A Detailed Look (Cont’d)
Each modular power supply has its own power receptacle so two power cords are required. A hinged handle is provided on the rear to help remove the module and an LED indicator/pushbutton provides the operating status of each module.
Two green lights are what you want to see (blinking when the PC is turned off and power is applied). A red light indicates a loss of power or fault and an audible alarm also sounds, which can be silenced by pressing the LED/button. The User Manual provides a more detailed explanation of the various status modes.
FSP Guardian Intelligent Monitoring Software
The FSP Twins 500W redundant power supply incorporates a digital bridge inside the main chassis/frame that allows connecting the PSU to the PC’s motherboard via USB. The power supply is fitted with a USB cable that can be plugged into a spare USB header on the motherboard, or alternately thru the provided adapter cable, into a USB port. You can download the software from the FSP Twins web page on the FSP website.
The main home window is divided into three sections: Integrated Module (the Twins 500W PSU), power supply Module 1, and power supply Module 2. Other windows provide information on Settings, Historical Data and Product Information (Model, Serial Number, Version, etc.).
A Look Inside
Here are a few pictures showing the layout and components inside the FSP Twins 500W power supply. Of course FSP Technology Inc. is the OEM.
The main enclosure/frame is used to mount the two modular power supplies. There are several PCBs in the front of the case that handle the power distribution between the modular power supplies and the fixed cable set. The modular power supplies only produce +12V and +5VSB, so the +3.3V, +5V, and -12V outputs are all generated on the main PCB inside the enclosure. Current limiters are used to turn the single +12V output from the modular power supplies into three 16A +12V outputs. This seems like a reasonable approach as it limits exposing any connected devices to the full power (86A/1,040W) of the two combined power supply modules.
The components inside the modular power supplies are densely packed as you would expect to find in a 2U style server PSU. Air is drawn in the front and blown thru the power supply, eventually exiting out the rear. In keeping with its server-style heritage, the FSP modular power supplies appear to be well built and constructed using high quality components with a very good build quality.
Do most redundant server PSUs
Do most redundant server PSUs operate in this fashion or keep one on standby?
Most of them can be
Most of them can be configured to act either as a 1+1 (failover) or a 2+0 (both live).
If this cant be configured to
If this cant be configured to be 1+1 then its kind of pointless.
I currently use a high end Seasonic with a APC UPS for reliability.
Whats the point of this?
Whats the point of this? Really high price? I dont see the purpose for desktops. Better get an 1000Watt PSU single/
Redundancy is the point of
Redundancy is the point of this.
Redundancy is exactly the
Redundancy is exactly the point of this. I will most likely be buying 15 of them. Have been waiting for something like this forever!
When your production machines are 10,000$ per hour per line, having a power supply go out can cost thousands.
So I’ve known that redundant
So I’ve known that redundant PSU’s have been standard in rack-mount cases for a long time, so what’s the use-case for using these in standard ATX machines?
Rendering boxes, or other such machines?
I just legitimately don’t know.
Anytime you have a PC running
Anytime you have a PC running a mission-critical app or controlling high-value process equipment, you want to maximize up time by minimizing any potential hardware failures, like the PSU. I used to work in Bio-tech R&D and we frequently used redundant PSUs along with large UPSs on mass spec instruments and PCs running High Throughput Screening robotic systems. Any down time could cost thousands of dollars per hour.