SMT750ic to Synology NAS. Anyone provide the definitive list of connection options please?

[TimTom]

Hi all,

First post here.

So, I have been playing with (mainly) APC UPS's for years and generally found them pretty straightforward to connect to PC's / Servers / NAS's, often directly over Serial / USB, easy with the right cable. 😉

I would now like to use a couple of SMT750IC's, one on my Synology DS425+ NAS with a local comms connection and then it can share the UPS with my Home Assistant box (and Gb switch) using NUT / APCUPSD etc.

So I wondered if some kind soul would point me in the right direction re 'how' I can connect this 750IC to the NAS please. Could I use the right RJ50 to DB9 lead and then a USB to serial adaptor from that to the NAS?

What is the type A USB port on the back of the UPS used for? Is that a comms port that would also do what I want?

FWIW I've registered on of the UPS's on the APC cloud but not sure how I could use that with the NAS or even if I could, how would it be better than a local serial link?

I currently have an Back-UPS 650 CS happily powering and talking to my NAS so I know that side is working ok.

I guess I'm looking for the bigger picture with these new to me UPS models.

Thanks for your time etc.

Cheers, Tim

[Teken]

Both rear RJ50 and USB ports are serial communication ports and either one can be used one at a time to interface with serial applications such as NUT, APCUPSD, Computer, NAS etc.

APC Smart Connect is a cloud based subscription service and simply allows less technical persons to obtain a single pane of glass view of assets, states, basic metrics, notifications, and firmware updates.

In the more expensive subscription you have the ability to turn grouped outlets on / off if available.

If the information provided the answer please mark this reply as a solution to help the next person asking the same.

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[TimTom]

Hi and thanks for the prompt reply.

Further questions then if I may ...

Does the RJ50 port present USB level / protocol signalling directly (when using the right passive cable) or would it only do so if also using an active converter of some sort. Or maybe both RS232 and USB standards / protocols are presented on the RJ50, dependent on which wires are used?

I did try a generic USB A to A lead between the 750IC and my PC that had just been talking to my Back-UPS 650 CS via Powerchute and whilst the PC initially 'saw' a new USB device and seemed to understand what it was a 'Smart-UPS 750 FW:UPS 18.0 / ID=1015', Powerchute fails to talk to it, thinking the 650 is missing. If I go into device manager, it also sees a 'Batteries' entry and with 'APC UPS' underneath but no 'Battery' entry that I can see? Do I have to tell Powerchute (Personal Edition 3.1.0) about the 750 somehow or maybe it's not a supported model as it doesn't seem to be picked up by PC when reinstalled either (so lack of functionality with Powerchute could be a red herring).

If I take the lead out of my PC and plug it straight into my Synology DS415+ and set the UPS settings to USB UPS, it doesn't find it,  where is does with the 650 (and it's RJ50 <> USB lead). Is this something to do with a protocol issue possibly?

Cheers, Tim

[Teken]

The RJ50 port would require a Serial to USB adapter dongle with the correct drivers.

As it relates to Power Chute Software all Back-UPS Series use PCPE. Whereas Smart-UPS Series use PCBE, PCSS, PCNS hence why it’s not detected.

If we ignore Power Chute if you were to simply use the proper USB cable on a Windows OS it would be detected as a UPS.

You may refer to this APC Cable FAQ as to the proper serial communication cable for your specific Smart-UPS.

https://www.se.com/us/en/faqs/FA163632/

NOTE: Both PCPE / PCBE have both been deprecated and EOL both Back-UPS / Smart-UPS now use PCSS.

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[TimTom]

Thanks once again for the reply and info. The darkness is slowly clearing, especially with FA163632. 😉

I'm not sure I understand all the protocol acronyms, but I think I understand 'things have moved on and so you may have been left in-between or even behind in some cases'?

Update: This morning I tried using the USB A on my second TMS750IC and whilst Windows 10 'saw' it as before in device manager,  Powerchute (3.1.0) still didn't, but this time my Synology NAS did!? Thinking there may be an issue with the USB A port of the first UPS, I swapped the USB cable back to the first UPS and it also worked?? I will conduct further tests but at least it's good to learn that the NAS seems happy to talk to the UPS(s) over that particular interface at least.

Another question if I may. When I connected the first (2018) 750IC to the APC cloud it told me there was a firmware update available and I think it then took it from V3.x to 18.x. Registering the second (2020) 750IC also shows it running 'V3.8 (1015)' but suggesting that 'Your firmware is up to date with the latest version'? I think V18 is the latest / current version for that model so why isn't it being offered do you know please and given it's not being offered automagically, should I apply it manually using the FW wizard? I have run the wizard and it does 'see' the UPS and seems willing to upgrade but I thought I'd better ask here first?

Lastly, I have now DL and installed PCCS V1.5 on this W10 PC and it still doesn't seem able to talk to the UPS using the same USB cable that seem fine with the Synology NAS? What else am I doing wrong please? ;-(

Thanks again. Tim

[Teken]

Power Chute: There are several different reasons PCSS won’t detect the target device. The most common reason are these in no specific order of importance or relevance:

Cable: More often than not the USB cable is not a Data cable and simply a power only cable. Given it works on your NAS it’s obviously a data cable vs power only cable. Regardless the proper USB cable must be used and you may refer to the APC FAQ I provided earlier. Other related issues are bad USB port / drivers on the computer. So trying another port to see if there is a difference should always be tried.

RJ50: There are endless threads here and on the internet where the USB port on the UPS constantly drops out or won’t be detected. As such the solution is to use the RJ50 port with the supplied proprietary wired APC RJ50 -> DB9 (RS-232) Serial cable with a Serial to USB Adapter Dongle with the correct Windows OS Drivers.

In 95% of the cases this has solved the connectivity issue.

Brain Dead: In some cases the UPS needs to be reset via brain dead reset. As the USB port is in a unknown state as such completing the brain dead reset solves the issue:

https://www.se.com/us/en/faqs/FA156611/

Firmware: There are many cases where the updating the UPS Firmware has solved the connectivity issue. So you may review the firmware release notes for UPS ID 1015 to see if it does.

Please insure your environment meets all the requirements and prerequisites before you proceed to upgrade the UPS Firmware.

It should always be done locally using the RJ50 -> DB9 (RS-232) serial cable. Do not attempt to use USB, NMC, Smart Connect!

https://www.se.com/us/en/faqs/FA164737/

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