WHIRRING NOISE WHEN POWERING ON

[Guest]

Aloha!

I hope somesone can recognize what's going on here...this is the first time
I've ever used this forum so I hope I'm doing it right.

I have Pentium 4 running Windows XP Home Edition.

No problems for years but this just started happening about 1 out of 5 times
when I push the "power" button on my hard drive to turn my computer on, the
hardrive makes this loud whirring noise like a fan turned on high speed -
scary! So I have immediately pushed the power button off and waited a few
seconds. When I push the power button again, the hard drive starts normally
and the system boots normally.

Does anybody recognize what in the world is happening when I power on and
that horrible fan/whirring sound starts or what I should do to diagnose the
problem.

I am not knowledgable about any of this so please speak in "baby" computer
language for me.

I so appreatiate any help or suggestions! Mahalo nui loa (thanks so much)!

Karyn

 

[Doug Sherman [MVP]]

You need to open the case and make sure you can identify the source of this
noise. It may be a CPU, power supply or case fan. If it is in fact the
hard drive, and the hard drive is not loose; this is a sign of imminent
failure. You should purchase a new drive before it fails.

Doug Sherman
MCSE, MCSA, MCP+I, MVP

 

[Guest]

Karyn,

When you say you push the button on the hard drive, do you mean the hard
drive itself? or is this on the computer case with the hard drive located
inside?

Assuming that it is the latter, the noise you describe sounds a lot like a
failing cooling fan. When fans start to fail, they usually make noise for a
few moments and then will quite down - the longer they take to quite, the
closer they are to failing.

There are typically several cooling fans in a computer case located in
various areas - power supply (may be one or two), CPU, Motherboard, case
fans, etc. These fans are mostly visible when you have the case open.

If it is a fan, the noise will usually go away in 5 to 10 minutes. The way
I check each fan is to open the case and use a rubber eraser on the fan hub
to slow it down - you can easily hear a change in the sound when you hit the
right one.

I must caution you that when doing this there are live electric circuits in
the case, so do not attempt this unless your are comfortable around
electricity.

If in doubt, take it in to a service center for diagnostics.

Good Luck!

 

[Bert Kinney]

Hi Karyn,

Most computer have several fans inside the box. The most common are,
power supply (the thing in the back of the box where the power cord
plugs in), one on the CPU. There may very well be more. To check these
the box will have to be opened to confirm they are working correctly.

Another possibility is that the hard drive is failing. In this case I
would strongly recommend backing up any data on the drive you do not
want to loose ASAP! Then at lease if it dies, you will be ready for it.

A less common cause would be the CD drive. To rule this out, when the
box is open unplug it and turn the system on.

 

[cavuu]

Just by chance have you left a CD in the drive. It will make a whirring
noise as it powers up for a short while.

 

[Gary Karasik]

It's unlikely that this is a hard-drive noise. It's most probably a
ventilaton fan whose bearings are failing or a CD or DVD in the drive.

GARY FROM NEW JERSEY