A technician is evaluating how to connect a power-redundant server to the outlets of a rack. Which of the following is the best way to provide…

A power-redundant server has two or more power supply units (PSUs). To achieve true redundancy, each PSU should be connected to an independent power source. The best practice is to connect the PSUs to different Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPSs), which are ideally connected to separate electrical circuits or power distribution units (PDUs). This ensures that the server remains operational even if one UPS, PDU, or entire circuit fails.

A. Connecting to only one power outlet creates a single point of failure, defeating the purpose of having redundant power supplies.

B. A redundant power supply must be connected and active to take over instantly in case of a failure; leaving it disconnected is incorrect.

D. Connecting both PSUs to a single battery backup still represents a single point of failure if that backup unit fails.

1. Dell Inc. (2022). PowerEdge R750 Installation and Service Manual. Dell Support Documentation. Section: Power supply unit specifications, p. 89. (This type of manual details connecting redundant PSUs for high availability).

2. Hewlett Packard Enterprise. (2019). HPE ProLiant DL380 Gen10 Server User Guide. HPE Support Center. Section: Cabling, p. 82. (Illustrates connecting redundant power supplies to separate PDUs).

3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). (n.d.). IS&T Data Center Colocation Service Level Description. MIT Information Systems & Technology. Section: Power. (Describes best practices for power in a data center environment, including A/B power feeds for redundant equipment).