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The power supply unit is a crucial hardware component inside the computer case that converts alternating current from the outlet into direct current needed to power the other internal computer components and regulates voltage and temperature. It prevents overheating by controlling voltage, which may change automatically or manually depending on the model. Without a power supply unit, the rest of the computer hardware cannot function.

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71 views5 pages

Yey

The power supply unit is a crucial hardware component inside the computer case that converts alternating current from the outlet into direct current needed to power the other internal computer components and regulates voltage and temperature. It prevents overheating by controlling voltage, which may change automatically or manually depending on the model. Without a power supply unit, the rest of the computer hardware cannot function.

Uploaded by

Zhyndrea Park
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The power supply unit is the piece of hardware that's used to convert the power provided from the

outlet into usable power for the many parts inside the computer case.

It converts the alternating current (AC) into a continuous form of power that the computer components
need in order to run normally, called direct current (DC). It also regulates overheating by controlling
voltage, which may change automatically or manually depending on the power supply.

Unlike some hardware components used with a computer that aren't necessarily needed, like a printer,
the power supply is a crucial piece because without it, the rest of the internal hardware can't function.

Other Names for Power Supply Unit

The power supply unit is often abbreviated as PSU and is also known as a power pack or power
converter.

"AT" type computer power supplies are often used by model railroaders to provide 12 and 5 Volt
accessory power for their layouts. These supplies are reasonably inexpensive due to their age and have
been removed from old personal computers.

The AT type are switching type power supplies that do not use a heavy and expensive - iron core
transformer. This makes them reasonably small and light weight. A cooling fan is a typical feature of this
type of supply.
The supply used as example for this page is rated at 130 Watts and can deliver up to 15 Amps at 5 Volts
and also 4 Amps at 12 Volts. The supply also has low current negative 5 Volt and 12 Volt outputs but
these are not usually of interest to modelers.

Most modern desktop personal computer power supplies conform to the ATX specification, which
includes form factor and voltage tolerances. While an ATX power supply is connected to the mains
supply, it always provides a 5 Volt standby (5VSB) voltage so that the standby functions on the computer
and certain peripherals are powered. ATX power supplies are turned on and off by a signal from the
motherboard. They also provide a signal to the motherboard to indicate when the DC voltages are in
spec, so that the computer is able to safely power up and boot. The most recent ATX PSU standard is
version 2.31 of mid-2008.
Adapter card

adapter cardAn adapter card is any internal expansion card that allows the computer to communicate
with another peripheral such as a monitor. For example, the video card is an adapter card.

A video card (also called a display card, graphics card, display adapter or graphics adapter) is an
expansion card which generates a feed of output images to a display (such as a computer monitor).
Frequently, these are advertised as discrete or dedicated graphics cards, emphasizing the distinction
between these and integrated graphics.
PCI

Short for Peripheral Component Interconnect, PCI was introduced by Intel in 1992. The PCI bus came in
both 32-bit (133MBps) and 64-bit versions and was used to attach hardware to a computer. Although
commonly used in computers from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, PCI has since been replaced with
PCI Express.

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