Reduce fan noise on PowerBooks
Jun 29, '05 08:04:00AM
Contributed by: junkiesxl
I know this has already been covered in a comment on this hint. But ever since Tiger, Apple has done the same thing to my PowerBook (Rev A)'s fan. Apparently, Apple has chosen to kick the fan into action on lower temperatures (it'll be cooler), but I prefer a silent hot laptop over a loud (less) hot one. The "hint" is the same for 10.3, and I've been running it (on Tiger) for over two weeks without any glitches.
- Download OS X Update 10.2.8 and use Pacifist to extract /System -> Library -> ExtensionsAppleADM103x.kext from MacOSXUpdate10.2.8.pkg to your disk.
- Do a backup of your old kext (you never know); copy it from /System/Library/Extensions and place it somewhere safe.
- Copy the extracted kext (AppleADM103x.kext) to your System/Library/Extensions folder. Enter your password if required, and replace the old one.
- Repair permissions and restart your PowerBook, and you'll notice the sound of silence right away
Notes:
- Tested with Tiger 10.4.1 on a PowerBook 12, use at your own risk
- You could zap the PRAM just to reset the power management, but it's not necessary
- Keep a copy of the extracted kext in a safe place, in case of future updates
[robg adds: I don't advocate replacing new system bits with older system bits, especially where cooling is concerned. Apple may very well have made this change due to field experience with laptops that were running too hot. Then again, it may just be an inadvertent side effect of another change. If you follow the instructions in this hint, you do so at your own risk. I know it's obvious, but I just want to state it clearly -- there's a chance that following this hint may result in damage to your laptop at some point in the future. Proceed if you wish, but I won't be testing this one...]
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Mac OS X Hints
http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20050615225400141