I have an Athlon 3000+ s939, and recently put the whole system together. I used Arctic Silver 5 (NOT thermal adhesive) for the heatsink. Now, the system wouldnt start up because I shorted out the mobo. So I was lazy for a bout a whole week and did nothing. Well this morning I decided to finally take out the mobo and return in it. But when I tried to take off the heatsink, it wouldnt budge. So I pulled it a little more until it came, BRINGING THE DAMN CPU WITH IT!!! The socket and cpu are fine, but I'm just wondering wtf happenned? I've used the exact same AS5 out of the same tube on other computers, and this has not happenned... B33R, B33R B33R!!!!!!!!!

By CPU, IF you mean that just the small, center rectangle (approxmimately 1/2 x 1 inch) was affixed to the heatsink bottom leaving the CPU mounting board locked into the mainboard socket, you are up a creek without a paddle and will have to get a new CPU. It's trashed. IF you mean that the entire CPU with the small mounting board pulled out of the mainboard socket, you may have a chance. One of two things happened: >you forgot to lock the CPU in place with the locking lever after inserting it into the mobo socket and that is why it all came out with the heatsink-nothing was holding it in place. OR >the locking mechanism broke and released the CPU/board. That means that it is broken, and you may or may not be able to rig something to lock the CPU down. You may be looking at a new mainboard. Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime; Then industry pollutes the water and kills all the fish.

I can't fathom how a processor (not to mention on a newly built rig) gets stuck to the heatsink if the only thing between them is thermal paste. Without the CPU being glued to the heatsink, the heatsink separates effortlessly so long as retaining strip has been unlatched from the CPU socket. The CPU also has a latch that secures it in the socket to ensure it does not come of with the heatsink. -- Always do what you are afraid to do --

No, the cpu was securly in place. And yes, it was the entire processor. No pins were bent, luckily. And I'm getting a new motherboard anyway... Everything was 100% done right, this ais like the 15th computer I've built, but this aint never happenned before. When I took it out, the metal on the heatsink was freezing cold. Maybe it literally froze the 2 together because it wasnt running and heating up, and just sitting in my cold living room? B33R, B33R B33R!!!!!!!!!

To late now but next time try a little rotation back and forth. As far as the CPU being OK, that may be the case but I would be concerned about the socket. If you actully had the chip locked down and extracted it anway you may have buggered up the contacts inside the socket. Did the processor come off the Heatsink after you pulled the whole works out?

"Everything was 100% done right" Obviously it wasn't Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @8x210mhz 512mb PC3200 Ti4200/8X 128mb WDC 60GB

Hi, I have had the same thing happen to me before. I came across a computer in which the heatsink also was stuck to the processor. I rocked it back and for with little force, and the processor came up with the heatsink, thinking I just ruined the either the processor or the mobo. I pried the heatsink from the processor, wiped it clean and unclasped the zif socket and opened the lever. I reseated the processor without a problem and it held as it should. I reapplied thermal paste attached the heatsink/fan and turned the computer on, and it has been fine ever since. Luckily no damage was done and it definitely took me off guard. Tony AMD Athlonxp 3200+ OC Asus A7N8x-deluxe-E ATI AIW 9600pro 2x WD SATA raptors/raid0 Corsair XMS3200 16x Lite-on DVD 12x DVD-R 48x Lite-on CDRW Aspire Super Alien Case