Is there a 'check' in place to stop the CPU from frying if the heatsink fan fails ?

Hi folks,

I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.

What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
long before the CPU 'dies' ?

Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
dies ?

Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
the PC immediately ?

Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?

(In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)

What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?

TIA,
Arif

the majority of not all of the newer boards say kt333 chipset and up have
this safety feature enabled now.



Neil
http://members.rogers.com/nasrott




"Arif" <> wrote in message
news: om...
> Hi folks,
>
> I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
> switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.
>
> What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
> fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
> long before the CPU 'dies' ?
>
> Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
> dies ?
>
> Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
> the PC immediately ?
>
> Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
> the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?
>
> (In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
> Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)
>
> What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?
>
> TIA,
> Arif

well its easy isnt it? best way to avoid that problem is..."Never turn
your/any rig on that dosent have a HSF on the cpu..." duh...

"Arif" <> wrote in message
news: om...
> Hi folks,
>
> I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
> switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.
>
> What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
> fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
> long before the CPU 'dies' ?
>
> Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
> dies ?
>
> Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
> the PC immediately ?
>
> Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
> the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?
>
> (In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
> Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)
>
> What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?
>
> TIA,
> Arif

"Arif" <> wrote in message
news: om...
> Hi folks,
>
> I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
> switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.
>
> What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
> fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
> long before the CPU 'dies' ?
>
> Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
> dies ?
>
> Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
> the PC immediately ?
>
> Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
> the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?
>
> (In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
> Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)
>
> What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?

With your mobo you will be very safe. Your mobo will probably manage a
situation where the heatsink isn´t installed at all. But DONT TRY!
Pre-KT333 mobos (with some exceptions) don´t have the feature where mobo
circuits will shut the CPU down if thermal diode (inside CPU) reports a temp
over a certain limit. You have that feature.

Older mobos had an external temp diode located under the CPU. This one would
react too slow in a scenario where the heatsink wasn´t installed, and the
CPU would fry. If fan stops spinning, this feature would probably save the
CPU, though. Some mobos come with this external diode in addition to the
protection offered by the internal.

And last but not least, some mobos refuse to start if they cannot detect a
fan speed above a certain limit. You can configure BIOS to shut down CPU if
fan speed drops under a limit of your choice.

In your case, if fan stops, there could be 2 or 3 features shutting down
machine and saving your CPU. That´s pretty good.

In a scenario where a heatsink falls off, CPU could be saved with the first
mentioned method. But >300g of free moving metal inside the case is likely
to destroy other parts of the machine.

On Sun, 29 Jun 2003 04:52:22 -0700, Arif wrote:

> I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
> switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.
>
> What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
> fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
> long before the CPU 'dies' ?
>
That all depends on a lot of factors. It may never die, depending on the
MB and/or what you have running. Just sitting idle I could easily unplug
my fan without a problem since I'm running Lvcool. Some MB's offer
protection if you try an turn the system on and a fan isn't detected. Etc.

> Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
> dies ?
>
Depends on MB.

> Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
> the PC immediately ?
>
If you set it up.

> Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
> the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?
>
Not that I'm aware of. Unless you want to consider low rpms a warning.

> (In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
> Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)
>
Should have put this at the top.:-)

> What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?
>
RTFM.

--
Abit KT7-Raid (KT133) Tbred B core CPU @2400MHz (24x100FSB)
http://mysite.verizon.net/res0exft/cpu.html

beleive he was asking if a fan quit working while sink was on.



"[NAC]Nubi" <> wrote in message
news:1OALa.89194$.. .
> well its easy isnt it? best way to avoid that problem is..."Never turn
> your/any rig on that dosent have a HSF on the cpu..." duh...
>
> "Arif" <> wrote in message
> news: om...
> > Hi folks,
> >
> > I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
> > switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.
> >
> > What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
> > fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
> > long before the CPU 'dies' ?
> >
> > Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
> > dies ?
> >
> > Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
> > the PC immediately ?
> >
> > Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
> > the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?
> >
> > (In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
> > Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)
> >
> > What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?
> >
> > TIA,
> > Arif
>
>

I use Motherboard monitor with XP.
In "temp.s", check "enable alarm" (say 65C).
Check "when alarm goes off, start appl.n" <shutdown.exe>
With switch <-s -f -t 00> for instant shutdown.
Works fine on my Abit KT7a - and I get peace of mind.




"Arif" <> wrote in message
news: om...
> Hi folks,
>
> I understand that the CPU will 'fry' within a few seconds if the PC is
> switched on without the heatsink and fan fitted.
>
> What is the situation if the heatsink and fan are fitted but say the
> fan stops and only the heatsink is left to dissipate the heat. How
> long before the CPU 'dies' ?
>
> Are there any checks in place to stop the PC from starting if the fan
> dies ?
>
> Do any 'alarm' bells go off if it does happen to tell us to switch off
> the PC immediately ?
>
> Is there any 'forewarning' that the fan is about to die ? (similar to
> the 'SMART' diagnostics for hard disks ?
>
> (In case this is motherboard specific, the motherboard in question is
> Asus A7N8X Deluxe V2)
>
> What precautions can one take to avoid this scenario ?
>
> TIA,
> Arif

On Mon, 30 Jun 2003 11:43:45 +0100, "rstlne" <> wrote:

>> That all depends on a lot of factors. It may never die, depending on the
>> MB and/or what you have running. Just sitting idle I could easily unplug
>> my fan without a problem since I'm running Lvcool. Some MB's offer
>> protection if you try an turn the system on and a fan isn't detected. Etc.
>
>Laugh, Can you make a Quick Time Video of you unplugging the fan? and we can
>see how long it takes ..
>I would say that IF, IF, and a big IF on top of it.. You have say 2 intake
>fans and 1 exit fan + PSU draw in/exit fan (the draw fan is of course
>straight over the cpu) then you might survive it just based on airflow
>within the case, but generally speaking, no fan on your heatsink means it
>will go to a high temp and shut down.. Software coolers dont make a
>difference on todays processors. my cpu fan is only 1300 rpm and it does the
>job nicely
>

Yep. I have my Zalman 7000 cpu cooler running at 1350 rpm, with no
other fans at all (except the one fan in the Zalman 400W PSU). No case
fans, nothing. The machine's totally inaudible from 4 feet away and
running at 42 degrees. I could get that down with a case fan or two,
but I'm wondering why I need to

Brian

On Mon, 30 Jun 2003 13:09:03 GMT, bigbrian <>
wrote:

>On Mon, 30 Jun 2003 11:43:45 +0100, "rstlne" <> wrote:
>
>>> That all depends on a lot of factors. It may never die, depending on the
>>> MB and/or what you have running. Just sitting idle I could easily unplug
>>> my fan without a problem since I'm running Lvcool. Some MB's offer
>>> protection if you try an turn the system on and a fan isn't detected. Etc.
>>
>>Laugh, Can you make a Quick Time Video of you unplugging the fan? and we can
>>see how long it takes ..
>>I would say that IF, IF, and a big IF on top of it.. You have say 2 intake
>>fans and 1 exit fan + PSU draw in/exit fan (the draw fan is of course
>>straight over the cpu) then you might survive it just based on airflow
>>within the case, but generally speaking, no fan on your heatsink means it
>>will go to a high temp and shut down.. Software coolers dont make a
>>difference on todays processors. my cpu fan is only 1300 rpm and it does the
>>job nicely
>>
>
>Yep. I have my Zalman 7000 cpu cooler running at 1350 rpm, with no
>other fans at all (except the one fan in the Zalman 400W PSU). No case
>fans, nothing. The machine's totally inaudible from 4 feet away and
>running at 42 degrees. I could get that down with a case fan or two,
>but I'm wondering why I need to
>
>Brian


My moto is, if it's stable then it's cool enough. ;p
Ed

On Mon, 30 Jun 2003 11:43:45 +0100, rstlne wrote:

>> That all depends on a lot of factors. It may never die, depending on the
>> MB and/or what you have running. Just sitting idle I could easily unplug
>> my fan without a problem since I'm running Lvcool. Some MB's offer
>> protection if you try an turn the system on and a fan isn't detected. Etc.
>
> Laugh, Can you make a Quick Time Video of you unplugging the fan? and we can
> see how long it takes ..

I'm running right now with the fan unplugged. No video, but here's what I
got temp wise. The first is with the fan running. The last is current
time. Vantec Aeroflow cooler. Notice how the system temp dropped with the
cover off.

[wes@wes2 wes]$ sensors
via686a-isa-6000
Adapter: ISA adapter
Algorithm: ISA algorithm
CPU core: +1.63 V (min = +1.48 V, max = +1.89 V)
+2.5V: +2.50 V (min = +2.13 V, max = +2.77 V)
I/O: +3.37 V (min = +3.01 V, max = +3.69 V)
+5V: +5.01 V (min = +4.51 V, max = +5.54 V)
+12V: +12.21 V (min = +11.22 V, max = +13.71 V)
CPU Fan: 5322 RPM (min = 3103 RPM, div = 2)
Sys Fan: 2743 RPM (min = 0 RPM, div = 2)
SYS Temp: +29.2°C (limit = +45°C, hysteresis = +40°C)
CPU Temp: +32.2°C (limit = +60°C, hysteresis = +55°C)
SBr Temp: +32.9°C (limit = +55°C, hysteresis = +50°C)

[wes@wes2 wes]$ sensors
via686a-isa-6000
Adapter: ISA adapter
Algorithm: ISA algorithm
CPU core: +1.63 V (min = +1.48 V, max = +1.89 V)
+2.5V: +2.50 V (min = +2.13 V, max = +2.77 V)
I/O: +3.37 V (min = +3.01 V, max = +3.69 V)
+5V: +5.01 V (min = +4.51 V, max = +5.54 V)
+12V: +12.21 V (min = +11.22 V, max = +13.71 V)
CPU Fan: 0 RPM (min = 3103 RPM, div = 2)
Sys Fan: 2732 RPM (min = 0 RPM, div = 2)
SYS Temp: +25.2°C (limit = +45°C, hysteresis = +40°C)
CPU Temp: +34.6°C (limit = +60°C, hysteresis = +55°C)
SBr Temp: +30.9°C (limit = +55°C, hysteresis = +50°C)

--
Abit KT7-Raid (KT133) Tbred B core CPU @2400MHz (24x100FSB)
http://mysite.verizon.net/res0exft/cpu.html