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Cooling Vents and Auxiliary Fans

Cooling vents are usually in the front and rear of the case, but in some newer cases can be elsewhere as well. These allow air to be circulated by the power supply fan and any auxiliary fans used by the case. They should not be blocked off or poor cooling may result. See this section of the System Care Guide for much more information on system cooling.

Some cases come with extra, auxiliary cooling fans, and/or mounting locations for the user to add fans if he or she desires to do so. These are becoming more popular, especially with homebuilders and overclockers, since they can reduce the heat level within the case. The most common location of additional cooling fans is the front of the case, opposite the main power supply fan, but some larger cases have cooling fan mounting locations in many places.

A few models are now also adding hardware to help direct air flow from auxiliary fans to places where it will be of most help in cooling system components, particularly the motherboard. These cases use plastic ducts or tubes to concentrate air flow in a specific direction, which may help the fans do a better job than would be accomplished through standard case air convection.

Next: Mounting Hardware

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