Simple on and off program for my APC UPS

[BillP]

Can someone help me with my thesis? a simple ON and OFF program for my APC UPS can help me graduate. I just need a simple ON and OFF program to automate my system. Thanks in advance.

UPS: APC BACK-UPS PRO 420

[BillP]

You're kidding right?  Isn't that cheating?

[BillP]

How can it be a form of cheating?

[BillP]

Hi Carl.  Maybe I misunderstood.  The word "thesis" and "graduate" implied that this was for academic credit or something.  Asking someone to write a program for you for this purpose could be considered "cheating".  My apologies if I misunderstood your intentions.

[BillP]

No problem. I want to learn how can I create a program for the APC UPS Back UPS pro 420. I need help from an expert in SERIAL programming.. cause i need to use its serial port. If someone can teach me. Thank you in advance.

[Anonymous user]

That's a pretty tall request, and how you go about it depends on a lot of things you haven't mentioned. What platform are you using to run your program? What level of programming skill do you currently have? Do you have the proper APC serial cable (you can't use a normal one, the pins are different)? What language are you going to use?

If you're on Windows, you can just redirect output to a com port in a batch or powershell script. The only other thing you need to know is what to send, and you can find a handy table at this page.

[BillP]

Hi,

You can use UPSLink (see FAQ FA276164) and command the UPS down using a terminal command. The difficulty is turning the UPS back on. Some model support using a terminal command to power up but not all. If the power on command is not compatible you could kill AC to the UPS, use a terminal program to power down the UPS. When ready to start the UPS restore AC to the UPS which should trigger the auto-start feature. To Kill AC you could use a switchable outlet. 

An easy to use terminal program is Putty. It can be downloaded at http://www.putty.org/ You would select Serial for the connection type and 2400 for the speed. You will need the smart signalling serial cable. Part numbers 940-0024 or 940-0095

[BillP · Accepted solution]

Thanks BILL!