Lets talk about UPS power supplies

bp2008

Staff member
Joined
Mar 10, 2014
Messages
12,666
Reaction score
14,006
Location
USA
The edge case that could bite you is: power outage > UPS getting low, PC shutdown triggered > Power comes back on and the UPS never loses power. As a result the PC wouldn't turn pack on unless there's a way to signal that from the UPS.
I've heard of this being an issue, however I never went to the trouble of trying it myself to see what would happen because I keep all my servers connected to a remote controllable power switch.

The OP also has a remote controllable power switch and can reboot the PC remotely if it gets stuck in an "off" state.
 

tangent

IPCT Contributor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
4,342
Reaction score
3,524
it may be possible to do this via wake on lan...but you would have to automate it..
Man I clearly need more/better sleep. Currently enjoying loud night time road construction from 11pm-4am every night and the birds start chirping loudly at 4:30am.
Yes this is the solution. If PC is down and router is up, VPN into router and trigger WOL.

and yes I know graceful shutdowns are good, but sporadic hard shutdowns are a lot better than the frequent hard shutdowns you could get without a UPS
 

NoloC

Getting comfortable
Joined
Nov 24, 2014
Messages
701
Reaction score
454
Actually Cyperpower supports wol in some of their UPS with this card RMCARD205. It can send a wol magic packet. Tripp Lite and I imagine many others do as well.
Kinda spendy though and only works on the higher end UPS models. Cool thing is they wait for the UPS batt to be recharged before re-boot.
 

scn101

Getting the hang of it
Joined
Feb 25, 2015
Messages
193
Reaction score
55
Location
Dallas, TX
Costco carries a 1350W Cyberpower UPS in their warehouse for $99.99. I have one on my NVR/Cameras/POE_Switches and one on my garage door. Even with the heat in Texas during the summer, the garage UPS still works well and can cycle the door at least twice during a power fail. I also have a 1500W PFC unit on my computer, works quite well. All in all, Cyberpower seems to do the job well.
 

NoloC

Getting comfortable
Joined
Nov 24, 2014
Messages
701
Reaction score
454
Well lookie here, If I'm reading the manual correctly, this will do exactly what @CaliGirl needs for her BI server.
No hacking required! :)

Where to Buy OR700LCDRM1U | Product Specifications

Where to Buy PowerPanel Business Edition for Windows | Product Specifications
Yes but it requires the card I refernced above, I believe to get the ethernet connection for wol. Pretty sure. Can be found for $141.00 a quick Google reveals.
Where to Buy RMCARD205 | Product Specifications
 

tangent

IPCT Contributor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
4,342
Reaction score
3,524
honestly wol from the router would be good enough for me.
 

NoloC

Getting comfortable
Joined
Nov 24, 2014
Messages
701
Reaction score
454
honestly wol from the router would be good enough for me.
Yes but I guess there could be a scenario where the power came on and went off a few times in a row AND the ups batt is depleted so you are banging the PC and whatever else.
But I think some of the UPSs are smart enough to not come back on until they are charged.

OK, I'm in the weeds...
 

NoloC

Getting comfortable
Joined
Nov 24, 2014
Messages
701
Reaction score
454
I understand it to be able to use the USB connection when software is installed as agent?
Isn't USB dead when the machine is off? NIC still up if power applied. I think.
 

tangent

IPCT Contributor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
4,342
Reaction score
3,524
How would you get the Router to send a WOL?
I'm usually running Tomato or Merlin so it's very easy. Basically you pull up the device list and click one button and it does it. You can also write a script to do it on these firmwares. I forget if the stock Asus fw has this function.
 

tangent

IPCT Contributor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
4,342
Reaction score
3,524
Isn't USB dead when the machine is off? NIC still up if power applied. I think.
Depends on the computer. Also on S state. After power outage if might be while after a soft shutdown it might not be. Also some PCs have some USB ports that put out power no matter what. There could still be some machines that have an option to enable power on by keyboard which could power up the USB port (the last PC I had that could do this was from 2005).
 

ldasilva

Pulling my weight
Joined
Mar 20, 2016
Messages
449
Reaction score
247
you dont need the card with that one so long as you have Automatic Restore enabled and BI set to boot from power on
 

looney2ns

IPCT Contributor
Joined
Sep 25, 2016
Messages
15,521
Reaction score
22,657
Location
Evansville, In. USA
Use Agent if you connect the computer to the UPS with a USB or Serial cable. Agent, which is the primary means of communication for a basic setup between a computer and the UPS, supports a limitless number of clients.

I'll admit, I could be all wet, but this is what my pea brain makes of this, no card required:

Power Restore When a utility power failure occurs, PowerPanel® Business Edition software may order the computer to shut down and power off after the specified remaining runtime is met or if the battery capacity is low. After the utility power is restored the UPS turns on automatically and supplies power to the computer. If the computer BIOS is set to boot when power is restored the computer will automatically restart. The following settings are used to configure the UPS restore behavior:  Automatic Restore: When this option is enabled, the UPS will restore output immediately when the utility power is restored. When this option is disabled, the UPS will not restore output at that moment and users have to turn it on manually.  Mandatory Power Cycle: When a shutdown sequence is initiated due to a power failure, the connected computers may be ordered to shut down and the UPS will be also ordered to turn off after a time delay. If the utility power is restored prior to the UPS shutting off, the UPS will still turn itself off. In this circumstance, the utility power has restored, but the connected computers have shut down and the UPS has turned off. If the Mandatory Power Cycle option is enabled, the UPS will also turn off after a time delay, but it will turn on again about 10 seconds later. The UPS has restarted and then all connected computers will boot. Note: Most computers have the ability to boot when utility power is restored. Make sure this function is supported and enabled in the system BIOS.  Recharged Delay: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will start to recharge until the specified delay is expired before restoring output power.  Recharged Capacity: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will start to recharge until the specified battery capacity is met before restoring output power.  Startup Delay: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will delay the restoration of output power. This option can be used to stagger the startup time of multiple UPS to avoid overloading the utility power circuit or power source. The Startup Delay option will take effect every time when the UPS is about to restore power. This also includes the scheduling task.  Stable Utility Delay: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will delay switching to normal operation from using battery power. If the battery capacity is lower than the Low Battery Threshold as power is restored, the UPS will switch to normal operation immediately. This option can be used to prevent frequent outage due to unstable utility power.  Restore Action: Sets the operating mode after utility power restores. If the Bypass option is selected, the UPS will enter to bypass mode and supply power from the bypass module to connected equipment when utility power restores. If the Online option is selected, the UPS will supply power from the UPS modules to connected equipment when utility power restores. If the Standby option is selected, the UPS will be off when utility power restores.
 

ldasilva

Pulling my weight
Joined
Mar 20, 2016
Messages
449
Reaction score
247
Use Agent if you connect the computer to the UPS with a USB or Serial cable. Agent, which is the primary means of communication for a basic setup between a computer and the UPS, supports a limitless number of clients.

I'll admit, I could be all wet, but this is what my pea brain makes of this, no card required:

Power Restore When a utility power failure occurs, PowerPanel® Business Edition software may order the computer to shut down and power off after the specified remaining runtime is met or if the battery capacity is low. After the utility power is restored the UPS turns on automatically and supplies power to the computer. If the computer BIOS is set to boot when power is restored the computer will automatically restart. The following settings are used to configure the UPS restore behavior:  Automatic Restore: When this option is enabled, the UPS will restore output immediately when the utility power is restored. When this option is disabled, the UPS will not restore output at that moment and users have to turn it on manually.  Mandatory Power Cycle: When a shutdown sequence is initiated due to a power failure, the connected computers may be ordered to shut down and the UPS will be also ordered to turn off after a time delay. If the utility power is restored prior to the UPS shutting off, the UPS will still turn itself off. In this circumstance, the utility power has restored, but the connected computers have shut down and the UPS has turned off. If the Mandatory Power Cycle option is enabled, the UPS will also turn off after a time delay, but it will turn on again about 10 seconds later. The UPS has restarted and then all connected computers will boot. Note: Most computers have the ability to boot when utility power is restored. Make sure this function is supported and enabled in the system BIOS.  Recharged Delay: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will start to recharge until the specified delay is expired before restoring output power.  Recharged Capacity: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will start to recharge until the specified battery capacity is met before restoring output power.  Startup Delay: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will delay the restoration of output power. This option can be used to stagger the startup time of multiple UPS to avoid overloading the utility power circuit or power source. The Startup Delay option will take effect every time when the UPS is about to restore power. This also includes the scheduling task.  Stable Utility Delay: When the utility power is restored, the UPS will delay switching to normal operation from using battery power. If the battery capacity is lower than the Low Battery Threshold as power is restored, the UPS will switch to normal operation immediately. This option can be used to prevent frequent outage due to unstable utility power.  Restore Action: Sets the operating mode after utility power restores. If the Bypass option is selected, the UPS will enter to bypass mode and supply power from the bypass module to connected equipment when utility power restores. If the Online option is selected, the UPS will supply power from the UPS modules to connected equipment when utility power restores. If the Standby option is selected, the UPS will be off when utility power restores.
thats what i was looking at that shouldnt need a card
 

NoloC

Getting comfortable
Joined
Nov 24, 2014
Messages
701
Reaction score
454
So obviously Looney you need to buy one and let us know.:)
 

looney2ns

IPCT Contributor
Joined
Sep 25, 2016
Messages
15,521
Reaction score
22,657
Location
Evansville, In. USA
I'm usually running Tomato or Merlin so it's very easy. Basically you pull up the device list and click one button and it does it. You can also write a script to do it on these firmwares. I forget if the stock Asus fw has this function.
@CaliGirl Under network tools, on my stock Asus, there is a wake on lan tool. My asus is on the latest firmware. I've not tried it as yet.
 
Top