Subject: Re: misc questiosn about sun3
To: schaecsn <schaecsn@gmx.de>
From: der Mouse <mouse@Rodents.Montreal.QC.CA>
List: port-sun3
Date: 07/27/2001 22:34:36
> * that guy [presumably the -3/50] gets very hot after a couple of
> hours. what do you think, should I let this guy catch his breath and
> cycle him down for a while each now and then?

Yes...but I would first shut it down, open it up, and clean the fan
grille.  They tend to get clogged with a "felt" of dust, and it's
really easy to kill the machine with overheating when that happens.  I
think I've lost a couple of machines that way, and these days I run my
-3/60s (I don't think I have any -3/50s left) in a -3/260 cardcage,
largely for the better cooling.  (How do you clean the fan grille?
Remove the beige case, which is usually a matter of two screws and a
little judicious prying.  The power supply runs along one side of the
metal chassis and is covered by a metal plate.  In some units, the
plate is not held on by anything once you get the beige case off; in
others it can take as much as a screwdriver and a pry-bar to get it
free - and a hammer to put back.  Once you do expose the power supply,
you'll find the fan blocking access to the fan grille.  If you're
really lucky, the fan will be held on with screws and easy to remove;
if not, just hold a vacuum cleaner hose to pull air through the fan.
The fan will start turning (backwards) and you can then blow through
the fan grille to dislodge the dust; if you're holding it right, the
vacuum cleaner will scarf it up.)

If you're running anything in -3/50 or -3/60 cases, I recommend
vacuuming out the fan grilles regularly.  (I'd start by inspecting them
from the outside, say monthly; once you've seen a clogged one and a
clean one, the difference is obvious.  After a little while you'll
learn how fast they get dirty in your environment.)

> * Is somebody actually using a 68020 based sun for something except
> showing his friends?

Yes.  A -3/60 is the principal email and DNS machine for my house
network.  (Not a -3/50; I've never had a -3/50 with any of the memory
upgrades, and I don't think a 4M machine would cut it.  The -3/60 is
fully loaded, 24M of RAM - and is *not* running diskless.)

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