Labthrift Labthrift What to buy. What to skip. Why.

Written 25 Aug 2026. This is a how-to, not a product card.

Don't cook the computer

The computer stays on. It needs air. A laptop under a pile of clothes will cook. Skip this if the computer is a desktop with vents clear.

An old laptop shoved under a desk, lid shut, sweater on top, will cook. Then it throttles: it slows itself down to stay alive. Then SSH and Pi-hole drop. It is not off. It is too hot to keep working.

Skip this if the computer is a desktop

An OptiPlex, EliteDesk, or mini PC sitting on a hard surface, with vents clear, already has air. Skip this note. Come back only if you boxed it in a closed cabinet, or covered the vents. Loud fan with clear vents is a different job: when the old PC's fan is loud.

A laptop still needs a hard, open surface

The lid can be shut. That is don't let the old laptop sleep. Give the old laptop a hard, open surface. A desk, a shelf, a book. Not carpet. Not a sofa. Not inside a closed cabinet. Air has to leave the vents. The sleep note already says don't bury it under a sweater. This is the rest of that job: air, dust, and the difference between warm and hot.

Warm is fine. Hot is not.

Warm is fine. Hot means you cannot keep a hand on the metal for a few seconds. If you cannot, move it. Give it more air. No thermometer required.

Dust, once

Once, blow the vents. Don't vacuum the fan. A vacuum can spin the fan too fast and break it. You don't need a command. If you want to see that the computer has been on, this is optional:

uptime

That is look, then maybe type. Most of this note is look. Don't type.

What next

If the computer is a laptop, keep it awake when the lid closes. That is don't let the old laptop sleep. If you are done for the night, shut down the computer without yanking the plug. If ads came back this morning, or SSH hangs, that is is the computer still on?. Desktop or mini PC still screaming after vents are clear? When the old PC's fan is loud. Don't buy a rack. Don't buy a NAS.

Skip

Sources

Debian: uptime. Ubuntu: uptime. Official pages only. For the computer, see start with what you already have. For the lid, see don't let the old laptop sleep. For the night, see shut down the computer without yanking the plug.

Also on this topic

When the old PC's fan is loudA Marketplace OptiPlex or EliteDesk screams in the living room. Blow the dust, give it air, move it to a closet. Skip a water cooler this weekend. Don't let the old laptop sleepClose the lid. The old laptop has to stay awake so SSH and Pi-hole keep working. A desktop can skip this note. Shut down the computer without yanking the plugWhen you're done for the night, shut it down and let it finish writing files before it powers off. Don't yank the cord. Skip this if you only need a reboot after updates. Start with what you already haveDon't buy anything yet. Old laptop first, or a retired OptiPlex from Marketplace.