Fujitsu: Diagnostics of service life of the power source of the server

Diagnostics of service life of the power source of the server - technology of automatic diagnostics, functions of status monitoring of power sources of servers programmatically implemented, with digital control.

28 March, 2016 the Fujitsu company announced development of technology of the automatic diagnostics allowing to define more precisely time when it is required to replace the power source. It is software for the microcontroller in the power supplies with digital control intended for servers and other equipment of DPC.

Power sources of servers have limited service life therefore for increase in their reliability excess configurations with parallel connection that in case of refusal one of sources execution of operations could continue are used. Among various components of which the power source consists the electrolytic condensers used for stabilization of input and output currents are most subject to failure. Servers are operated in a continuous duty therefore the only way of monitoring of degradation of electrolytic condensers without noises for operation of the equipment consists in control of the "pulsing" variations of voltage output which accompany cyclic turning on / switching off of the power sources working in a pulsed mode. Pulsations make some percent from the voltage output therefore precision measuring devices are necessary for their monitoring.

This circumstance does not allow to implement similar approach in the operating power sources for servers because of strict requirements to their cost and the sizes.

In infrastructures of big scale, such as data processing centers, increase in number of power sources leads to increase in the maintenance expenses connected with failure and replacement of these components.

Specialists of Fujitsu analyzed the changes of the signals passing on chains of the controller caused by degradation of the power source. The company developed a fault detection method in power sources with digital control which analyzes changes of a signal in control circuits. It allows, relying only on information used by the power supply controller precisely to define the moment of replacement of the block.

Main characteristics of technology:

• The analysis of signals in control circuits of a power supply
  • Simple connection of a metering equipment for observation of the internal signals used for control of the power source will influence work of components because of noise that does difficult condition monitoring of internal control circuits.

• Method of determination of terms of replacement of power sources
  • using the data collected by the microcontroller, the Fujitsu company constructed dependence of fluctuations of tension on fluctuations of loading at normal use of the device and from extent of degradation, having received a new method of determination of the moment for replacement of the power source.

The technology of Fujitsu will help to diagnose automatically replacement terms without use of additional hardware, estimating extent of degradation of power supplies even at increase of loading, for example, in case of data backup upon termination of the working day.

In plans of Fujitsu:

• continue service tests of technology in the operating server power sources for practical implementation in 2018
• expand a set of the components supporting automatic diagnostics and add carryover function on other servers of transaction expecting accomplishment on the server which needs replacement of the power supply – it will promote cutting of costs for service and will increase their reliability.