Managing airflow in any cooling system involves a fan that may be attached to one of the following:
- A heat sink, in the case of air cooling
- A radiator, in the case of liquid cooling
- The front, side, or rear portions of the PC case
Considering the preceding three scenarios, these are the different ways you can configure a fan:
- A push configuration involves pushing air in through the attachment
- A pull configuration involves pulling air out of the attachment
- A push-pull configuration involves pushing air in through one side of the attachment and pulling air out of the other side
- A pull-push configuration involves pulling air out of one side of the attachment and pushing air in from the other side
It all really depends ...