Humming or whirring noise

[VPluto]

Just purchased this desktop and so far I'm extremely pleased with the speed, screen quality, etc., etc. However... it makes a humming or whirring sound. Maybe my hearing is very sensitive, and I understand the fan needs to run from time to time, but this seems relatively constant. Can be a bit annoying, and it concerns me that it's doing it "right out of the box". Is this normal and something I'll have to live with or symptomatic of a larger issue? Thank you.

[WAWood]

@VPluto 

Are you really running Windows 10 IOT?  That is an evolved form of Windows Embedded and as far as I know, we do not support that.  IF you're not running that, you need to provide us accurate information.

Right out of the box, the PC could still be weeks, if not months, old -- and when you first connect to the Internet, it is going to contact Microsoft and Windows Update will then fire up. This can cause problems not seen in the older OS versions.

First is sluggishness. You may experience a very slow PC at times because Windows Update (WU) is hogging your PC, searching for, downloading, and installing updates -- to bring your PC up to the most current version of Windows. This can also contribute significantly to high processor temperatures, as it is being heavily used.

Second is fan noise. That's directly related to fan speed, which is the result of processor heat, and WU is known to drive up the processor load -- sometimes to 100%. That can cause the fan to run loud and continuous for some time.

Third is disk usage. WU can easily force the disk usage to 100% and and keep it pinned there for some time. That's because it writes WU files to the drive, then it turns around and reads them, then it overwrites existing Windows System files. All of that takes a lot of disk usage to complete.

These processes are compounded by Win10 because new Win 10 patches coming out nearly every Tuesday. Since you can't stop Updates like you did with Win7, this means you're going to get updates, regardless of what you do.

To find out what version and build of Win10 your PC is running, do the following:
1) enter "cmd" (without the quotes) into the search area and select the Command Prompt option
2) enter "winver" into the command window (again, without the quotes)
3) The most current Win10 versions as of 9/08/20 are the following:
a) v1809: Bld 17763.1457
b) v1903: Bld 18632.1082
c) v1909: Bld 18363.1082
d) v2004: Bld 19041.508.

If yours is older than that, most likely WU is hogging your PC trying to update it.

Some folks have been told that resetting your PC will fix this. but, if you reset your PC, you only make matters WORSE! Why? Because you will reset Win10 back to the original version that came preloaded on the PC and that will restart Windows Update all over again.

To disable WU temporarily, do the following:
1) Enter "services" in the search area (again, without the quotes)
2) When the window opens, scroll down until you see Windows Update
3) If it say Running under status, that indicates that WU is running
4) To change that, double-click on that task, select Stop under the Service status, and then Apply
5) That should stop WU -- and you should see an immediate improvement in performance.

If not, then WU is not the problem.

WU will restart itself automatically later on, so you basically have no choice than to bear with it until it finishes.

[VPluto]

Sincerely appreciate your prompt response. Actually, the PC is running Windows 10 Home, however that was not one of the options I could see in the drop down menu so I went with 10 IOT to get the conversation started! 

Does the fact I'm running 10 Home make a difference?

Thank you again.

Victor

[WAWood]

@VPluto 

From the standpoint of Windows Update yes -- because it will automatically run on Home, not on IOT.