Never a Dull Moment.

[n2ize]

Bout a couple hours ago I noticed that my internet connection was down along with many of my network services, i.e. MySQL, Apache, DNS, etc. Went down to the basement and found my main server was shut down. I hit restart and it came back up but the fan was screeching like a banshee,. I slapped it a few times and the fan quieted down ant it booted back up and ran okay. Everything was back to normal. apparently the CPU or power Suckply fan is going bad and it's overheating and shutting itself down. So to prevent any damage I shut it back down. Fortunately I set this network up with alternate routers. Now tomorrow I get to pull the server and see which fan is crapped out and either replace a power suckply or a fan. I should have enough surplus garbage in my junkbox to get it fixed,

[n0iu]

Fans and hard drives... Its not if they fail, its when!

[W3WN]

Bout a couple hours ago I noticed that my internet connection was down along with many of my network services, i.e. MySQL, Apache, DNS, etc. Went down to the basement and found my main server was shut down. I hit restart and it came back up but the fan was screeching like a banshee,. I slapped it a few times and the fan quieted down ant it booted back up and ran okay. Everything was back to normal. apparently the CPU or power Suckply fan is going bad and it's overheating and shutting itself down. So to prevent any damage I shut it back down. Fortunately I set this network up with alternate routers. Now tomorrow I get to pull the server and see which fan is crapped out and either replace a power suckply or a fan. I should have enough surplus garbage in my junkbox to get it fixed,I had this issue with a PC a few years back.

Until the new PS came in, I ran it with the side cover off, and an old muffin fan mounted over the bad fan to keep air circulating. But only when I had to; it wasn't a seerver.

[n2ize]

I had this issue with a PC a few years back.

Until the new PS came in, I ran it with the side cover off, and an old muffin fan mounted over the bad fan to keep air circulating. But only when I had to; it wasn't a seerver.

Yeah. In a couple hours I'm going to pull it and open the case and figure which fan is the one giving me the problems. I should have a load of all different types and sized of fans in my junkbox so I should have no problem finding a replacement. I'm just glad it's just a bad fan and not something worst. I might even install an extra case fan for added ventilation. The server runs 24/7/365 and during the summer months it can get pretty warm down there. I'm glad it had the common sense to shut itself down when it became overheated.

[n2ize]

Fans and hard drives... Its not if they fail, its when!

Very true. Particularly in the case of a multipurpose server that has been running 24/7/365 for several years now. It's inevitable that sooner or later something mechanical, i.e. bearings, motors, etc. will wear out. That's why I always keep a stock of extra parts on hand that I pull out if old decommissioned systems.

[N2CHX]

If that's all you use it for, replace it with a $35 Raspberry Pi B+. Why have a full tower consuming 150-200 watts 24/7, with fans blowing to cool it when you can accomplish the same thing with a $35 computer that draws 3-5 watts and requires no fans to cool it?

[n2ize]

If that's all you use it for, replace it with a $35 Raspberry Pi B+. Why have a full tower consuming 150-200 watts 24/7, with fans blowing to cool it when you can accomplish the same thing with a $35 computer that draws 3-5 watts and requires no fans to cool it?

I will consider it. Basically this server provides web services (Apache), ftp, mail server, DNS, a web proxy, routing between the primary network and subnetwork, Database services (MySQL), blogging services, fax services, network power management, plus an array of disks used for high volume database and file storage, and runs severeral instances of a complex computing algorithm that needs to run 24/7/365. If I can do all this with the Rasberry Pi then I will consider eventually replacing it with a Rasberry pi. As a multipurpose server it's been chugging along for many years and is getting old. I have already been considering it's future obsolescence and have been considering a replacement. What do you think ? Something small, fanless, lower power consumption and smaller overall footprint would be nice. Do you think the Rasberry would fit the bill ? I can even deligate some of the services being run to other machines so, in theory the rasberry Pi wouldn't have al that much to do

[WØTKX]

I'm looking inte getting a Beagle Black to play with.

[NQ6U]

Consider a Mac mini running OS X Server. Small footprint, no fan, low power consumption and OS X is a flavor of BSD Unix. Pricey, though.

[n2ize]

Consider a Mac mini running OS X Server. Small footprint, no fan, low power consumption and OS X is a flavor of BSD Unix. Pricey, though.

Yes, I will consider that along with Kelli's suggestion. Meanwhile I fixed the system. Turns out it was a bad power supply fan. The bearings on the fan literally were seized. I presume that caused things to overheat last night (these things always crap out late at night for some reason) and ultimately caused the system to shut off,. Since I didn't have a drop in replacement for the power supply I managed to open the supply, take out the bad fan, salvage another fan of the exact size and dimensions from one of my junkbox supplies and replace it with that fan.

In any event I think its time to start thinking of setting up a new server. This system is very old, it consumes a lot of power, it's noisy, it runs hot in summer, it's running an old version of Fedora, and it has a tendency to do some funky things now and then. It's time to start thinking of replacing it with something new. I will consider your and Kelli's suggestions. If I can replace it with something that takes less power, runs cool and quiet and gets the job done I'll be happy... and save some money on electric.

[n2ize]

I'm looking inte getting a Beagle Black to play with.

This looks interesting also. If it can run the services I need it might be a possible solution and fit my needs. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.