Computer is scaring me. :(

[James]

I was doing a disk cleanup to recover some space just now, and all of a sudden, my computer started making a loud grinding noise that slowly died down.

I do cleanups every couple days because a good chunk of space gets help up in temporary files and the like, and this is the first time I've ever heard a noise like that. The computer is also almost a year old.

I'd assume since I was doing a disk cleanup the drive was just acting up. But the grinding noise makes me wonder if it was my CPU fan. I don't know what to do now and I'm scared. :(

I'd checked my HD for errors, found none. I've tried to look over the proporties for my board and processor, but didn't find any problems. I installed a temp monitor, and my temperature is holding steady at the right levels. My fans don't have sensors on them, but if something wasn't working, the temp would reflect that.

I just don't know what to do. My computer makes a wierd scary noise out of fucking nowhere, and I don't know why. :(

[AChimp]

Run your computer with the cover off for a few days so that if the noise comes back, you have easy access to the insides to see where the sound is coming from.

Weird noises are usually fans, or cables that have fallen against fans. Sometimes in the process of opening up your case, you move stuff around and then the problem isn't obvious anymore.

If it is your hard drive, it could be that the drive was just thrashing a lot. This basically means the grinding sound you heard wasn't grinding at all, but the read/write heads moving back and forth more than usual (typically happens when you have a lot of fragmented data on your drive). Or your hard drive is dying.

[James]

Well, last night, it sounded like a grinding noise that died down. It sounded similar to a bad fan fixing itself.

Today, I'm hearing noises again, that sound like scratching. Which I would think is the "thrashing" you mentioned. At least I'd really like to think so. Since my drive is usually too full to defragment my drive, it also makes it sound like a possibility.

[executioneer]

it's the rats, those terrible rats in the computer :eel

[Juttin]

I didn't know there was an "eel" emote

[James]

I managed to free up JUST enough space to be able to defrag. The scratchy noise happened off and on during the process.

It continued to happen afterwards, so I turned the computer off, opened up the case, and blew away some of the dust inside. It's not sitting open and running.

I didn't hear anything yet, and was JUST going to say I think everything's OK now, but I just heard it again. It definitely sounds like it's coming from the power supply fan, so I'll call Dell and ask them to send someone out to replace it.

[DuFresne]

My grandma is 89. She defrags her hard drive because she thinks it looks pretty.

[James]

faasdfasfsadf

[Juttin]

No, that motherfucker WILL FRY. Without Warning, too.

[ziggytrix]

it's the rats, those terrible rats in the computer :eel

lol lovecraft

[ziggytrix]

you do have a fire extinguisher around, right james?

[Archduke Tips]

The temperature it is reading is somewhere on your motherboard.

Your power supply will most likely be fine without the fan, but it does present a fire hazard. So use it at your own risk.

[James]

dsafsdfasdfsd

[Archduke Tips]

Are you talking about a desktop or a laptop?

I'd be happy to assist you in replacing the fan, and it would save you money over replacing the whole power supply.

Please don't open the power supply on your own. Potentially deadly amounts of charge can be stored in capacitors within the supply for long periods of time after it is turned off.

[James]

sadffdfsafdsasd

[Archduke Tips]

All of our jobs go to India because Americans in the technical field seem to have this idea that slacking off at work is not only okay, but is called "gaining people skills" and deserves a promotion.