Smart-UPS C1500 UPS Communication Lost

[Astral85]

With the supplied USB cable I cannot get my Smart-UPS C1500 to communicate with my PC. I Purchased a Cisco USB console cable and the UPS will not communicate with the PC over this cable either. This is the console cable I purchased: https://www.startech.com/en-nz/cables/icusbrollovr

[Teken]

Go down the list and strike out these areas once confirmed:

Power Chute Business Edition: Did the PCBE install the USB drivers correctly when installed?!?

USB: If you unplug the USB cable from the PC do you see and hear the connection being removed?!?

Device Manager: Verify the USB port and driver is present when connected. Verify what version of USB driver is installed and update if required. You can always delete the connected device and scan for new hardware again. This will force the computer to install any USB drivers for that specific port.

Ensure the computer installs the required APC USB drivers. 

Windows Power Management: Verify this is setup and configured correctly and should detect the UPS once connected. 

USB Port: You can skip all the above to quickly see if there is a bad / misconfiguration of the existing port. Insert the USB cable into another port and confirm the computer detects it, installs the required drivers, and shows a normal status in the device manager in the control panel.

Go down the list and report back what you see and observe. 👍

[Astral85]

Thanks for the reply. What should the APC driver look like in Device Manager? 

[Teken]

When you select the property of the device driver it may say APC. Have you tried the other troubleshooting steps outlined above?!?

If so what are the results of doing so???

[Astral85]

Here is what I found for APC in Device Manager under Human Interface Devices. 

I can confirm there is an audible connect and disconnect sound when re-plugging the USB cable to the UPS and shortly after I do that the UPS is recognized in Power Chute. The connection seems to be lost at some point afterwards...

[Teken]

More often than not that is related to the power save / energy saving mode defined on the computer. Disable or turn off the power management for the USB ports.

Also keep in mind the PCPE service will be disconnected (IF) and when the computer is placed in hibernation / sleep mode.

There are a few threads about this and possibly work arounds. Report back what you see and observe making the changes up above.

Have you tried a different USB port to rule out the original one isn’t bad? Along with the USB cable?

[Astral85]

UPS communication is lost right after performing a clean boot or cold boot. That makes me think the driver isn't initializing when Windows starts... My machine never goes into sleep or hibernation modes, it's always shutdown. 

Same behavior over multiple USB ports. 

[Teken]

Did you make the changes to the power management on the computer as requested as it relates to the USB port? Does PCPE load once the computer is fully operational from a cold boot?

As a quick test define PCPE to a high level so it turns the PC off quickly during a simulated power outage. Remove AC power from the UPS and confirm the PC does complete the shutdown sequence.

If so (great) and power up the PC. Repeat the same process with the computer going into hibernation / sleep mode. It should pass the same test as well.

If the above tests does not operate as expected (PC shutting down). Uninstall PCPE from the system and reboot the system.

Depending upon what version of PCPE / PCSS that is being used. Follow exactly what the software indicates as to (When) to have the USB cable attached! ☝️

If it says to have it connected before loading the software do so. Conversely if it says to connect it (after / during) the installation process - do so! 

As this is one of the primary reasons for a UPS not being detected or communication issues to be seen.

Report back what the results are for simulated power failure. Along with reinstallation of PCPE software following the installation process. 👍

[Astral85]

I uninstalled and reinstalled the latest version of PCSS. During the program setup it did not recognize the UPS and could not continue. I had to physically re-plug the USB cable into the UPS for the setup to recognize the UPS. Installation completed, however after system reboot UPS communication is lost again when reopening PCSS. Only way to restore communication is by re-plugging the USB cable. 

[Teken]

Please remove PCSS and use PCBE instead and report back the results.

[Astral85]

PCBE is deprecated, why should I install that instead? 

[Teken]

Because it will let you know if the problem is software related. Lastly, if you haven’t replaced the USB cable do so now.