CPU has a smudge on it?

[thew]

Hey, I just wanted to ask if the contacts behind the CPU ( the gold parts ) have a small smudge on it will it affect the performance? (Core i7-4790) Couple years ago I was upgrading my PC from a i3 4170 to i7 4790 which was a 2nd hand CPU. I then accidentally got a bit of CPU grease on the contacts.  It was light smudge. So I slightly wiped it off with a suitable material. So then I tried to sell it off to CEX a UK company that buys electronic goods and told me there's something on the contacts. Now I'm wondering cause of the smudge on the contacts could that be affecting my performance when playing games? And it there a way to wipe the smudge off properly? Here's a picture: 

[rye10516]

Use rubbing alcohol

[thew]

6 minutes ago, rye10516 said:

Use rubbing alcohol

Thanks I'll try. Also the smudge on the contacts be the reason for the poor performance? Currently I have my old CPU installed.

[EpochDeveloper]

What I'd do is put some Rubbing Alcohol on to a cotton bud and wipe it off. 

[EpochDeveloper]

Nice macro photo too

[Navbryce]

I  doubt a smudge, especially one of that small magnitude, would lower performance.

 

I'm not an electrical engineer, but I feel like with CPU pins/pads they either work or they don't. There's not much inbetween.

[porina]

I'd also try to clean it carefully with some iso-propyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol). The pads are usually gold plated I think, so they should resist oxidation. It could affect signal integrity, but generally it either does or doesn't do enough to affect working. It isn't going to make it slightly worse. It could potentially be worse if it was on enough power pins. Trying to push too much current through it could result in local heating.

[thew]

4 hours ago, porina said:

I'd also try to clean it carefully with some iso-propyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol). The pads are usually gold plated I think, so they should resist oxidation. It could affect signal integrity, but generally it either does or doesn't do enough to affect working. It isn't going to make it slightly worse. It could potentially be worse if it was on enough power pins. Trying to push too much current through it could result in local heating.

I currently have my i3 installed and planing to reinstall the i7 4790. Is there anything I need to do? like toggle any settings in the mother board?

[porina]

Straight swap should be fine. On first boot the mobo may detect the CPU has changed, and ask you to verify settings in bios, but shouldn't be needed.

[thew]

1 minute ago, porina said:

Straight swap should be fine. On first boot the mobo may detect the CPU has changed, and ask you to verify settings in bios, but shouldn't be needed.

Alright, also because of my performance issue with the i7 4790, would resetting the CMOS help or BIOS?

[porina]

Just now, thew said:

Alright, also because of my performance issue with the i7 4790, would resetting the CMOS help or BIOS?

What performance issue? Some settings could impact performance but without more details we can't start to guess why it is happening.

[thew]

1 minute ago, porina said:

What performance issue? Some settings could impact performance but without more details we can't start to guess why it is happening.

Well when I first bought this PC, it came with this i3 4170. Couple years down I decided to upgrade to a i7 4790 like the one I mentioned. When I installed it, and started playing games on the new CPU, it was performing BADLY, like terrible. I would experience lag spikes every 2mins for no reason. I put my i3 back in and the stuttering stopped but of course running at a low FPS. The games that I was trying to run are PUBG and GTA5.

[porina]

10 minutes ago, thew said:

Well when I first bought this PC, it came with this i3 4170. Couple years down I decided to upgrade to a i7 4790 like the one I mentioned. When I installed it, and started playing games on the new CPU, it was performing BADLY, like terrible. I would experience lag spikes every 2mins for no reason. I put my i3 back in and the stuttering stopped but of course running at a low FPS. The games that I was trying to run are PUBG and GTA5.

What cooler do you have? First thought is could it be overheating?

[thew]

2 minutes ago, porina said:

What cooler do you have? First thought is could it be overheating?

Stock Cooler. Like my PC would be off for days, soon as I turn it on and start a game, I start lagging. Here are videos: 

 

[thew]

26 minutes ago, porina said:

What cooler do you have? First thought is could it be overheating?

Any thoughts?