Finding Out Power Supply Information With Linux

The Linux operating system uses the biosdecode utility to get information from the computer's BIOS, such as information about the power supply. This is a command line utility; the utility accesses the information from the DMI (Desktop Management Interface) tables. The "dmidecode" command is used to print the information to the screen. The "dmidecode" command uses a number that corresponds to each item from the DMI table. The number "39" corresponds to the power supply.

Instructions

1. Open a terminal window. The terminal window is usually found under the "System Tools," "Utilities" or "Accessories" section of the main "Applications" menu.

2. Type the command "su" to switch to the root user. Ubuntu users should type "sudo" before the next command.

3. Type the command "dmidecode --type 39" to find the power supply information.

4. Type the command "exit" to close the root session.

References

• UnixCraft: Get Information About Your BIOS/Server Hardware From a Shell Without Opening Chassis (BIOS Decoder)