My computer overheats with Second Life, what can I do?

[Ayana Auer]

It overheats when I am in Second Life.  I want to fix it.  Any help?

[Lexie Linden]

The Second Life® Viewer requires a large amount of computing  resources; as a result, hardware problems which aren't restricted to the  Second Life Viewer may occur with greater frequency. One such hardware  problem, overheating, can lead to unexpected glitches, crashes, or other  system failures. If you experience overheating while running Second  Life, it is important to note that this issue is not Second Life-specific; other programs which incur a comparable load also produce these problems.

That said, we do have some basic steps for you to take in order  to avoid overheating. If the following steps do not help you to avoid  overheating, we recommend you contact your computer's manufacturer for  further assistance, as well as search the web for "how to avoid computer overheating".

Basic steps you should take:

• Reduce your Second Life graphics settings. Go to Edit menu > Preferences, then click the Graphics tab. On the Quality and Performance slider, click Low. This may help reduce heat because among other factors, "shaders"  (used to render graphics more beautifully) require additional computing  power, which heats up your graphics card. Go about your Second Life and  see if performance is more stable. In extreme cases, try testing in  sparse areas with few prims; rendering more content increases the burden  on your computer.
• Check your computer's ventilation: check to see if there's  anything blocking the ports and make sure all the fans are working  properly. Laptops in particular can get quite hot when placed on a flat  surface, so you may want to try propping one up on a stand to increase  airflow, or buy a cooling device like a "chill mat".
• If you've overclocked or performed otherwise at-your-own-risk  modifications to your computer, disable them until you can attain  stability. It's great to squeeze more performance out of your machine,  but only if it runs reliably. You can use tools like Prime95 to stress-test your computer independently of Second Life.

If you're on a Mac:

There are known overheating issues with some Mac models and their  graphics chips. For example, an earlier generation of MacBook Pros with  NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics processors has suffered from distorted  video, as described in this article.

Search Apple's own Knowledge Base to see if your overheating problem is a known issue. This advice holds  true for other computer manufacturers, who may also have forums where  you can discuss your problems with other customers who may be having the  same issues.