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CPU fan is making noise. I figured out some reasons:
Cable coming out of fan is vibrating.
And maybe also CPU fan is loose causing vibration.
Suggest options.
I cleaned the fan. But found that there is no heatsink compound /paste between processor and the fan. Is it OK?
My processor is P4 2.4 GHz. Motherboard Intel 845 GVSR.
Get a new cpu fan. They're cheap and pretty easy to install.
Were you looking for a different answer?
Sounds like a shot bearing in the fan. Easiest thing to do is probably go buy a new heatsink/fan assembly for your CPU, rather than messing with trying to fit another fan over your existing heatsink.
From what you're describing it sounds like the fan is out of balance. Probably due to aging bearings or alike. As long as you ensure the fan is fastened securely to the heat sink, and the heat-sink is securely attached to the board mount, then it's probably time for a new fan.
That chip/board is a common P4 478-pin socket arrangement, so the fans are pretty easy to get (including new heat-sinks), for relatively cheap.
For example Startech has 478-Pin heat-sink/fan combos for about $20.
As for the lack of heat-sink compound, it's not a huge concern if there's none, as long as the mating surfaces are clean and tight.
It sounds like the cable itself is causing the issue. If pressing it down causes the problem to go away, perhaps a little bit of tape might work as a quick fix. As far as the heatsink and thermal compound, you might want to go ahead and put some between the processor and heatsink to aid in cooling.
