this post was submitted on 21 Nov 2023
1 points (100.0% liked)
Home Networking
198 readers
1 users here now
A community to help people learn, install, set up or troubleshoot their home network equipment and solutions.
Rules
- Please stay on topic.
- Please use the search function to look for keywords related to what you want to ask before posting since most common issues have been answered.
- No Ads. This community is for support and discussion. Ads and self promotion are not welcome here.
- No product reviews or announcements. If you have a question about a product, be specific about what you want to know.
- Be civil. Don't be a jerk. Not being a jerk is surprisingly easy.
- No URL shorteners. URL shorteners tend to hide the real use of a link. For this reason, please use normal links, even if they're long.
- No affiliate links.
- No gatekeeping. With profession shall come professionalism. Extend help without judging others for their ignorance. The same goes for downvoting of comments or posts for "stupid questions" or not being as knowledgeable as others.
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I've never thought about this really. I'll look in to it but do you have any suggestions as to how to find a power adapter that fits the same barrel fitting as well as what amperage to go up to?
Do you think that using the router to attach the external HDD adds extra stress on the unit and makes it more likely to crash?
You have a couple options. The easiest is to buy an adjustable power adapter. They’re about $20 on Amazon. They come with a bunch of “barrel tips” so it is very likely you’ll have one that matches. I have one of these adjustables to test and validate devices when the power adapter is missing or suspect. Pretty handy.
Otherwise, you need to know the voltage, polarity, minimum amperage, and jack size. The first three are easy because they are almost always declared on the old brick or the device itself. You don’t have to match the amperage, but the new adapter needs to supply at least the amperage of the original. For example, if your old supply was 1000 mA, a 1.5 Amp supply is fine but a 500 mA supply will not provide adequate power.
The physical jacks: you get to learn what they are through experience. The most popular are 2.1mm in diameter and 5.5 mm in length, with 2.5 mm diameter being the 2nd most popular. But there are many others. Sometimes if you look for a replacement adapter for your device the specs will actually say. Otherwise you’ll need to measure your old one.