this problem with this computer started about a year ago while my wife was using it. when the computer is starting, it goes to its diagnostic screen where it shows the hard drives, then it says 'system fan has failed!' (it WAS only half the time, now it does it every time. the fan does indeed spin (i know because i leave the side off, could this be my problem?) so i know the fan is working (whether it is working at the proper speed, i am not sure of). i also have a case fan, and it's working as well.
I've done considerable 'tune up' to it (i thought my 'tune up' would fix the problem) between the time that i only got the error half the time and now (i get the error every time now). i reapplied arctic silver and made sure that the computer was free of dust, then reseated the ram and plugged and unplugged all the connections in the computer.
i noticed that if i go into 'setup' (pressing f1) i can bypass the error.
i have read that it's possible that this fan is 'special'. it may be a rare voltage and when it goes bad, simply switching a cheap fan with it is a waste of time.
i have all kinds of diagnostic tools to my disposal, and other computers to use in the meantime, so there's no rush and no need to leave work 'half done'. i'm willing to break it right down to bare bones. i just want to fix this the right way, once and for all (and this is my idea of fun anyway).
the cpu is an athlon64 and i'm guessing it has 1gb of ram.
i really would appreciate some expertise if you would be so kind.
thanks.
