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From: Joe Greco <jgreco@brasil.moneng.mei.com>
Message-Id: <199611151907.NAA28548@brasil.moneng.mei.com>
Subject: Re: Router Purchase - the bottom line
To: jsuter@intrastar.net (Jacob Suter)
Date: Fri, 15 Nov 1996 13:07:21 -0600 (CST)
Cc: jdd@vbc.net, ulf@lamb.net, dror@dnai.com, isp@FreeBSD.org
In-Reply-To: <199611151629.KAA02782@intrastar.net> from "Jacob Suter" at Nov 15, 96 10:54:39 am
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> > That is, the real problem is in the software.  The hardware is far
> more
> > reliable.  CPU fans are the least reliable bit of hardware.  Hard
> drives 
> > are very reliable indeed, just like their MTBF figures suggest.
> 
> We use Am5x86 here exclusivly for our servers and most of our
> workstations.  These have the 486-size CPU...  We were plagued with
> fan failures occasionally until I was able to find some good fans
> (ball bearings) and cheap enough to change them all every 3-4 months.
>  Costs me $35 to walk around and swap them all out, I stick them in a
> box... if I have one of the newer ones fail I can always go back to
> one of the old ones (if I am out of new ones) or give the old ones to
> friends w/ fan problems, etc etc.  
> 
> plus, keeping the fan/heat sink clean REALLY helps.  I try to clean
> ours at least once a month with pressurized air - in extreme cases
> remove the heat sink (re-greasing it afterward) and get rid of the
> dust/crap on it.

If you get the ADZ variant of the Am5x86 (as opposed to the ADW), you
will find out that not only do you not need a fan, but you also don't
need a heat sink.

I put a heat sink on anyways but it does not need it.  I just like to
be safe.

... JG