UPS 8000RT Fault and battery LEDs are lit

[Anonymous user]

Hello.

I have an APC UPS 8000RT, when I turn it on, after half a second, it cuts the power from its loads and lights up (as shown on attached picture):
Fault LED and Battery LEDS number 3 and 5 (counting from the top in upright tower orientation)

Could anyone hint me on what the problem could be?

Is there a document or a site that could help decode LED error messages?


!http://www.apc-forums.com/servlet/JiveServlet/download/25-11514-43704-2871/faulty-apc-ups-front-pane...!


more information on the UPS that could help diagnosing:

That UPS is only turned on occasionally for a few hours, being shut down and disconnected from mains most of the time.
It is connected to mains around once a week, and has enough time to fully charge its baterries.
It still shows same error with no loads or other cables attached, except for power mains.
It has never run on batteries, except for the normal power-on tests.
It has mostly servers as its loads, consuming nearly 70% of its max power.
It does not have external batteries attached.
It did not show signs of any problem until now.
Other UPS of exact same model powers the same servers normally.

Message was edited by: sultansaraev

Message was edited by: sultansaraev

[BillP · Accepted solution]

hello.

this is generally diagnosed by tech support so how to read the LEDs is not public.

i looked up your combination and it appears to be a problem with the output relay. my first initial thought is that because you turn it on and off so often, that could be related to the output relay failure but i have no evidence to back that up. most of the time, UPSs are just left on and don't turn off. i just say that because I imagine if the UPS is turning on and off often that possibly the output relay is moving often but i am not even sure if that is how this UPS is designed.

have you logged into the network management card (that is pre-installed) and verified if there is any other evidence to what lead up to this? there also may be additional information on the failure.

i would check that first and then depending what it says, we could try to reset/braindead the UPS but it is likely this is a hard fault and may need to be replaced.

[Anonymous user]

Thank you very much for your reply!


It indeed looks like some sort of output relay problem. (The load IS powered for a split-second however, but I don't know what's inside that UPS either)

I have not realized that a network management card could be still functioning even if though the UPS failed and does not power anything; I will check that ASAP.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to keep that UPS constantly on, since the power mains is turned off at night. We have many RT-type UPS working that way for years, and this one was the first that failed, after less than a year of somewhat-infrequent use.

I will do as you said and probably ship the UPS to the nearest repair facilty, now that I know it is not likely a battery/mains/software fault.

Message was edited by: sultansaraev

[BillP]

yes, as long as the UPS electronics are energized, regardless of power output, the management card should be accessible.

here are some helpful articles to help get you started with the management card (located in the knowledge base - http://www.apc.com/site/support/index.cfm/faq/)

• FA156064
• FA156131

let me know if you need anything else.

[Anonymous user]

Thank you again for your replies, they were very helpful. I need no further information (at least for now).

Despite all efforts, I could not get any response from both the COM-port and network management card (I connected same cords to a neighbor UPS of same model, and that one worked; the network card was probably never configured, but it does not react to any configuration utilities or DHCP servers; rechecked everything and cold rebooted everything many times).

But it is clear to me that the problem is not in the cabling, batteries, power mains, firmware, or misconfiguration - that is, I cannot fix the problem myself. So the UPS is awaiting repairs now.

[BillP]

what model management card is it? does it have lights on it at least?

if its an older style card, it defaults to DHCP/BOOTP but the DHCP address will not be accepted unless DHCP option 43 is configured on your server.

also what serial cable did you use? you need to use an APC specific serial cable and certain port settings.

if you decide you want to revisit the management card, let me know as that is my expertise as a matter of fact 🙂