We have heard of redundant data and redundant array of disks or hard-drives which is more commonly known as RAID but what is a redundant power supply? As the name implies, it should be an extra source of power supply for the computer in case of an emergency. So, it is actually a power supply with two independent units of power source within, each capable of taking over the onus of supplying power if one of the units fail by chance. A seamless take over takes place so that the PC is prevented from loss of power. It is even possible to change and replace the damaged unit without powering down the PC, a feature called hot-swapping.
This is especially useful for servers where productivity and data loss due to power failures bears maximum importance. There is a radical difference between UPS which is known as Uninterruptible Power Supply and the Redundant Power Supply. Although, we tend to draw a similarity between these two. The UPS takes care of the quality of power to the system whereas the RPS (Redundant Power Supply) takes care of the power within the system. The RPS is used in conjunction with RAIDS where fault tolerance has to be ensured.
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An example of such a power supply is the Cisco RPS1000 380W Redundant Power Supply Unit. It can supply power to six devices at a time at a first come first serve basis and has a capacity of 380 Watt. When a connected device loses power, instead of a reboot which can cause data loss, the power source is shifted smoothly from one unit to the other redundant unit. Therefore, it is a bit costlier of course than normal power supplies but we can still consider such a power supply option for not only servers but also stand alone work stations as well if there is more than one hard-drive to be protected against sudden data loss.
Redundant power supply also helps in hot swapping which means replacing the damaged unit without stopping the system. For further computer help, you can talk to an expert.
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Redundant power supply is an advanced feature which is available on machines with high configuration. To get assistance on computer hardware problem, you can talk to a Help Desk Specialist.
