Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumExpansion Cards and Power Supplies

A technician is installing a new high-performance graphics expansion card into a desktop workstation. Upon powering on the system, the computer fans spin, but the system displays an on-screen warning stating that auxiliary power is missing for the expansion card. The technician notices an available 8-pin cable labeled EPS12V originating from the power supply unit (PSU). Which of the following actions should the technician take to properly power the expansion card?

  1. Connect a dedicated PCIe 6+2 pin power cable from the power supply directly to the expansion card.Answer
  2. B
    Plug the available 8-pin EPS12V cable directly into the auxiliary power socket of the expansion card.
  3. C
    Upgrade to a motherboard that provides more than 75 W of power natively through the PCIe expansion slot.
  4. D
    Attach a standard 4-pin Molex connector to the motherboard's front panel header to supply supplementary bus wattage.

Answer

The technician should connect a dedicated PCIe 6+2 pin power cable from the power supply directly to the expansion card.
Connecting a dedicated PCIe 6+2 pin auxiliary power cable is correct because PCI Express expansion cards requiring more than the 75 W75\text{ W} provided by the motherboard slot rely on standardized PCIe power cables directly from the PSU.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the power requirement for the PCIe expansion card.
Recognize that a PCIe x16 expansion slot delivers up to 75 W75\text{ W} directly from the motherboard bus, so higher-draw expansion cards require dedicated auxiliary power connectors.
The system warning indicates the expansion card is not receiving its required supplemental wattage.
2
Distinguish between PSU connector pinouts.
Differentiate between an EPS12V 8-pin connector (intended for CPU power on the motherboard) and a PCIe 6+2 pin connector (intended for expansion cards).
EPS12V and PCIe 8-pin connectors have different pinouts and square/rounded keying patterns to prevent improper cross-connection.
3
Select and attach the appropriate cable.
Locate and connect a dedicated PCIe 6+2 pin cable from the PSU to the expansion card auxiliary power header.
This supplies the necessary supplementary voltage and amperage safely to the expansion card.

Key Concept

PCIe Auxiliary Power vs CPU EPS12V Power Connectors
Rate this question

Topics

Expansion Cards and Power Supplies

More questions from this topic