PDUs & power usage
TrixOS reads switched and metered power distribution units (PDUs) over SNMP: the draw of the whole PDU, of every inlet or phase and, on PDUs that meter single outlets, of every outlet. Outlets are mapped to servers, so every server shows its own power draw, and an outlet can be switched off, on or power-cycled from the panel.
Supported PDUs
Section titled “Supported PDUs”| Vendor | MIB | Models | Reads | Switches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| APC | PowerNet-MIB, rPDU2 | AP8xxx / AP86xx (“2G”) | totals, phases, energy, outlet state, outlet power (metered-by-outlet models) | yes (switched models) |
| APC | PowerNet-MIB, rPDU | AP79xx | total watts, phase current, outlet state | yes |
| Raritan | PDU2-MIB | PX2, PX3 | inlets (power, current, voltage, energy), outlet state, outlet power and current | yes (switched models) |
| Simulator | – | – | an in-memory 8-outlet PDU for testing | yes |
TrixOS finds out by itself whether an APC PDU speaks rPDU2 or the older rPDU MIB.
Adding a PDU
Section titled “Adding a PDU”Under Network → PDUs → Add PDU enter a name, the address, the vendor, the datacenter (and optionally the rack) and the SNMP credentials: a v2c community, or a v3 user with authentication and privacy keys. To switch outlets, the community or user needs write access on the PDU. The credentials are stored encrypted and are never shown again; leave them empty when editing to keep them.
TrixOS reads the PDU right away (this is also the connection test) and then every 5 minutes
(POLLER_PDU_INTERVAL_S). Read now reads it again. When the PDU does not answer, the error is shown on the PDU.
When the panel reaches the PDU through a site agent, the agent forwards SNMP to the PDUs of its datacenter automatically, like it does for BMCs and switches.
Outlets and servers
Section titled “Outlets and servers”A PDU’s page lists its outlets with state, draw (on outlet-metered PDUs) and the server each one feeds. Choose the server per outlet; a server with two power supplies gets two outlets, usually on two PDUs (feed A and B).
Power usage per server
Section titled “Power usage per server”The server overview (switch on Advanced) shows its power draw over 24 hours, 7 or 30 days and the energy in kWh for the range; the overview shows the current draw. The numbers come from:
- the PDU outlets mapped to the server, added up, when the PDU meters single outlets, otherwise
- the BMC’s power sensor (for example “Power Meter” on HPE iLO or “Pwr Consumption” on Dell iDRAC), read with the other sensors every 5 minutes.
Customers see the draw of their servers and the state of their outlets, but not which PDU feeds them.
Switching outlets
Section titled “Switching outlets”On, Off and Cycle cut or restore the power at the PDU: a hard power cut without shutdown. A server with a second power supply on another outlet stays on. Only admins can switch, and only outlets mapped to a server, so a switch or router on an unmapped outlet is never cut by mistake. The action needs the server’s hostname as confirmation, runs as a job (PDU outlet) and follows the same rules as BMC power actions: protected servers are refused, and in dry-run mode the job only logs what it would do.
History
Section titled “History”Power readings are stored every 5 minutes for the PDU and every metered outlet and kept for 400 days, like bandwidth samples. The PDU page shows the draw of the whole PDU over 24 hours, 7 or 30 days.