Re: UPS Monitoring

["James H H Lampert" <jamesl@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

> We recently installed a UPS (Powerware Prestige 6000) on our AS400 and
> some miscellaneous equipment. There was software that came with the UPS
> for power management of the UPS and the UPS was attached via a cable to
> the AS400 via a serial port (RS-232 cable).  Has anyone else been able
> to monitor the usefulness of the UPS via the AS400 and provide me some
> pointers as to getting this to work? Dave


Actually, the UPS monitoring port on an AS/400 is NOT an ordinary serial
port. Then again, neither are the monitoring ports on most UPSs.

I don't know what kind of monitoring port a "Powerware Prestige 6000" has,
but I know that the standard monitoring port on any APC UPS is a
combination serial and relay-closure port, with pinouts that are
completely different from those on the AS/400's UPS monitoring port (which
is PURELY a relay-closure port with NO serial line). In order to connect
an AS/400 to the monitoring port on an APC UPS, you need to order a
special cable kit out of APC. I suspect the same may be true of Powerware,
as well.

As an alternative to UPS monitoring (particularly useful if you have more
than one AS/400 connected to a UPS that onl7y has one monitoring port),
you can set up a simple relay, powered by a "wall wart" that is in turn
plugged into an ordinary wall socket (NOT into the UPS), which will raise
the "on battery power" signal anytime there's a power failure.

Also, it's entirely possible that, when your UPS battery starts to go bad,
a self-test could trigger the AS/400's unstoppable-once-started "LIC
emergency shutdown," which could be very inconvenient if it happens in the
middle of a busy workday. A slightly more complicated relay box can be
inserted into the cable, to block the "low battery" signal when there's no
power failure.

I can provide you with schematics for both of these relay boxes. Email me
privately if you're interested. Unfortunately, I can't help you with an
adapter for your Powerware UPS; you'll have to go to the vendor for that.

--
JHHL