Is this a smart idea? I'm doing this only temporarily, like around 2-5 minutes max doing BIOS setup.

i would not do it, you dont want another dead part

In a pinch it'd be OK, esp. since you're not starting windows: i'd keep the case opened-- in the winter on the window sill, summer in front of ac unit.

why would you want to do this?

if the fan is too loud buy a better fan or case.

No, the problem is that I got a screw of the wrong size stuck on my fan and I'm trying to find a screw driver that won't break when I try to free the screw...

If you skip the case fan, I'd leave the cover off so the heat dissipates better.

I wouldn't run it for very long periods of time tho.

Are u talking intake case fan or exhaust case fan? Or any case fan?

you need airflow, at least get the fan held up with string or something

Casefans are not needed to run a PC, as long as your CPU fan is running it´s okay . And airflow will also be generated by cold and warm (hot) air. An outtake fan is recomended for a AMD Athlon 1333 and above. And for the gamers; trow all your fans inside, so you know your computer is working B) (That´s a joke )

Edited January 26, 200620 yr by puntoMX

Sorry...but case fans are needed on newer systems. He'll be ok if he's running with the side off of his case but I wouldn't do it for extended periods of time.

Without a case fan all the CPU/GPU fans will do is circulate hot air around in the case. The intake fan is used to bring cooler air into the case, and the exhaust fan is used to move hot air out of the case. A good case design will have the intake fan pushing/pulling cool air over the drives to keep them cool as well.

CyberCafe I believe you're the only one with a little sense. Turning a case fan off for a couple minutes while in the BIOS won't kill anything. The CPU won't be generating anywhere near the heat it does while running Windows. and even while in Windows unless you're gaming or running other CPU intensive apps you can run a PC without a case fan. I have done it for about 2 years with an Athlon XP 2200+ and everything is still alive and kickin'.

So do you guys suggest that I get another fan for exhaust? Unless it is necessary, I'd rather not, as that's another 3-5 days of wait and $15 lost. I'd also like to mention that there is an opening in the case for air to flow out, but I'd have to rely on the natural flow of the air since there's no fan forcing the air out.

Feel how much air is being moved through the opening. If the airflow is noticeable on the back of the hand, there shouldn't be any problem.

how many fan slots are there in your case and how many fans do u have? i would always fill all of those fan slots. if you have 1 input and 1 output fan then go ahead, but i wouldnt game or do anything intensive untill you get more fans.