[CentOS] old hardware / minimal netinstall -> CPU fan control

Tue Jul 11 18:16:29 UTC 2017
m.roth at 5-cent.us <m.roth at 5-cent.us>

Fred Smith wrote:
> On Tue, Jul 11, 2017 at 12:05:55PM +0100, Gary Stainburn wrote:
>> I have just installed CentOS 6 i386 onto an old rack server (it's gonna
>> be a Bacula storeage server and is a 1U 1/2 depth chassis)
>>
>> I did a minimum netinstall and so far so good. However, I have one
>> problem.
>> The CPU fan is going at full speed constantly. Not a real problem apart
>> from (a) it will affect the fan's lifespan and (b) it's noisy.
>
> I used to have a HP 320 generation 2 server that I used as a desktop. it
> had a bunch of tiny fans that screamed like a banshee.
>
> it turns out that one of the RPMs they shipped with it (on CD, not
> actually
> installed) contained a driver that toned down the fans to a soft roar.
> I'm sorry to say I have no memory of what the driver was.
>
> but if this system is from a vendor that supports Linux, they might have
> some suitable driver.
>
That's in the firmware. You may, or may not, be able to do something with
ipmitool, but I don't think so. Reboot, and look in system setup. It may
be under performance settings.

       mark