When I was a kid and on days out with my parents, my dad would sometimes stop on the way home on a back road running around the far end of Gatwick Airport, so I could stand and watch the planes. Even when the aircraft were all up the other end of the runway near the terminals, one could hear a white noise carried on the wind, composed of dozens of distant jet engines spinning around. An aural mixture of the drone of syphoned air along with a high pitched whine oscillating at slow speed. Now I found I could recreate all the magic of those moments in my own house, just by switching on my trusty Sony VAIO. Only I couldn't see any planes.
I was inspired to set up this blog and post this article after reading another Blogger's similar experiences. Their diagnosis and recovery guide applies to their Sony VAIO PCG-GRT100, and it seems to have helped a great many people including myself. My own post here aims to cover a few extra details and is specifically geared to my VGN-S270 model, though the method could also probably be expanded to other similar laptops in the VAIO range, if you apply a bit of common sense and precaution.
I hope my guide below could extend the useful life of your laptop and prevent it being discarded in the nearest skip. According to the other post linked above, some people have received quotes of several hundred pounds from either Sony or other support centres for repairs, or advice suggesting other courses of action like replacing temperature sensors or entire motherboards. Of course, your own noise problem could be due to a number of things, so I advise you to exercise caution should you follow my instructions, and be aware that it may not work should your machine have some other unfortunate issue. Perhaps you really do need a new motherboard costing half as much as the laptop itself. (Hint: buy a new one instead or emigrate to a small faraway island with a book). You will almost certainly void any warranty by opening the machine up, and persons of a slightly dim nature could damage it irreparably or electrocute themselves, so I advise you first to back up all your precious data, and then to acknowledge that I accept no responsibility whatsoever if anything goes wrong! I'm only trying to help.......
Part 1: Noise reduction therapy
The only things you should be needing are a small cross-head screwdriver, and a vacuum cleaner with some standard useful suction attachments (requirements may vary according to your own laptop model). It's also possible that you'll need some thermal grease for the CPU (read point 10 below). There's nothing particularly difficult or complicated to do, and it shouldn't require more than an hour of your time.
1) Firstly, switch off the laptop, remove the power lead and take out the battery. In my own case, as can be seen in the photos below, this last action was complicated by my having welded some gaffer tape across the back to seal the battery in place, since only weeks after purchase a tiny plastic holding notch on the end of the battery snapped, making the battery prone to falling out. In fact, it had a rather wobbly fitting anyway, not in keeping with Sony's usually high engineering standards.
2) Now the disassembly of the laptop begins. Ensure you prevent static transfer by touching another grounded metallic surface or wearing a proper anti-static wrist strap. Be especially careful not to touch the internal circuitry. If your laptop model isn't exactly the same as my own, you might wish to place a rectangular cloth or piece of paper on a flat surface nearby, so that you can arrange the removed screws on it in the same layout, to aid you in putting them back correctly. Bear in mind that some screws may be different sizes so you should ensure you return them to the holes whence they came. Start by removing the twelve screws on the rear of the laptop (see Fig. 1). On my machine they are already marked by printed arrows, but in the attached photos I've marked them in yellow for clarity. You need to remove the two small screws holding the memory cover in place, whereafter there is one additional screw (the twelfth) located underneath.
Fig. 1: Remove the 12 screws on the rear of the laptop (click for full size)3) Having removed the rear screws, turn the machine over and unfold the screen. The keyboard is now released by two small clips at its top. In my case, they are above the F4 and F12 keys. Using a small flat screwdriver, or your nail or some other tool, press these retracting clips back in order to gently lever the keyboard out (Fig. 2). Note that it is still secured underneath by a data cord, so don't pull it too hard.
Fig. 2: Press the two retracting clips at the top of the keyboard to lever it out4) The data cable connecting the keyboard to the motherboard is released simply by lifting the thin brown flap next to where it is inserted (Fig. 3). When you pull the cable out you might well think you've broken it, because it is just a flimsy plastic strip and has no fancy connector attached to its end. The brown plastic holder secures the strip in place when in the flat position.
Fig. 3: Lift the small brown flap upright to release the keyboard data cable5) There are now another five screws to remove (Fig. 4). Double-check all the screws on your own laptop model because if any one of them is still intact you will not be able to remove the laptop cover and may break it in trying.
Fig. 4: Remove the 5 screws hidden underneath the keyboard 6) At this stage, all the screws are out and it should be possible to remove the front half of the laptop from the back, but be very careful because there are still wires and cables connecting the two, and they have only short lengths, so you will probably only be able to separate the two halves by an inch or two (Fig. 5). It should not be necessary to unplug any of these wires. Your own model could even have soldered wires bearing no other connectors, so watch out, you don't want to rip them out!
Fig. 5: Gently pull the two halves of the laptop base apart, without breaking the connecting cables7) The bit we are most interested in attending to is the heatsink - the metal part at the side of the case below the power input. It can be removed by taking out the three retaining screws (Fig. 6). The one at the top (near the power input) is a standard screw, but beware! The other two are spring-loaded, so remove them carefully else the springs could ping across your room or worse still into your eye. You can guarantee that they will turn up bizarrely in another room in five years' time, and you won't remember where they came from. Since this heatsink also extends across the CPU, there's a possibility that some thermal grease or merely some repeated heating has stuck the CPU to the part, in which case it will require a little extra levering, so take care not to damage the processor lying underneath.
Fig. 6: Take out the heatsink by removing the 3 retaining screws (2 of which are spring-loaded)8) And.......fanfare please.......here's the terrible little rapscallion in all its nasty glory (Fig. 7). This is the bit that's likely been turning your computing life into a cacophonous misery bucket until now. Just look at that gunge! All this fluff has been blocking the transit of air being pumped by the fan next door, causing a build up of heat, and thereby a vicious circle begins where the fan just whirrs more to try and combat the high temperature. I'm not sure if the VAIOs have a particular problem with this, but there seem to be many posters on the Internet to suggest that some design oversight has led to it being an all-too-common occurrence not matched by the majority of other notebook brands. Considering the premium price you've likely paid for your Sony, you'll be wanting to get a bit more life out of it. In my own case, it had reached this state four years after its initial purchase, though after only three and a half years of regular use.
Fig. 7: Get your hands on a bit of fluff, with this beautiful heatsinkTo clean the heatsink, a simple vacuum cleaner attachment should be enough. If you own one of those portable hand vacs then all the better. Short of either of these, you might try simply blowing through it, providing you accept the inevitable particles of blowback that will sprinkle themselves thoughtfully about your gob.
9) Once you can see clearly through all the fins, you may also wish to attend to the fan and other recesses around the laptop case. Ensure there are no loose parts inside before you take a vacuum attachment to the innards of your laptop, and don't nudge any of the transistors or other parts. In my own case, the fan itself had only a mild build-up of fluff inside its fins, and it was the heatsink that was the real culprit, but your own fan may have fared worse and you should attempt to pick the worst of the dirt out from it. I had no need to remove the fan, so I'm not sure how easy an operation that might be, but I'm guessing it's probably a pig because there is some kind of micro-nut that seems to solder it in place on the corner of the mainboard.
10) You should be feeling pleased with yourself once you've got this far and taken all the gunk away. Now it's just a case of putting everything back in reverse order. One thing of note here - the small square CPU may require some more thermal grease applying between it and the heatsink. Ideally there should be a layer sandwiched between the two with no gaps. You can obtain this solution in tiny inexpensive tubes or pots from most computer and electronics stores, or online.
To replace the keyboard cable, simply slot the end into the connector with the brown flap in the up position, then press the flap down flat until it clicks. Try to handle the cable by its edges but don't bend it. The cable has a natural fold and lays against the shaped recess in the case.
With all parts and screws back in place, you should hopefully notice some difference when you next start the computer. In fact, I had expected it to be totally silent upon boot, since it has done that many times in the past, but the fan spun up quite noisily in short bursts the first time. It soon settled down again after logging in and I can hear a clear decrease in the sound level overall. When the fan is required, perhaps for a short moment of intensive CPU activity when launching a program, for example, there may be a brief blast but it cuts out again, and actually sounds much cleaner, in contrast to the continual laborious heaving of the fan that occurred before.
I'm now sitting here typing up this blog on the newly renovated, beautifully quiet VAIO I once knew and have been missing for the last year or more. But wait! If these tips have worked for you and you're enjoying that same moment of peaceful pleasure, just imagine how many more times the pleasure you could experience from your laptop if you follow Part Two of my tips below!
Part 2: Desktop massage and data manicure
(you can link here by selecting #part2 as the target)
The beady-eyed amongst you may have spotted an intruder in one of the pictures posted above. Who is that Antarctic imposter in a party hat, sitting proudly on the front of my case next to the ubiquitous 'Intel Inside' and other motifs? Why, it's the new saviour of your system! Before I go any further, note that the following info explores an interest both of mine and increasingly of millions of others around the world, and I have nothing to sell or promote commercially. I honestly believe that if you value your VAIO (or any other computer), you may value it more if you have the pleasure of running it in the same way that I have over recent years. What I am about to summarize here (and to detail in some follow-up posts), involves a far less risky procedure than the one you've already carried out above, and need require no writing to your hard disk or spoiling of your existing setup in any way. You can try it out freely and if you don't like it, just keep using your laptop like before and nothing will have changed.
My passion is in part philosophically rooted, and is one also exalted by the likes of the masterful Mr Stephen Fry. Its many benefits have led to it being adopted by the French police service, the New York Stock Exchange and most of the twenty thousand or more employees of Google, to name but a few. The majority of Internet sites are run on it, and the chances are that if you own various items ranging from many new mobile phones to certain Sony televisions and video recorders, set-top boxes and other electrical items including wireless routers and in-car navigation / entertainment systems, you are already making use of it elsewhere.
Since by now you're wishing I would just get to the point, here's one word that may be completely alien, or familiar in a hazy sort of way, or which you might already know something about, but which can often arouse passions both positive and negative in many commentators. That word is Linux, or GNU/Linux to be more precise. Don't run away, I haven't finished yet!
The typical VAIO user is likely to be a bit more choosy about aspects of their computer than most people, not least due to the probable higher monetary investment that the models command. Some people are drawn to the aesthetic qualities, others to the robust design or to the special software bundles and media capabilities. Chances are that if you own a model of the same vintage as mine (circa 2004/2005), it'll be running Windows XP. Whilst you're looking to extend its useful life with a spot of heatsink housekeeping, you might also be pleasantly surprised at the improvement you could make to your computing experience when upgrading the underlying software system to a more modern, beautiful and flexible environment that can operate even on older, lower specification machines. Whilst you can opt to install Linux alongside your Windows system and use them both as you please, or love Linux and abandon Windows entirely, you can also try it out without touching a thing on your existing setup, simply by running it directly off a CD or DVD. If you're feeling a bit of a whizz you could also do it via a USB stick, or run it inside a virtual machine.
You could truly benefit from this advice if you are a 'regular' computer user. Linux is no longer just for nerds and experts! I'm not going to pretend that Linux will be ideally suited to you if there are certain very specialized or bespoke applications that you depend upon, or if you just love that custom Sony software bundle that came with your VAIO and couldn't possibly do without those particular programs, or you're a hardcore gamer who must have the latest and greatest game titles. But if you generally want to be able to access the Internet, do your emails, do online chat and make VOIP calls, run a full office suite that has Microsoft Word document compatibility, manage your photos, do video, music and image editing, listen to music without digital rights management restrictions, view the planet or the stars, or even some advanced processes like run your own web server, and you want to do all this with an attractive, advanced yet easy-to-use desktop interface, free from practically all those worries of viruses, spyware, trojan horses, annoying popups and niggling distractions both on the desktop and in the browser, then Linux is for you! I forgot one other thing - it won't cost you a penny.
Whilst I have stated that Linux is suitable for regular computer users and may not serve everybody's specific needs, I have nonetheless been a pretty heavy computer user for well over a decade, initially teaching myself computing using a variety of machines running Windows versions from 3.1 thru 95, 98, NT, ME and XP, in both home and work environments. I've developed 101 uses for my PC over the years fitting my varied interests including music production, web development and graphic work, and I certainly had concerns that I wouldn't be able to find appropriate GNU software replacements for many of the tasks I perform. There have been a few bugbears in the years since I switched to Linux, but things have reached the point now where practically all these issues are ironed out and I can get on with everything I need to do comfortably. Moreover, Linux is a real joy to use and I want to spread the word for the benefit of others who might otherwise overlook or be unaware of the alternatives available.
Of course, some of you will be well aware of Linux and open source software, and reading this might not offer any new insights. I am aiming my writings, therefore, at computer users like myself, covering some areas that are all too often overlooked by many of the more tech-centric Linux journalists and bloggers. It's only necessary that one is open and willing enough to invest a little time and patience in adapting to and understanding a new system, before ditching it or proclaiming it a nightmare because functions are found in slightly different places, or operate in an unfamiliar way. After all, attempting to switch from just one software program to another with, say, your emails, could be a challenge enough, so a wholesale change of operating system needs a bit of dedication. As I shall explain later, however, there are various ways to soften the transition and make it a more gradual and pain-free process.
I understand well enough myself, as a keen user, that often some proponents of Linux can be rather dogmatic and not offer the best angle on what it is they are so devoted to. Arguments and in-fighting rage around the Internet from users and abusers who would be best advised to keep their mouths shut and invest their time in something more useful. But this can apply equally to some Windows and Mac users too, and whilst such types may be the most vocal, they are frankly just the loudmouthed minority. We shall delve beyond the smokescreen of myth, uncertainty and untruths that sometimes put people off the idea of Linux before they've even reached the first hurdle.
I was originally intending to provide a full installation walk-through within this article, but I think it would be far wiser to separate that off to another blog post at a later date. For now, to keep this article of a reasonable and manageable length, I'll merely provide an overview, and start by underlining a few key points that confuse many folk:
Linux is a freely available, legal alternative to established proprietary operating systems such as Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh OS.
Linux began as a clone of the UNIX operating system, but was written from scratch without borrowing any of its code; UNIX was established following decades of research into effective computer systems, and it still exists today, mainly in corporate environments. The marriage of Linux with the GPL software license back in the early 1990s provided the best aspects of a proven and reliable UNIX-style system with the flexibility for developers to adapt it to their exact needs and to a wider variety of hardware.
The resulting GNU/Linux-based software is now deployed worldwide by major corporations, vendors and developers, whilst Linux itself and most of the open source software that runs on it is maintained by a network of many thousands of developers, incorporating both corporate and individual contributors; it is not owned by any one of them.
Run a proven, secure system that is considerably less vulnerable to infection, attack and other baddies, freeing your mind to pay attention to the things that really matter.
Ease of hardware management with most device support now built directly into the Linux kernel, saving the hassle of locating drivers scattered about the Internet.
Installation of additional software packages is handled by a central control, facilitating retrieval of everything you need from one place, and negating the need for trawling the internet or the local high street for the programs you require.
Free and simple updating of your system with not just regular new feature versions of software packages (as opposed to purely bug fix and security releases), but entire new distribution releases containing overall system and hardware management advances. You can literally watch your system and its software improve week by week, year on year.
True multi-user functionality is a fundamental standard within Linux, and ensures every user of your system can optimise their setup without impeding on others' preferences.
In-built efficient filesystem management routines mean no more periodic disk defragging, system slowdowns or reboots following every last change or package update. Linux servers, for example, are renowned for their uptime and resilience, and the ability to just keep running without resetting for sometimes months on end.
This is the case with my own Sony VAIO VGN-S270P, which I purchased from an American company specializing in Linux laptops, at a time back in 2005 when it was near impossible to source a Linux-based laptop from any major computer vendor. Since then, everything has changed, and the majority of vendors such as Dell, Acer, HP and Lenovo offer Linux as an option on at least some of their machines. Unfortunately, these options are all too often hidden away and not obvious to the purchaser, or utilised only for the base models in a system line-up. Worse still, some implementations of Linux on certain 'Netbook' models of recent times have been rather cheaply and shoddily put together by the system vendor, because they currently only see Linux installations as a price-cutting measure rather than a genuine alternative that more people could appreciate if they were given a fair introduction to it. I could go on forever on this track about the whys and wherefores of the computer industry and its allegiances and financial incentives, etc., but I'd rather just focus on the good stuff...
My specialized VAIO laptop came with a standard factory installed Windows XP, but alongside a custom Linux installation that I have since replaced and upgraded several times. Upon boot, one simply chooses which system to use from a menu. I have now settled on a format and setup that I am more happy than ever with, using a regular, non-customized Linux distribution that anybody can obtain. I have no doubt that if I could replace your own VAIO's operating system with what I've got, and I had the personal time to spend with you getting you started and guiding you through using it, you would be impressed enough to never look back and return to the rather stale world of Windows. I obviously can't afford you that personal attention, but the least I can do, in my own contribution back to the Linux ecosystem, is try and spread a bit of knowledge to others.
In my next blog post, I shall provide a little more info on how to go about trying out and/or installing one of these distributions. Adding the details here would just send this post swerving off on a tangent too far removed from its original purpose, and by the time search listings of this post start trickling down the Internet's myriad information waterways and visitors are beginning to turn up here, I might have the next post out the oven. If you've got here rather too soon, like the first arrival at a hip party wishing you'd killed a bit more time down the pub, then sorry for dangling a carrot, but I shall be back to peel it for you later!
For the meantime, if your appetite is now too soggy to leave it undried, and you fancy using your own initiative, you should find pages on all of the sites below explaining how to download their Linux distributions. I can't act as a Linux techie for all your possible support needs, but these are well established distributions that have strong user communities and online tools available should you come unstuck:
Mandriva
openSUSE
Kubuntu
Fedora
I'll be interested to read your comments about the noise reduction treatment and/or your experience with Linux. Just don't give up on your VAIO yet - it could still give you a lot more useful life than you imagine.
