Laptop Fan broken? - help

[Indieboi918]

Okay so earlier my laptop completely freaked out and crashed, then when i picked it up it was mega hot. Now i've got it to reboot but the fan isnt blowing, the laptop is extremely hot and i can smell burning from it. I know the fan has broken but can anyone tell my what would have caused the fan to break. It was working earlier today and i haven't dropped it or anything like that.

Any help?

Thanks,
Steve

[watercooled]

There are a few reasons the fan could have stopped including dust/dirt being sucked in and jamming it, the connector somehow getting disconnected from the motherboard, something wrong with the fan controller on the motherboard or just through plain wear-and-tear. How old is the laptop + is it still under warranty?

[Indieboi918]

no it isnt under warranty anymore and its about 2-4 years old cant remember exactly

[Chanfron]

There are a few reasons the fan could have stopped including dust/dirt being sucked in and jamming it,

QFT

I see plenty of laptops like this when they come in for repair at the shop I work for, most often the fan will be working but the vents or the grills on the heatsink will have a layer of dust/fluff/hair completely blocking it.

Sometimes there is big clumps of fluff which jam the fans to stop them spinning, unfortunately a lot of laptops are designed in a way where you have to take it to bits to get at the fans to clean them, others are easily accessible via removable panels on the bottom.

Very rarely see any fans which break, if they get jammed and the machine over heats over time the fans lubrication can evaporate and the fan will seize up.

[Rob_B]

Get the hoover on it if you're not confident opening it up