I'm replacing my eight year old stock cpu cooling fan/heat sink for socket LGA 1366/Intel i7 930. I ordered part no. E97380-001 and it looks identical to the one currently installed including the the three strips of solid thermal compound on the bottom of the heat sink. The original instructions said no additional thermal paste was required, but I'm wondering if, even though the item appears to be new, the solid thermal compound is still sufficient on the new heat sink. If the item is still being manufactured then I'm guessing it should be, but if it's been sitting on a shelf for years can I trust it?
