Staggered Network Shutdown

[conker_apc]

I've got a Smart UPS 2200 XL Rackmount unit with a network management card (AP9617) and I was wondering how to configure the shutdown procedures.
I've connected all but one of the machine to the network management card with PCNS.

I would like to have all of the machines except 1 shut down at x minutes remaining.
I would then like to have the remaining machine shutdown.

If I could set the first group to shutdown at 10 minutes left, and the final machine to shutdown at 5 minutes left, that would be great.

The reason for this is that we have virtual servers. We'd like to shutdown the virtual servers, and then shut down the physical server they are hosted on.
The physical server is a Linux box, and the virtual servers are all windows 2003 instances.

My current plan is to connect the Linux box directly to the UPS via the USB or serial cable, and then use the regular version of PowerChute to shutdown at 5 minutes remaining or whatever I can configure.

[TheNotoriousKMP_apc]

If you bought a SmartSlot expansion chaissis and somehow found someone who has a Measure-UPS device, you should be able to integrate them with the NMC.

[conker_apc]

Now I'm even more confused.

How do I configure a single network connected server to gracefully shutdown when the UPS goes into low battery mode?
How do I define what low battery mode is?

I have the management card installed and set up.
I have PCNS installed on the server I want to shut down gracefully.
I have that server registered as a client on the network management card.

[Cap1_apc]

You're on the right track:

Essentially you have two ways to shutdown your servers based on battery life:
1. Low battery duration (configured on the NMC under UPS>Configuration>Shutdown). By default, all PCNS clients will begin their shutdown when this estimated runtime is reached. This is also when the UPS will beep rapidly, warning of a low battery condition.
2. PCNS configured shutdown event (there are many). This is in the PCNS interface. The one you are interested in is "On Battery". You can configure the time the PCNS client "waits" after the UPS switches to battery, then shuts down.

Here's Simple Example:
Server 1 - Highly critical
Server 2 - Somewhat Important
Server 3 - Non-critical

Assuming your UPS has 20 mins of runtime and the low battery duration is set to 5 mins:
PCNS on server 3 - on battery shutdown after 60 seconds
PCNS on server 2 - on battery shutdown after 600 seconds (10 mins, PCNS setting is in seconds)
PCNS on server 1 - left to default

Here's what your timeline would look like:
12:00 Power goes out
12:01 Server 3 shuts down
12:10 Server 2 shuts down
UPS will then run until it estimates 5 mins LEFT of battery, which is when server 1 will shutdown.

The advantage is that you can bring down non-critical servers early, which will INCREASE the runtime of the UPS (less load) for your critical equipment. So in our example, server 1 wouldn't shutdown at 12:15 but probably somewhere near 12:25-40 (depending on the size of the UPS), since the UPS would have less load from shedding the non-critical servers and gaining runtime.

I hope this helps.

Message was edited by: Cap1

[conker_apc]

Thanks for clearing that up. I didn't realize there were options to set in the events page other than a simple check mark.

Cap1 wrote:
Low battery duration. By default, all PCNS clients will begin their shutdown when this estimated runtime is reached. This is also when the UPS will beep rapidly, warning of a low battery condition.

The manual states that the "low-battery duration" setting in the NMC config is "How long the UPS can run on battery power after a low-battery condition occurs." This is poorly worded. I initially took this to mean "How long, *after reaching a low-battery condition*, the UPS will run before shutting down.", which makes sense, when you consider that you are directly changing this setting.
The way it is worded now makes it seem like you are altering how long the UPS can run on battery power, after a low-battery condition occurs. I guess you are, but only indirectly, by altering the definition for a low-battery condition. The word "after" implies that the low-battery condition occurs first, then your setting is applied, as a rule.

1: Does this mean that after a low-battery condition occurs, the UPS will run for x minutes, and then shutdown all servers? If so, how do I specify the conditions for a low-battery? Is this configurable (x minutes of runtime), or is it a fixed setting in the UPS?
--Nevermind - I figured this out above by going over their poorly worded definition.

2: If I want a server to be up as long as possible, how do I set up it's shutdown event? Do I set it to shutdown at 0 seconds? Some large number of seconds? Or do I NOT set the event at all (and the NMC shuts down all clients when the low-battery condition occurs, which is different from the on battery condition)?
--Rereading your post, I see it's the last option I listed (not setting up the event at all).

Thanks a bunch. Now I've just got to figure out the whole redundant power supplies on a separate, identical UPS.

Message was edited by: conker

[TheNotoriousKMP_apc]

I noticed the end of your post stating that you have redundant power supplies on a different UPS. The simplest configuration for that is to get another Network Management Card, install it within that second UPS, and reinstall PowerChute Network Shutdown as a Custom Install. That will let you register each machine with BOTH management card IP's. The way the shutdown will work is that if there is a configured shutdown after X minutes on battery, the PCNS client will ignore the first On Battery message from UPS A. When UPS B switches to battery (if A remains on), it will then begin its timer for graceful shutdown. That will allow you to have your machines up and running off of utility power in the event that UPS A, on a different circuit, or UPS B, on a different circuit, fails over.

[conker_apc · Accepted solution]

Awesome.
We've currently got 1 network card and 1 environment sensor card.
We're going to (for now) use the environment sensor UPS with a virtual instance running powerchute (not the network client).
It'll be able to give us notifications on the temperature, and we don't care if it shuts down gracefully (it's just a virtual instance we don't use much).

Is there any way to pipe the environment sensor data from the one UPS to the other, without buying the $190 upgrade kit, or the $500 network + environment card?

Will be doing some tests next week and I'll post back here.

Message was edited by: conker