time
Storage? I am Storage!
I had a warm, fuzzy moment and bought an Asus 8-port gigabit switch.
The fuzziness disappeared when I brushed my fingers against the ports and the bloody thing bit me. Not hard, mind, but a nip nonetheless.
There's a metal shield surrounding the ports. I found that touching it lightly was rewarded with a tingle or minor zap. While disconnecting the power adapter, I noticed that the end of the output plug also wanted a small piece of me. I reached for the trusty multimeter and measured 20VAC between the inside of the plug and the nearest metal computer case, which in this country is always earthed.
In other words, the wall-wart was leaking 20V from the mains and trying to make me part of the circuit.
In a country where every power point is 240V, I worry a bit when supposedly double-insulated devices don't seem to be all that well insulated. Switching mode power supplies have supplanted transformers, but require an article of faith that the manufacturer hasn't cocked it up and connected you directly to the mains.
It's particularly worrying when it's connected to a device that's a hub for multiple data cables that may reach up to 100m away. Admittedly, the desktop I tried grounded the problem, but what if you're just using laptops or other unearthed devices?
I took it back and got a replacement power adapter, but I really don't think the supplier's RMA person had any idea what I was on about. Got it home and it had much the same problem. Tried to talk to Asus about it, but was advised that I would have to get the supplier to contact the correct division of Asus.
I get the feeling if I had taken it back and told them that someone had been hospitalized, the reaction wouldn't have been much different. Not that I'm saying that would happen, but I really don't like the possibilities. If Jtr1962 is around, perhaps he can suggest a possible cause? Maybe it's completely benign ...
The fuzziness disappeared when I brushed my fingers against the ports and the bloody thing bit me. Not hard, mind, but a nip nonetheless.
There's a metal shield surrounding the ports. I found that touching it lightly was rewarded with a tingle or minor zap. While disconnecting the power adapter, I noticed that the end of the output plug also wanted a small piece of me. I reached for the trusty multimeter and measured 20VAC between the inside of the plug and the nearest metal computer case, which in this country is always earthed.
In other words, the wall-wart was leaking 20V from the mains and trying to make me part of the circuit.
In a country where every power point is 240V, I worry a bit when supposedly double-insulated devices don't seem to be all that well insulated. Switching mode power supplies have supplanted transformers, but require an article of faith that the manufacturer hasn't cocked it up and connected you directly to the mains.
It's particularly worrying when it's connected to a device that's a hub for multiple data cables that may reach up to 100m away. Admittedly, the desktop I tried grounded the problem, but what if you're just using laptops or other unearthed devices?
I took it back and got a replacement power adapter, but I really don't think the supplier's RMA person had any idea what I was on about. Got it home and it had much the same problem. Tried to talk to Asus about it, but was advised that I would have to get the supplier to contact the correct division of Asus.
I get the feeling if I had taken it back and told them that someone had been hospitalized, the reaction wouldn't have been much different. Not that I'm saying that would happen, but I really don't like the possibilities. If Jtr1962 is around, perhaps he can suggest a possible cause? Maybe it's completely benign ...
