Fan
pcA fan is a hardware device used for active cooling by moving air.
expanded
In computing systems, a fan is crucial for thermal management. It prevents overheating of components such as the CPU and GPU by dissipating heat through air movement, which is essential to maintain performance and longevity of the hardware. Fans are rated by metrics such as airflow (measured in cubic feet per minute, CFM) and noise levels (measured in decibels, dB).
examples
A PC with an Intel Core i9-12900K CPU, which has a thermal design power (TDP) of 125 watts, might use a Noctua NH-D15 fan, which provides an airflow of up to 82.5 CFM.
This configuration is common in high-performance gaming or workstation PCs where efficient cooling is required to avoid thermal throttling.
A compact build using a mini-ITX motherboard often includes a Corsair ML120 Pro fan to ensure adequate cooling within a constrained space, offering 75 CFM airflow.
Mini-ITX systems are compact and require efficient cooling solutions to manage heat within limited space constraints.