Fixing an Alienware Fan Issue

By Timothy Tibbetts

on 06/16/2023

I upgraded my backup machine, an Alienware Aurora R3, with the free Windows 10 upgrade, not a smooth install by any means free is free, right? You can read about that wonderfully long multiple reboot saga here. But now another little annoying issue has popped up.

After booting up the other day, which I often do to make sure everything has been updated to the latest version, there was a new issue. The machine continued to reboot partially, and the fan would roar into life at full speed, sounding like a runaway freight train. This issue continued over and over in a loop, but the machine does operate, albeit slowly. Let me preface this with the fact that I have one APC/UPS that I use for all my PCs. I just swap it out, depending on which PC is in use. So, that means the software is on all my machines. I did not connect it to the R3 because it was going to be a quick update, and there was not a problem previously when the R3 was used.

There was not a lot of info out on this exact issue, but I did encounter other fan-related problems that others have endured. Then it finally occurred to me, mainly out of desperation, that what about the battery backup that I didn't connect due to not wanting to crawl around on the floor?

Yep, that was it - rebooted with my trusty APC/UPS battery backup connected to the R3, and there was no boot loop, no cyclonic fan sucking dust bunnies from adjacent rooms. It now runs smoothly. It appears the APC software must trigger the fans if the physical unit is not detected.

I haven't determined if this issue is specific to Alienware as of yet, but I figured I'd write this one up in the hopes that it will save someone a minute or two of aggravation when faced with a similar scenario.