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The HP MediaSmart server is easily the best looking home server on the market, but it’s certainly not the quietest. One of the big problems (for me at least) is the noise of the two stock 80mm fans in the back of the case. What can be done to help alleviate the problem? Well slowing the fans down is the quickest way to cut the noise.
The MSS Fan Add-In can control the speed of the fans to suite your liking. The interface features sliders to adjust the parameters for Constant Fan Speed, Fan Speed Adjustment and Threshold Temp Adjustment. It also has buttons for Factory Defaults and Optimized Defaults. I tried various settings and even put the fans down to the lowest permitted setting (25% of full speed). This immediately rose the temperature of the CPU to about 42° within 30 seconds, so I quickly put them back to optimized defaults!
This add-in is certainly useful for anyone who wants total control over the fans in their MediaSmart Server. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who isn’t that technically minded as it ‘could’ be possible to mess up the fans and cook your lovely server! I would also certainly like to see more info on the Add-in settings page. Although the CPU/system temperatures and current fan speeds are shown on the HP Hardware Status page, it’s a bit tiresome going back and forth between the pages.
Please note this add-in is ONLY for the current HP MediaSmart server (I’m not sure about the new MediaSmart servers as it has a different motherboard…)
Download: MSS Fan Control
6. February 2009 at 1:15 pm
Hi I am wondering what software you use to gauge your cpu temp. Is this software an overall system monitoring utility? I am usually picky on what i put on my server and havent found anything i really like yet. Thanks
6. February 2009 at 3:09 pm
It’s a Sempron 3400+ in the MSS correct?
That CPU is rated for operating speeds up to 69 degrees C.
http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/K8/AMD-Sempron%2064%203400+%20-%20SDA3400IAA3CW%20(SDA3400CWBOX).html
I wouldn’t be too nervous about CPU temps in the 40s. I would be more concerned with keeping the hard drives with their precious data cool enough. Although, those are rated for surprisingly high operating temps also.
10. February 2009 at 12:56 am
Thanks for the review! To confirm, MSS Fan Control does NOT work with the new EX48x series of servers, only the original EX47x servers. I’m considering a new version once I get the API of the new server figured out, but do not have any plans to release at this time.
There are safeguards in place in MSS Fan Control that will allow the default fan policy to kick in should your system overheat; this means that if your server hits the max threshold for temperature, the fans will kick into full speed until the system cools. While this is not optimal for every day use, it should prevent any lasting damage to the server.
I hope this helps,
Alex