The 8 pin on my motherboard requires a particular 8-pin connector, while my PSU has a different one.
The 8 pin on my motherboard requires a particular 8-pin connector, while my PSU has a different one.
I concur. It functions similarly to a USB standard. Everyone uses the same thing.
The SQUARE pins on the motherboard header support both SQUARE and D-shaped connectors. Their distinct forms help prevent incorrect connections. For instance, PCI-E 8-pin connectors are designed with a keying mechanism so they cannot fit into the standard CPU 8-pin slot. Initially, motherboards featured only a single CPU 4-pin header. Over time, the EPS (CPU 8-pin) slot became popular on server boards due to higher power demands, allowing a 4-pin connector from a power supply to fit into half of the header. Today, the EPS 8-pin is widespread, with most power supplies offering this connector. However, some still allow splitting the 8-pin into two 4-pin sections, enabling compatibility with older boards. Certain manufacturers slightly modify the shape of these 4-pin parts so they can connect to any 4-pin header on compatible motherboards. This variation in pin shapes ensures flexibility across different hardware configurations.