Mac Mini Core Solo--How to test the fan?

[fymbscu]

I picked up this Mac Mini Core Solo for $20 plus $15 for a monitor adapter in 2019 when the power supply in my MDD G4 failed and I wasn't able to come up with a fix. Last year I was contemplating a processor upgrade but settled for picking up a Mac Mini Core 2 Duo for $55 and avoid the risk of botching the upgrade. Anyway, I've been using both Minis together with the Solo mounted in target disk mode. I've even used one of its partitions as the startup disk as it had the larger hard drive and I already had it configured as desired. Lately they had seemed a bit noisier, but no where near the howl of the G4, so I found it negligible. That is until I tried to wake up from sleep about a week ago and the screen was frozen. I rebooted the Core 2 Duo but it booted into its first partition because the designated startup paritition wasn't found. The Core Solo's light was out. I tried rebooting the Core Solo but all I got was dead air. Swapping power supplies seemed to kill the Core 2 Duo also, but after some time unplugged, it booted up again. It works with either power supply, eliminating that issue. I finally opened up the Core Solo and pulled the hard drive which I have been able to access (and even boot from) via a Sabrent USB-DSC9—Hard Drive Converter, eliminating that issue.

My best guess then is that the fan has failed. Haven't seen too many options to replace it, except from China, which makes me wary. And also, the cost is as much or more than I paid for the Solo in the first place. Any idea how to test and/or fix the fan I have? I have a digital multimeter available but am not too savvy with it beyond testing continuity and DC voltage. Any help greatly appreciated.

Best regards,
Mark Harrison

 

[Amethyst1]

The Core Solo's light was out. I tried rebooting the Core Solo but all I got was dead air.

Does the fan spin at all? Do you hear the hard drive spinning up? Any output on a monitor?

 

[MultiFinder17]

As far as checking the fan, you’ve already done the hard part by getting the mini open. You can swap in parts from the Core 2 mini (assuming that it’s a 2007) as they are all interchangeable. As far as getting a new one, honestly your best bet is to get another mini and jack it for parts. It would probably be cheaper to get a whole 2006/2007 mini than individual parts.

 

[fymbscu]

Thinking back to when it happened, I powered down the Core 2 Duo with its power button, as it stacks on top. I didn't really pay attention to the Core Solo in target mode as other, largely Firefox-induced crashes, had been handled in this manner without necessarily having to reboot the target machine. What made me recognize this crash as different was that some of the digits in the menubar clock were not being displayed as well as that it was frozen. From my Power Mac days, I've always configured the clock to show the seconds so that I can differentiate between an application having problems versus the finder.

In this initial reboot, the Core 2 Duo restarted from its internal drive rather than the Core Solo, which had been configured as the startup drive. I think that is when I noticed that the power light on the Core Solo case was not lit. I shut down again and tried to power up the Core Solo, but got no electrical response whatsoever. No chime, no power light, no sounds like the fan or hard drive spinning up and nothing on the monitor. So I swapped the power cords between the two minis and got the same non-response from the Core Solo. Thing is, I only unplugged from the Minis and not from the surge protector. I then tried both power cords with the Core 2 Duo and it would not power up either. This flummexed me, but I ran out of time and had to leave the situation as is to go to work.

When I returned, I used my iBook G3 to review an Apple Service Source document for these Mac Minis that I must have stumbled upon when I first got the Core Solo, which was pretty much a bare purchase and caused me to ferret out any online documentation I could find. I believe I learned that some computer sensing mechanism could lock out power supply and it needed to be unplugged long enough to let it reset. That is what I did to get the Core 2 Duo working again, but it didn't help in the case of the Core Solo. And I was able to use either power supply with the Core 2 Duo to verify that each was still good.

I hadn't considered swapping fans between the two Minis as the Core 2 Duo is the faster machine, but it would verify that I have a fan problem and not a motherboard issue with the Core Solo. Its worth a try and I might just go ahead and swap the hard drives at the same time. Thanks for the idea, MultiFinder17.

Best regards,
Mark Harrison