N5010 shuts down - overheating

have you checked the auto shutdown timer? this will shutdown computer after Xmins of inactivity, you can find in your control panel settings under auto shutdown somewhere. Alternatively could be that it's overheating, so check the airvents are free from dust build up, do not use laptop on a bed or cushion, use only on a flat surface otherwise vents may get blocked. Can you hear your fan working? it should get louder the longer you stay on or when the computers CPU is under a heavy load, if you can't hear the fan whirling away check your fan settings and maybe change them to kick in earlier, you can sometimes get a utility to alter the fan settings in relation to CPU temp = Fan speed %, i think speedfan does this but check your own control panel and see if you have any settings to tweak your fan. Speedfan should tell you what your CPU temp is and allow you to figure out if it is the CPU overheating which is causing the shutdown in which case you need to either get a fan tweak utility or better fan or clean those vents! good luck...

OverheatingWhen the CPU overheats then it will shut down (i.e. thermaloverload) and won't boot up again until it has cooled down. If this is theproblem is not fixed then the CPU will eventually fail.
A faulty fan causes the problem or the fan and heat sink assembly are cloggedwith dust.
Check the CPU fan to see if it spins freely, if not replace the fan.
If the fan and heat sink is clogged with dust the remove the dust and make surethe vents are clear and dust free. Use a small brush and can of compressed airto do this.

Try blowing out any dust from around the fan with compressed air. If the fan is turning on and off a lot, this could be normal, depending on your processor, but if the system just shuts down fully and randomly, it would be a heat issue. The CPU is overheating and the failsafe mechanism is to instantly shut your computer down. The only way to avoid this is to raise the CPU shutdown temp in the BIOS settings, or if you can access the CPU, remove it and apply new, quality thermal grease. Also, ensure the fan is operating correctly during use and dont block any air intake or exhaust ports.

When you encounter about this issue this is overheating problem maybe the CPU fan is not spinning and faulty already, you need to check the CPU fan and replace a new one.

Computers may not be smarter than people, but if they’re designed properly, they will shut themselves down before overheating to the extent that they do themselves damage. If the smart person keeps turning the notebook back on and figures out a way to foil the protection, the laptop is probably doomed.

Once a laptop shuts down for thermal event protection, it may refuse to power back up for a fixed period of time, five or ten minutes, or it may begin to boot and shut down immediately as soon as it boots to the point that it can figure out that its too hot.

The over-temperature protection is generally a BIOS rather than an operating system function, so one sign of an overheated laptop is one that shuts itself down while you’re using it and then refuses to boot as far as the operating system unless you leave it alone for an hour or so to cool down.

Unless you’ve been working in a very unfriendly environment, high temperatures, direct sunlight, etc, you should take even a single overheating shutdown as a warning to back up your data at the first opportunity and to give the cooling system a serious cleaning.

The laptop is shutting down because the CPU is overheating (thermal shutdown) and if this problem is not fixed the CPU will eventually fail.
Replace the faulty fan and remove the dust from the heatsink.
While you are at it I suggest you apply fresh thermal paste on the CPU and hearsink.

The cpu get overheated and will shtdown to protect it. The fan continues to run until a CPU safe temperature is reached / sustained.

1. Use laptop on flat surface, not on pillow, carpet, bed, etc. that will restrict air flow. Using a can of compressed air, clear the air vents.

2. If the symptom continues, then the heat conductive paste between the cpu chip and the heatsink is no longer effective (hardened, too thin, etc.). Remove the heatsink and add thermal paste
($6 Radio Shack).

you have set ur computer to sleep or hibernate after 30 minutes of inactivity. you can customize this in you power setting.

Control Panel-> Power Options

Yes.... over heating can and will cause a system shutdown..

Download and install speedfan ( http://www.almico.com/sfdownload.php ) It will most likely tell you how hot things are really getting......

Depending on what cpu you have, you may have a thermal paste problem, you may need to remove the heatsink and re-apply heatsink thermal paste to the bottom of the heatsink and reseat ontop of the cpu. This will void any warranty if you PC still has any left.

Your CPU is likely overheating. Very likely the thermal conducting material between the CPU chip and the heatsink may have shrunk and now impeades the thermal transfer.
You may need to remove the heatsink and put new thermal paste and perhaps copper shim to restore the thermal contact to the heatsink.

It sounds like an overheating problem. The newer cpu's have a thermal shutdown sensor that automatically shuts down system if it senses a temp that is too high. Common solution would be to check your cpu/ chassis fan and see if they are working. If not replace.