[mdlug] How to test your power supply want what to look for in a power supply

[ThatCyberSecurityGuy]

A lot of people are suggesting your power supply as the problem and in
my experience that is a VERY LIKELY candidate.  Problem is you may not
know how to test your power supply or what to look for in a new power
supply.

For years I tested my power supplies with a paper clip and a
multimeter.  See:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkRgt_-qtyU. 

I too have a server down and I'm about 90% certain it is the
motherboard.  My power supply is a Platinum 1000 Watt so I certainly
don't want to trash it without making 100 percent sure.  It passed the
paperclip test but rather than take my multimeter and test all the other
voltages with the paperclip inserted I decided to look around Amazon and
see if they have a cheap, good quality, tester to make life easy.

For you and I I purchased the "Tonor 20/24 4/6/8 PIN Digital 1.8 LCD PC
Computer PC Power Supply Tester For SATA IDE HDD ATX ITX BYI Connectors"
which was on sale for $13 and had 12 five star reviews.  If you are
interested in how the test works out I can follow up on this for you.  See:

http://www.amazon.com/Tonor-Digital-Computer-Supply-Connectors/dp/B011U3ODX0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462240151&sr=8-1&keywords=Tonor+20%2F24+4%2F6%2F8+PIN+Digital+1.8

------------------------------------------------------------------------

What to look for in a power supply, taken from my book:

You have to pay attention to the efficiency rating of your power
supply.  An 80% efficiency rating is not enough for a modern power
supply.  Higher efficiency is not only possible, the 80 plus revised the
standard and added Bronze, Silver and Gold certifications for
higher-efficiency power supplies.  By October, 2009, 80 plus had to add
a Platinum standard for power supplies with efficiency above 90%.  (For
a comprehensive list of power supply manufacturers see: 
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-supply-oem-manufacturer,2913.html). 
Calling retailers of power supplies to learn about the products is a
waste of time also.  As soon as you start asking questions about things
such as what power supplies they sell with a Platinum rating, or what
they might recommend for your hardware, you will quickly find you have
lost the person on the other end of the line.  With one company I
called, the technician I got on the line actually steered me to power
supplies with lower efficiency ratings than other power supplies listed
on their website.  Intel has a web page that might aid in the selection
of power supplies at http://www.intel.com/reseller/psu_selector
<http://www.intel.com/reseller/psu_selector/>.  You can also look at
http://www.intel.com/support/processors/corei7/sb/CS-030866.htm. 
Although I have shown you many websites above, my favorite site is
JonnyGURU.  Not only does the author have a good sense of humor, I
believe that OklahomaWolf (as the author calls themselves) does some
pretty impressive testing on power supplies.

 

Kirk A. Ellis

President and CEO, ThatCyberSecurityGuy.com


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