Readynas 4200 v2 Power Supply Fans Not Turning Off OS6

[egranuloma]

Unit powers on and works as expected but if I shut it down by either the web user interface or forcibly holding down the power button, the power supply fans stay on.

Is there any reason why they need to be on all the time?

[JeraldM]

Hi @egranuloma,

The fans should turn off as well when shutting the unit down.

Were there any events that might have caused this issue? Also, did this issue occur after upgrading the NAS from OS4 to OS6?

You could also PM me the system logs to further check.

Regards,

JeraldM

NETGEAR Community Team

[Sandshark]

Mine are off when the unit is, but I believe there is circuitry in the power supply that turns the fan on if it's too hot (or the thermal sensor says it is).  It's still producing the 5 volt standby and possibly other (I just don't know on the rack-mount units) voltages and that part of the supply could fail if it gets too hot.  Mine are actually often off when the unit is on, as the main fans apparently provide enough cooling.

I don't know if Netgear used different models of power supply in the unit.  Since the 4200V2 is a modified SuperMicro system, supplies are readily available, and quite cheap on eBay.  The newest ones have a fan that runs a lot quieter and is definately off much of the time.

[egranuloma]

@JeraldM  

I never used it when it was on OS4, I upgraded it immedietly when I received it.

The only thing that is weird about this unit is this, the unit is on its own dedicated circuit with the two dedicated outlets it needs, one for each power supply. As soon as I plug it in it turns on, it doesnt wait for me to press the power button. As of now, because its impossible to plug both plugs in at the same time I turn it on and off via the breaker...

What log would you like to see, I dont think I can send you the entire zip in a PM.

Thanks

Adam

[egranuloma]

@Sandshark 

Do you have a model number of the newer supplies? Perhaps I should try with fresh ones...

Thanks

Adam

[JeraldM]

Hi @egranuloma,

The hwmon, kernel, and status.log should be fine for now. You can try uploading it to a filesharing service and send me the  link via PM.

Also, I'd try swapping/reseating the PSUs if possible, it's more likely that it could be an issue with the PSUs itself than the NAS in which it might need to be replaced (you may refer to page 46 of the hardware manual here).

Regards,

JeraldM

NETGEAR Community Team

[Sandshark]

My understanding is that any of them with the "80 Plus" rating will be more quiet, and the ultra-quiet ones have a "Q" at the end of the part number, like the PWS-920P-SQ or PWS-1K28P-SQ.  The latter is a 1280W model and I see somebody selling pairs for under $100 on eBay.  The fan would likely never even run on those.

FYI, you don't need two supplies if you don't need the redundancy protection.  But you have to unplug the unused one to keep from getting an alarm.  The NAS will not complain so long as there is no alarm.  And you should either leave the supply in most of the way or purchase a "dummy"/filler.  I bought some a few years ago on eBay for around $5 each, but I see now they want $20 or more for them.

Also, the NAS firmware has no control over the PSU fan nor the ability to read its speed.  AFAIK, PSU fan control is fully autonomous in the PSU itself.  Maybe units with IPMI (which the ReadyNAS versions of the motherboard lack) have some control, but I don't think so.  And maybe the PSU control board has something to do with it, since it seems you may have something going on there based on your description of how you have to turn the unit on and off.

[egranuloma]

@Sandshark 

I would like to have two in there, just as a precation...whats another couple of bucks to help me sleep at night LOL

If you were me, would you get the PWS-920P-SQ or the PWS-1K28P-SQ?

Thanks

Adam

[Sandshark]

The 920W is more than enough, so just go with the lower price.  I didn't look long to find the lowest price, but the pair of 1280W seemed to be a pretty good price for an ultra-quiet model.