 GHz overheated - permanently ruined?". You might check them out.

 

[George Dawes]

You need to raise the 2011 models , especially the i7's , use a trivet or some rubber feet

 

[Celerondon]

i use stat menus to view my temps and control the fan, when doing light tasks like viewing quicktime videos, and browsing the web on a hot day (outside temp: 90F) i see my Mac mini temps go to about 200F. Im using dual monitors and I'm afraid that my Intel CPU will fry itself! Any help is greatly appreciated.

It is also worth mentioning that i put icepacks on the computer (making sure that the water doesn't go anywhere) and although that helps with the heat of touching the computer the sensors still report ridiculous values. Thanks again.

Your Intel CPU will not (cannot) fry itself! Intel designs their modern CPUs to run reliably at elevated temperatures and to protect themselves while doing so. If you do some research you will learn that 200ºF is not overheating for a modern Mac!

Keep ice and icepacks away from that computer! Nothing that can leak water or produce condensation should be in contact with your computer. Sure 90ºF outdoors is hot but the ambient temperature in the room where your mini operates is the important number.

Which mini do you have? Rather than read horror stories about failures you should learn how Intel Macs manage heat. The problem that grcar referred to relates to minis and laptops that had problems with discrete GPUs. Despite that user's unfortunate experience with overheating I cannot agree that "Apple minis and laptops do have a tendency to overheat and burn out".

Collect some facts about Mac thermal management specifications before those threads prod you into a "heat panic". Check the cycle of terror that this 2012 i7 mini owner endured before the calm of reason descended on his brain.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5721386?tstart=0

Three years ago GGJstudios posted this helpful guide to help Mac users learn how our machines handle heat. Although it was directed at MacBook Pro users the thermal management concepts are similar throughout the Mac product lines.
How hot should my MBP run?

 

[Wafflepi]

Mac mini mid-2011 2.5 GHz overheated - permanently ruined?

I can only comment on what other people have reported. Some say the sensors can go to 100 degrees safely; perhaps they mean 100C, which would be roughly the same as your 200F. Some people claim a mini will shut down to protect itself from overheating (mine did not). Apple minis and laptops do have a tendency to overheat and burn out. I would be a little concerned about driving two monitors because the graphics chip seems to be more susceptible to overheating than the cpu chip. The heating problem also depends on which model-year you have. The mid-range 2011 seems to be the worst. The 2014 models have chipsets that run at half the wattage of the earlier models; presumably they fix the overheating problem. Incidentally there are several threads that discuss overheating of minis. One is named "how to keep a mac mini from overheating?" and another is "Mac mini mid-2011 2.5 GHz overheated - permanently ruined?". You might check them out.

lol i stopped to reply as soon as i saw the 2011, its the mid 2011 Mac mini, base line 2.3GHz, but since i do some cpu intense things on this mini (and those cpu heavy things require OSX, and this is the only mac i own) but i always check on the temps every 5 minuets, and i always take caution by feeling the casing and stuff like that, so i take good care of it, its just i want to know a way so that i don't have to put icepacks on the computer. Id rather sit down and relax on the computer rather than having the take care of it all the time. Thanks for your answer i appreciate it!

Addition: I should also mention that i had this mac inside of a cabinet (as a server) but now that
I'm using this a main computer, i put it up on the desk. Even inside the cabinet or outside the temps are always the same, which leads me to believe its a sensor problem, and also even with one monitor I've always noticed that the temps were the same, which really makes me confused.

 

[Wafflepi]

Your Intel CPU will not (cannot) fry itself! Intel designs their modern CPUs to run reliably at elevated temperatures and to protect themselves while doing so. If you do some research you will learn that 200ºF is not overheating for a modern Mac!

Keep ice and icepacks away from that computer! Nothing that can leak water or produce condensation should be in contact with your computer. Sure 90ºF outdoors is hot but the ambient temperature in the room where your mini operates is the important number.

Which mini do you have? Rather than read horror stories about failures you should learn how Intel Macs manage heat. The problem that grcar referred to relates to minis and laptops that had problems with discrete GPUs. Despite that user's unfortunate experience with overheating I cannot agree that "Apple minis and laptops do have a tendency to overheat and burn out".

Collect some facts about Mac thermal management specifications before those threads prod you into a "heat panic". Check the cycle of terror that this 2012 i7 mini owner endured before the calm of reason descended on his brain.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5721386?tstart=0

Three years ago GGJstudios posted this helpful guide to help Mac users learn how our machines handle heat. Although it was directed at MacBook Pro users the thermal management concepts are similar throughout the Mac product lines.
How hot should my MBP run?

I own a 2011 mid baseline mac mini, and its not really a modern haswell chip. I think its either sandy bridge or Ivy bridge, I'm not sure but since its an older mac i figured the thermal paste has dried up? not sure. but i need this mac to be functional as it is very important. thanks. (BTW The icepacks help though! and i make sure no water ever leaks.)

Addition: I should also mention that i had this mac inside of a cabinet (as a server) but now that
I'm using this a main computer, i put it up on the desk. Even inside the cabinet or outside the temps are always the same, which leads me to believe its a sensor problem, and also even with one monitor I've always noticed that the temps were the same, which really makes me confused.

 

[Wafflepi]

You need to raise the 2011 models , especially the i7's , use a trivet or some rubber feet

I've got the i5 model and it is a bit raised it you count it being on a desk, but i don't really have rubber sitting around so i think ill just keep it the way it is. Thanks.

 

[grcar]

I own a 2011 mid baseline mac mini, i figured the thermal paste has dried up? Even inside the cabinet or outside the temps are always the same, which leads me to believe its a sensor problem, and also even with one monitor I've always noticed that the temps were the same, which really makes me confused.

There is a big difference in the 2011 minis depending on whether the low end macmini5,1 or the medium macmini5,2. It is not clear to me which you have. The cpus are i5-2415M and i5-2450M respectively. (You can learn about the chips by searching for the code on google and taking the link to ark.intel.com.) The macmini5,2 does not use the on-chip intel graphics and instead has a separate graphics chip from AMD. The design problem seems to be the cpu chip does not recognize when the graphics chip overheats.

However, the problem you describe about no change in heat with changes in load may indeed be related to some defect in the heat sink. My guess is you could have a certified Apple service tech look it over at a charge of $100 / hour and still not figure it out. Some people do remount the heat sink with different paste. I would not try that at home.

 

[Celerondon]

lol i stopped to reply as soon as i saw the 2011, its the mid 2011 Mac mini, base line 2.3GHz, but since i do some cpu intense things on this mini (and those cpu heavy things require OSX, and this is the only mac i own) but i always check on the temps every 5 minuets, and i always take caution by feeling the casing and stuff like that, so i take good care of it, its just i want to know a way so that i don't have to put icepacks on the computer...

Addition: I should also mention that i had this mac inside of a cabinet (as a server) but now that I'm using this a main computer, i put it up on the desk. Even inside the cabinet or outside the temps are always the same, which leads me to believe its a sensor problem, and also even with one monitor I've always noticed that the temps were the same, which really makes me confused.

There is a big difference in the 2011 minis depending on whether the low end macmini5,1 or the medium macmini5,2. It is not clear to me which you have. The cpus are i5-2415M and i5-2450M respectively. (You can learn about the chips by searching for the code on google and taking the link to ark.intel.com.) The macmini5,2 does not use the on-chip intel graphics and instead has a separate graphics chip from AMD. The design problem seems to be the cpu chip does not recognize when the graphics chip overheats.

However, the problem you describe about no change in heat with changes in load may indeed be related to some defect in the heat sink. My guess is you could have a certified Apple service tech look it over at a charge of $100 / hour and still not figure it out. Some people do remount the heat sink with different paste. I would not try that at home.

Oops! Your mini is one of the ones that grcar described. I agree that you should try to keep that particular mini as cool as you can. Grcar's advice about the Intel ARK documents is a good place to start. If your CPU is the Sandy Bridge Intel® Core™ i5-2415M Processor then this is your ARK sheet.
http://ark.intel.com/products/53449/Intel-Core-i5-2415M-Processor-3M-Cache-up-to-2_90-GHz

 

[Wafflepi]

There is a big difference in the 2011 minis depending on whether the low end macmini5,1 or the medium macmini5,2. It is not clear to me which you have. The cpus are i5-2415M and i5-2450M respectively. (You can learn about the chips by searching for the code on google and taking the link to ark.intel.com.) The macmini5,2 does not use the on-chip intel graphics and instead has a separate graphics chip from AMD. The design problem seems to be the cpu chip does not recognize when the graphics chip overheats.

However, the problem you describe about no change in heat with changes in load may indeed be related to some defect in the heat sink. My guess is you could have a certified Apple service tech look it over at a charge of $100 / hour and still not figure it out. Some people do remount the heat sink with different paste. I would not try that at home.

Its the 2415M model, @ 2.3GHz. And id love to bring it to the apple store, but i dont have 100$ to spend right now but thanks anyway!

 

[Wafflepi]

Oops! Your mini is one of the ones that grcar described. I agree that you should try to keep that particular mini as cool as you can. Grcar's advice about the Intel ARK documents is a good place to start. If your CPU is the Sandy Bridge Intel® Core™ i5-2415M Processor then this is your ARK sheet.
http://ark.intel.com/products/53449/Intel-Core-i5-2415M-Processor-3M-Cache-up-to-2_90-GHz

well since the max temp on the intel i5 2415M is 100C (200F) i guess my temps are safe for now, its just i dont wanna be on the edge, risking frying my mac! Thanks

 

[durruti]

Have you tried using a common fan?