DVD burner causes freezing boot in SATA/PATA mixed system

What works, and doesn't, for you. Be specific, and please include Puppy version.
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starhawk
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#31 Post by starhawk »

My hope was that the screw positions were standard and the rest was Dell dreaming up some funky stuff. Guess we're not nearly that lucky.

You will run into a problem subbing fans -- you gotta stick to the one you've got, or one very much like it. Dell has a habit (HP does this too, sometimes) of mucking with the wires, so that either the fan won't work, or the computer will think the fan has gone bad, if you do a substitution.

I've got a ton of heatsink/fan assemblies here -- a well meaning local tech shop owner gave me all the stuff he couldn't use (not realizing that it was largely useless overall) -- so I'll see if I've got anything that matches that mounting footprint you gave me. I'll also experiment and see how zip ties and such play out -- I've a few aluminum heatsinks that look very similar to what you're dealing with (is yours copper all through or just at the base?).

EDIT: last bit deleted because it doesn't matter. See next post by me (if it's not there, I'm still typing ;) ) for yet more questions and a bit of helpful info.

starhawk
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#32 Post by starhawk »

Alright. Dug around in my parts bins... here's what I found.

I've a fan that *I think* matches your description -- it's a Datech (brand) DS9238-12HBPA. This is a 92mm fan (standard size). It's marked as "P/N P2780". Typing 0P2780 into eBay (a good way of checking Dell part numbers!) reveals that this is a common fan part number for several Dell systems.

Please check the photo below (clickable thumbnail) to make sure the connector and wire colors are identical. If they are, then it should work in your system, should you need a new fan.

Image

Dell pulled a fast one with their heatsinks -- the ones we're dealing with tend all to be the same size, and therefore physically interchangeable, BUT they're in Imperial measurements (inches rather than mm). All of mine (I've got a couple different styles) are 2.5"*3.5" (width*length).

This one should look like yours (clickable thumbnail) --

Image

For what it's worth, the heatsink in that picture is a Dell P/N 8P238.

Having the heatsinks all the same size is great -- it means that, assuming the fan is compatible (which it should be!), I can produce for you a heatsink and fan assembly that will work for you.

I will also include some thermal paste -- it's a good idea to replace the thermal material in between heatsink and processor (usually a gray or pink pad) with something engineered to work -- rather than engineered to be incredibly cheap while doing "just enough" (if that). Besides, over a long period of time (3+ years) the stuff can "bake" so that it becomes more of a thermal insulator.

You will, of course, have to get the old stuff off first, but that's not hard at all. Get "Arctic Silver Arcticlean" and follow the directions. It's bonehead simple. Get it here.

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nubc
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#33 Post by nubc »

Just powered up. All systems are GO. Substituted CPU is running fine at 2.79 GHz. I reversed the combo fan to make it the case fan. (Transferring rubber mounts was tricky.) I top-mounted a 80mm fan on the CPU. There was a feature in the fins I could exploit, namely, two length-wise holes through all the fins, about a quarter inch above the heatsink copper base. I looped 12 gauge copper wire through the fin hole and up through two pairs of holes on the side of the fan; bent and twisted the ends together above the fan to tighten it down on the heatsink, then clipped the excess. Same for other side of fan and heatsink; balance between sides of the fan was important. No green hood now. The case fan is connected to the motherboard, as before, and the heatsink fan is connnected to a power supply terminal. The heatsink fan draws air up through the fins; the case fan pulls air out of the case in back. Like a typical two-fan arrangement. So much for the special Dell Dimension 4700 air flow design. I must say, this heatsink fan makes the cooler look like a Thermaltake custom job.

EDIT: Restarts work with no hangs (45 minutes after cold boot). Maybe I'll put the side back on, see how things go. I might have to take a picture of this mod. 8)
[I dunno if I can sell it now, if it's gonna behave.]
Last edited by nubc on Thu 20 Dec 2012, 04:01, edited 11 times in total.

starhawk
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#34 Post by starhawk »

Good to know!

Check that connector photo anyways, if you want a spare fan AND it's the right connector, I'll gladly shoot it off to you; dell fans are useless to me.

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nubc
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#35 Post by nubc »

Looks like I did myself a favor swapping the CPU out. Turns out this is a multiprocessor computer (ACPI Multiprocessor PC, as reported in Device Manager), and I installed a 2.8 GHz dual core processor. Everest reports it as an unknown processor. There are two entries in System Infomation, one is 2.79 GHz, the other 2.80 GHz. I did a memory-read benchmark with Everest and it scored 3915 MB/s, where I would expect 2800 MB/s at best for a 2.8 GHz uniprocessor. This is strong evidence that the processor is dual core. Should run cooler too, eh? [EDIT: The CPU is a Prescott P4 running in HT mode.] Santa came early this year. Just my luck the world ends tomorrow.

I intended to install Motherboard Monitor 5, but I wonder. If the BIOS has no temperature monitoring, like in System Health (non-existent), can I really expect to run a temperature monitoring program like MBM 5, SpeedFan, or CoreTemp? Opinions, recommendations, advice?

I ran the computer for 3 hours, watched a DVD movie without a snag. I'm not entirely satisfied with the temperature of the heatsink. It feels like 45 to 55 degrees Celsius, quite hot to the touch, but wouldn't sear flesh. Maybe shrouding would increase heat dissipation by improving air flow. The flimsy fins on the heatsink are the problem: they don't conduct enough heat, rather they just guide air flow. Unless another heatsink (80mm x 50mm base) is found, not much to do here.

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