I'm not quite sure what you are asking. Thermal paste will last awhile, but will dry out eventually.
As for your mobo/chip problem... it could be anything. Have you put a box togther before? I only ask because there can be lots of reasons for what you described to happen.
Normally when I have that type of issue, I take everything back apart.
1) Take the mobo out, set it on your desk (assuming you dont have a metal desk).
2)Plug the power supply in, make sure the cpu, cpu fan, and ram are in (and video card if there is no onboard video). If it still doesn't boot, then you have a problem.
3) If it does boot, then put the mobo back in the case and boot. If that doesnt work, you might have a riser in the wrong place, which can short the board out (this CAN harm the board, but I haven't had it happen yet).
4) Add 1 card in at a time until you have a full booting system. Then plug your HD's, CDROMs and anything else in one at a time, testing to see if your system boots after each new piece is added.
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Patterns have a habit of repeating themselves.
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