How to fix a floppy drive making noise

A computer floppy drive makes noises often interpreted as bad noises. Although this noise is commonly loud and can sound strange, it's normal. Below is a listing of some different times you may notice this noise.

Noise as the computer boots

Each time a computer boots, it checks if a diskette is in the floppy drive. If a diskette is present, it tries booting from that diskette.

Noise as the computer accesses floppy

When accessing the floppy drive, you hear a noise that indicates the floppy diskette is being read.

Noise when running software

Occasionally, when running programs, utilities, virus scanners, and games, the computer accesses the floppy drive. Some programs, including a virus scanner, are designed to check the floppy for any files.

Noise when computer shuts down

Microsoft Windows users may notice a noise coming from the floppy or the floppy being accessed when shutting the computer down. These noises are caused by the antivirus protection scanning the floppy drive for any viruses before shutting down. This type of scan is highly recommended, because an infected floppy disk can load a virus onto the system at boot time.