<s>
A	O
CPU	B-Device
shim	I-Device
(	O
also	O
called	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
spacer	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
shim	O
used	O
between	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
and	O
the	O
heat	O
sink	O
in	O
a	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shims	O
make	O
it	O
easier	O
and	O
less	O
risky	O
to	O
mount	O
a	O
heatsink	O
on	O
the	O
processor	O
because	O
it	O
stabilizes	O
the	O
heatsink	O
,	O
preventing	O
accidental	O
damaging	O
of	O
the	O
fragile	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
packaging	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CPU	B-Device
shims	I-Device
are	O
usually	O
made	O
of	O
thin	O
and	O
very	O
flat	O
aluminium	O
or	O
copper	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CPU	B-Device
shims	I-Device
should	O
be	O
non-conductive	O
to	O
prevent	O
any	O
accidental	O
short	O
circuiting	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Aluminium	O
shims	O
are	O
often	O
anodized	O
,	O
which	O
makes	O
them	O
non-conductive	O
and	O
improves	O
their	O
appearance	O
(	O
see	O
case	B-Architecture
modding	I-Architecture
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
it	O
is	O
too	O
thick	O
then	O
the	O
heatsink	O
will	O
not	O
make	O
contact	O
with	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
,	O
resulting	O
in	O
poor	O
cooling	O
and	O
possibly	O
overheating	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CPU	B-Device
shims	I-Device
are	O
not	O
common	O
at	O
all	O
in	O
OEM	O
computers	O
,	O
but	O
are	O
used	O
by	O
some	O
computer	O
hardware	O
enthusiasts	O
who	O
may	O
use	O
heavier	O
heatsinks	O
because	O
they	O
wish	O
to	O
have	O
a	O
cooler	O
or	O
less	O
noisy	O
system	O
or	O
perhaps	O
to	O
overclock	B-Application
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
for	O
better	O
performance	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
heavy	O
heatsink	O
puts	O
more	O
pressure	O
on	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
and	O
motherboard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shims	O
are	O
very	O
useful	O
for	O
people	O
who	O
often	O
change	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
,	O
heatsink	O
or	O
cooling	B-General_Concept
solutions	I-General_Concept
,	O
or	O
use	O
a	O
heatsink	O
that	O
is	O
heavier	O
than	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
manufacturer	O
's	O
recommended	O
weight	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CPU	B-Device
shims	I-Device
are	O
nowadays	O
largely	O
obsolete	O
because	O
most	O
modern	O
processors	O
designed	O
for	O
home	O
users	O
since	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
the	O
Athlon	O
64	O
and	O
Pentium	B-General_Concept
4	I-General_Concept
have	O
an	O
Integrated	O
Heat	O
Spreader	O
(	O
IHS	O
)	O
which	O
prevents	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
core	O
from	O
being	O
accidentally	O
broken	O
.	O
</s>
