redundant hot-plug power supply

[Ayman Altounji]

I just installed the redundant power supply option with 3 hot-plugable supplies, replacing the fixed redundant power supply that was installed and working. The system was working fine before the change. Now all I get is a blinking (once every few seconds) power LED next to the power switch. The fans of each of the redundant supplies are spinning as soon as I connect the line cord. Otherwise the system is dead. There are no smoke signals so far.

I followed the instructions that came with the power supply kit, and believe I have everything connected correctly. The only thing that makes me unsure is a small 10-pin header (E5) on the backplane. The old power supply had a 10-pin connector that fit exactly, while the redundant supply has a 14-pin connector. I tried plugging it into the 10-pin header using the missing pin as a guide.

None of the LEDs on the power supplies ever light up. None of the disk spin nor do their LEDs light up.

[Sunil Jerath]

Hello,
Please call our Tech Support staff at 1-800-ok-compaq for a Resolution to your issue.

[Ayman Altounji]

What was the resolution to this issue? I have exactly the same problem and its easier to get the answer here that via phone as I am in Australia

[Ayman Altounji]

This is in response to Peter Burness's message:

I hadn't received a response to my message in the forum in some time, so I decided to give Compaq a call. After some discussion, and the installation of a new mini-backplane (which I had requested, but didn't solve the problem), the support person determined that I needed a cable kit. IIRC, it cost about USD 50.00 and included a number of adapters. Only one was necessary to get the power supplies hooked up properly.

There was still a problem which was resolved by moving the two CPUs and VRMs around. I don't remember if the system still exhibited the same symptoms after the cable was installed, but I do remember that it did not work immediately. No one understood why moving the CPUs and VRMs solved the problem, the theory was that some of the contacts may have been dirty and were cleaned by the removal and reinstallation. Anyway, the system works fine with the same CPUs, etc. and the three RPSs.

I do remember that the process was kind of slow. There seemed to be no indication in the Compaq support database that these folks referred to that mentioned an adapter cable. I had to send a picture of the mini-backplane to show that the connector from the power supply module would not match up to it. I never did call support after the reply message by Sunil J was posted because the problem was fixed months earlier. Perhaps the solution is in the Compaq support database, and you can get the same cable kit. Unfortunately, I don't have the part number readiliy available (I'd have to power down the server to get to the cable).