On Mon, 27 Dec 2004 00:55:59 +0000, Alberto Monteiro <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Keith Henson wrote: > > > >> My CPU cooler is behaving strangely: it sometimes spins, other > >> times doesn't. Which means that I have to chance the damned thing. > >> Problem: is there any way to _remove_ it without breaking > >> everything? > > > > Typically you can release the spring that holds it on with a screwdriver > > and take the whole assembly off. > > > And where is it located?
I'm 2000 miles away from my PC now, so I can't check it out to be sure, but I believe that my CPU fan has two thin u-shaped wire clips that hook underneath the heat sink and then hook onto the edges of the fan itself to hold it down. A small screwdriver can pop them off. (Some heat sinks use a separate sturdier set of clips to hold the heat sink itself onto the CPU socket. I heartily recommend not removing the heat sink itself if you're not sure what you're doing. You can pretty easily damage the CPU if you force things trying to put the hsf back on.) Other fans screw onto the heat sink, and I think for most of them you can remove the fan without removing the heat sink. If it uses mega-screws that hold the whole hsf combo to the mobo, be very careful. There's a million varieties of CPU heat sink and fan combo, so there's no one or two ways they're put together. You'll have to go take a closer look at your setup to know for sure what kind you have. Also make sure you get the right replacement fan. Most CPU fans are 60mm (smaller than the case-mounted fans), but some are 80mm (80mm fans are the typical case fans). My heat sink allowed either size fan because it came with clips for both sizes, but you'll probably need to stick to the size you already have. Good luck! _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l