I just installed gentoo on my laptop to the point where i can boot and login from the hard drive. i havn't been able to do anything else though because it overheats and my computer just clicks off. i know this is terrable for a processor. i have about 10 minuts MAYBE before it just dies.

i had the same problem a while back with mandrake 10.1 but fixed it by turning on acpi. after that it ran fine. im guessing i have to do the same thing in gentoo but i don't know how. in the grub kernel options i put "acpi=on" but i'm assuming it didn't work.

it seamed to work ok on the install cd except for when i was actualy doing stuff it would get pretty hot, so it has to be a missed configuration in gentoo or something. also i cant connect to the internet right now cause a may have screwed up those settings to. this means i may not be able to download any progs to help.

this has messed up my processor quite a bit in the past. i now have to run my comp on a cooling pad for it to stay reletively cool. i'd like to prevent any further dammage if possible.

im running gentoo 2005.0 on an averatec 3150 laptop.

lsmod and see if processor, thermal, and fan are loaded. If not, try modprobing them.
If that doesn't work, check into your kernel config and see that fan, processor and thermal were built, either as modules or into the kernel.

After you get the modules loaded, you need to get your networking figured out so you can perform the next steps:

okay how do i do that. sorry im kind of a noob...

lsmod
this command lists modules that have been inserted into the running kernel. Run it as root, or use the full path /sbin/lsmod as a user. From the list, look for processor, thermal and fan.

modprobe
If you didn't find any or all of processor, thermal, or fan in the output of lsmod, try using the modprobe command to insert them intop the running kernel.
as root:
modprobe fan
modprobe processor
modprobe thermal

any errors you see, from any of the commands, post them here.

If you can't modprobe the modules (think of them as drivers), you'll have to look at your kernel config. open the /usr/src/linux-<your kernel version>/.config with a text editor. Find the following, and see if it matches :
If it doesn't, you'll have to tweak your kernel, or rebuild it, depending on if you used genkernel or not.

Your network is another issue, and we need more info to troubleshoot it (card type, IP or dhcp, nameservers, etc.). After you get it fixed and running, type these next three commands as root:
emerge sys-power/acpid
/etc/init.d/acpid start
rc-update add acpid default

this will start the acpi daemon, and set it to start at every boot afterwards.

tehre were no errors with modprobe but the kernel config did look different. it said the same stuff though.

where you said
<M> Thermal Zone

it said
CONFIG_ACPI_THERMAL=m

is this the same or will i have to recompile the kernel?
i did use genkernel by the way. and thanks for you help too.

it doesn't recognize eth0 as a device. thats my internet problem i think.

IMHO I would build them directly into the kernel if I was on a laptop that has a fan
i wouldent rely on modprobeing them in.


But of couse i have a fanless lappy too

CONFIG_ACPI_THERMAL=m
should be just fine. Different kernel versions between you and I probably.
Did you run lsmod again and see if thermal fan and processor show up now? If not, do so.

Now you can add the modules, one per line to this file:
/etc/modules.autoload.d/kernel-2.6

# 3c59x <------------this line should already exist. add the following
processor
thermal
fan


For your network -
What network card do you have? Need to know so the right modules can get loaded. the procedure is the same. modprobe the module, verify it's loaded, add it to the autoload.d file.

after the right module is loaded, run these commands as root:
ifconfig eth0 up
dhcpcd eth0

Just post back what network card you have if you don't know what module to load, and any errors you run into.

dont know if its working or not. ill just have to wait and see...

anyway my network card is a VIA Rhine II something or another. i dont know how to get it configured without kde or gnome.

when i use lsmod the list is to long to see on the screen. is there an option like in dos to show things by page?

try /sbin/lsmod | less
the arrow keys will let you go up or down, q will exit it.

For your network card - Boot up with the live cd you used to build gentoo, and run lsmod. That will tell you what modules get loaded from the live cd to make your network card work. Jot them down and follow the above steps to insert them into the kernel, and have them autostart.

AHA!! got it to work by adding via_rhine to the module list.
and its staying prety cool now as well

thanks for all your help!

you're welcome. I'm glad you got it all sorted out!