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Originally Posted by Taltarzac725
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Yup, that's what they are. And if you only have one computer, and only one heat sink, and just need to re-seat it because the old compound is dried or worn out (which rarely happens unless you have a really OLD machine)...
then you just need the equivalent of one big DROP of the stuff. But this stuff isn't liquid, therefore there's no "drop." It's just a smear, because you let this little bit fall on the back of the heat sink in the center of it. Then you "seat" the sink back onto the platen beneath it. When you tighten the screws, the compound literally smears itself to the edges of the platen.
This compound provides a conductive and protective layer between the heat sink and the platen, so that heat created by the machinery is absorbed through the sink and dispersed - thus preventing overheating.
A fan (or in my case multiple fans) add more overheating protection. But the heat sink protects the motherboard directly. The fans assist, plus they protect all the cards and other internals.
But since it's really not something most people ever have to deal with or even know about, I figured I'd explain what it all means. Some day you might need to have this done and if you're comfortable with tinkering with machines, it's really a very simple process that takes less than 10 minutes and needs only the compound, good eyesight, a steady hand, and an eye-glass screwdriver.