The random MacBook shutdows SOLVED!

This one post is specifically documented for Dereks benefit, but could be of use to all MacBook owners.

Some friends of mine have this nasty issue with their Macbook; it’s shutting down spontanously. Apple’s support forum is full of postings from users seeking solutions, and a web site is just dedicated to this problem. Now, a German news site has posted an article about an IT engineer from Munich, Germany (my hometown! Prost!). It is stated that he has located the problem which is a result of pure physics. The phenomenon seems to be caused by the cable between the heat sensor and the CPU’s heat sink being too short.

The heat sink expands during operation and gets into contact with the sensor cable and melts the cable’s isolation. This in turn causes a short circuit and, thus, the immediate shutdown of the Macbook. As the heat sink is cooling down, the heat sink contracts to the point that it looses its contact with the cable and breaks up the short circuit. You can now boot again. Just until the processor heats up and the heat sink and the cable have contact again…

If this proves to be the reason then there might be a quick fix, specifically you would not have to exchange your mainboard or RAM. [via]