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I just replaced my Intel E18764-001 CPU fan with a new (used) one and verified that it is working. Now, on startup I get an American Megatrends (AMI)BIOS message that says "CPU Fan Error - Press F1 to proceed." This message was coming up before I replaced the fan. Is there something wrong with my BIOS settings? How can I determine if an update is needed?
WinXP SP3 system, Intel Core2 Duo CPU E4600 (2.4 GHz, 2.0 GB Ram, Intel G35 Express Chipset Family).
If the replacement fan does not have a RPM sensor on it, the BIOS cannot measure the fan speed. In which case you need to disable the fan fail alarm in the BIOS. Does the fan have 3 wires or 2?
The fan actually has 4 wires (I'm guessing that black is ground but am not sure - a tech friend installed it). This is a pic of the fan
https://discussions.virtualdr.com/im.../2010/05/5.jpg
OK, it has the sensor then. You will need to go into the BIOS Setup and either disable the fan fail alarm, or the Intel "Smart fan" control, you cannot have both enabled, as the "Smart fan" does not start the fan immediately and so causes the fan fail alarm. Personally I would leave Smart fan enabled and disable the alarm.
I've had a look at my BIOS > Power settings and this is what it shows:
https://discussions.virtualdr.com/im.../2010/05/3.jpg
https://discussions.virtualdr.com/im.../2010/05/4.jpg
CPU Fan Speed Options are: Ignored / N/A
CPU Q-Fan Control Options are: Disabled / Enabled
CPU Fan Profile Options are (currently set to Optimal): Optimal / Silent / Performance Mode
Chassis Fan 1 Speed Options are: Speed (1730 rpm) / Ignored
Chassis Q-Fan Controls Options are (currently Disabled): Disabled / Enabled
Power Fan Speed Options are: Speed (1896 rpm) / Ignored
I didn't see anything that said "fan fail alarm" or Intel "Smart fan" control.
That's because each BIOS uses different wording :(
In your case Q-fan control is what I was thinking of. The fan alarm may be under "PC Health" or similar.
I changed the Chassic Q-Fan Control from Disabled to Enabled but am still getting the CPU Fan Error msg on startup. I can't find anything like "PC Health" in my AMI BIOS. I ran the AMI Motherboard Identification Utility (“AMIMBID”) yesterday and this is the BIOS String Info. that it came up with:
BIOS String info:
An AMIBIOS ID String Was Detected:
64-0604-000001-00101111-071608-Intel-G35
- ---- ------ ------
| | | |
| | | Chipset/BIOS Info
| | BIOS Build Date
| Manufacturer ID
BIOS ROM Information
AMIBIOS ROM Size: 1024 KB
BIOS Build Date: Jul 16 2008
Motherboard Manufacturer Code: 0001Not listed in MAN.DAT file
AMIBIOS Build Tag: A0867001
AMIBIOS Project ID: A0867001 Not listed in TAG.DAT file
For more information on upgrading your BIOS go to www.ami.com/bios.
SMBIOS info:
Manufacturer : ASUSTeK Computer INC.
Product Name : P5E-VM HDMI
Version : Rev 1.xx
Serial Number: MS1C88B84G01311
I'm not sure what to make of all this info. but I hope that I don't need to update my BIOS just to get rid of this stoopid CPU Fan Error message!
Try this:
CPU Fan Speed Ignored
CPU Q-Fan Control Enabled (This should be the PWM setting)
That worked! Btw, what does "PWM setting" mean?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulse-width_modulation
PWM basically allows the motherboard to control the fan speed. That's what the 4 line is for. Since it's a variable fan speed, it's not going to have a static value like your case fan.