So here's my problem. I purchased my desktop about 7 months ago, and a whirring noise started coming from inside the case about a couple of weeks ago. The pitch of the whirring noise diminished, but didn't dissapear altogether, when i tapped the case, so i figured it must be a fan or a loose cable or something. Anyways, I opened the case and this is what I found: screwed underneath my cpu card is an item that sort of resembles a tape: it has a reel with an exterior disc, sort of like the hubcap on the wheels of a car, that turns, and the sound is coming from this. Put your finger on the reel and prevent it from turning, and the sound stops. Now I've double checked: the sound isn't the vibration of the 'tape' against the cpu card - it's the actual turning of the reel that makes the noise. Could someone a) tell me the technical name for this part of my computer, and b) suggest a way(s) to eliminate the sound?

Many thanks,

Dusty_trenchcoat

thats a cooling for fdor the onboard chip.
replace it.

"screwed underneath my cpu card is an item that sort of resembles a tape"

What's a CPU card? Do you mean GPU? in other words, the video card? And what do you mean by tape? Masking tape? Duct tape? Cassette tape?

"it has a reel with an exterior disc"

What's a reel? I think you're describing a fan, but a fan is a fan...I would think you know what a fan looks like? There are several different fans inside a PC case...CPU fan, GPU fan, motherboard chipset fan, case cooling fans, etc. They come in all sorts of shapes, colors & sizes. You're gonna have to narrow it down as to where it's located.

Reel: n. A device, such as a cylinder, spool, or frame, that turns on an axis and is used for winding and storing rope, tape, film, or other flexible materials.

Anyway, I got someone to look at it and we've identified it as the fan attached to the graphics card (yes, it's the graphics card and not the cpu, and no, it's not immediately recognizable as a fan to a layperson). Going to remove the card tonight and see if the fan can be fixed replaced. Thanks!

7 months old? See if it is still under warranty before attempting anything youself. You didn't mention the manufacturer of your machine. You could void your warranty. Bluejay

graphics cards fans often do this, on my radeon 9100 card it got noisy after about three months ( a few years back). if the fan can be dismantled to the point where you can get to the fan spindle, i squirt a bit of wd40 in there and spin fan to work it in and then also one small drop of oil (like bicycle chain oil) and spin fan to work it in. You must not use too much or it might spray out over other components.
I know that it might be under warranty but if it can be done yourself it's less trouble than returning the goods.
I must have done this to at least 50 fans on PCs I have worked on. (graphics card, cpu and psu fans)