Controllerless Networks

Hi,

An IAP335 I have is powered by this power brick

The AP gets very hot (uncomfortable to the touch).

I realize the APs are designed so that the back acts as a heatsink, but if I would guesstimate the back of the AP reaches 65 Celcius or even higher.. and this with only a handful of devices connected to it, since this is my first aruba ap (bought used) I have to ask if this is normal?

The AP isn't mounted, its sitting on a desk (with back facing up unobstructed and so it should be able to dissipate heat normally because its in the same position as if it were celing mounted).

Looking at old threads on this forum I see a few people complaining about heat, and the first thing asked is "power source".. is it better to power these units with POE+ or a DC power brick? Whats a normal running temp if one was touching the metal backside of an IAP 335?

Thanks,

As mentioned on other threads, it's normal for the back to be hot. The power source you use does not have a significant impact.

Could you measure the temperature? It's hard to assess if there's actually an issue based on "uncomfortable"  ;-)

In normal use, the back of the AP should not be more than 20 degrees Celcius above ambient temperature, but that could approach 50C, which is definitely not comfortable to the touch for a metal surface.

Onno,

Thanks for the prompt reply.

I will see if I can find a thermometer. My environment is 35 Celcius, so with your info the AP in normal conditions would reach 55 celcius? Would this be a concern for longivity? (should I move it to another room in the house where air conditioning is mostly on?) This would place it in a not so ideal location, coverage wise..

Regarding power brick, if you were to use a faulty power adapter that is supplying more voltage would the AP get hot as a result? If you are familiar with the circuitry can you confirm how would the AP behave in case of bad power delivery, would it detect bad power and not power on, or would overheating be a possible symptom?

By the way the AP operates normally and both radios work fine.. I'm just concerned about the heat output since I've never seen anything like it with my home-grade APs/routers (including wireless AC).

Cheers

Our APs are built to operate within spec in temperatures up to 50C, so there's no problem in your deployment. As with all electronics, the failure rate will go up as temperature increases, but as illustrated by our lifetime warranty, I would not be concerned about that.

If your power adapter delivers an incompatible voltage, the AP would simply not function, or you could cause a short and permanent failure. If it operates normally, it is unlikely that power consumption is excessive.

Most consumer access points have internal heatsinks (which will get a lot hotter than the back of our APs) in combination with a plastic enclosure with vents. We try to avoid vented enclosures for several reasons, and have been using this architecture for our APs for many years (and millions of units out there).

Thanks for the thorough response.