초록 ▼

A cooling system for a high-end server includes four hot-pluggable fans plugged into a fan control board. The fans are arranged in two groups, with each group having two fans, one behind the other. One of the groups of fans is used to cool the processor boards and the other group is used to cool the

A cooling system for a high-end server includes four hot-pluggable fans plugged into a fan control board. The fans are arranged in two groups, with each group having two fans, one behind the other. One of the groups of fans is used to cool the processor boards and the other group is used to cool the system I/O board slots. Under normal operation, only one fan from each group is active, while the other fan freewheels, providing redundancy. A fan control board delivers power to each of the fans and further provides a signal, responsive to temperature sensors, to each of the fans to control their speeds. Each of the fans provides a fan fault signal and a fan not present signal to the fan control board. The temperature sensors are placed proximate the processors and I/O components to monitor the operating temperatures thereof, and communicate the respective temperatures back to the fan control board, via I.sup.2 C bus. An operating system is utilized to drive the fan controller but can be overridden by the fan controller during critical conditions. An air ramp is positioned between the processors to help direct the flow of air generated by the fans onto some of the processors. Additionally, each of the fans are configured with a quick installment device to facilitate single-hand insertion and removal of the fans from the computer system.

대표청구항 ▼

[ What is claimed is:] [19.] A method for cooling multiple processors and multiple input/output (I/O) components within a computer system, said method comprising the steps of:generating air flow over the I/O components with a first fan operating at a first rate;generating air flow over the processor

[ What is claimed is:] [19.] A method for cooling multiple processors and multiple input/output (I/O) components within a computer system, said method comprising the steps of:generating air flow over the I/O components with a first fan operating at a first rate;generating air flow over the processors with a second fan operating at a first rate;monitoring the temperature within the computer system proximate the I/O components;monitoring the temperature within the computer system proximate the processors;generating air flow over the I/O components with the first fan operating at a second rate in response to a change in temperature by a select amount detected in one of said steps of monitoring the temperature within the computer system proximate the I/O components and monitoring the temperature within the computer system proximate the processors;generating air flow over the processors with the second fan operating at a second rate in response to a change in temperature by a select amount detected in one of said steps of monitoring the temperature within the computer system proximate the I/O components and monitoring the temperature within the computer system proximate the processors; andconcentrating the air flow generated by the second fan over at least one of the processors with an air ramp.