UPS BR1200G-FR switch off the PC when power return

[Anonymous user]

Hello,

I just installed my new UPS BR1200G-FR.
When the main power is switched-off, the unit switches on the battery and PCPE put the PC into hibernation.
When the main power return, the UPS switches onto the main power but after more or less 30 seconds, the UPS display switch-off as well as all the output plug of the UPS.
As a consequence, all equipments are switched-off.

What can I do to change this behavior?

Thanks.

[Anonymous user]

I have chosen "Preserve battery power", Shut down my computer when it has been on battery backup power for 1 minute.

[Anonymous user]

I have replace PCPE 2.1.1 by PCPE 3.0
Here is the sequence I can observe:

1. I disconnect the UPS from the wall outlet.
2. The UPS detect the loss of power (a battery icon is displayed on the UPS LCD, the UPS generate a beep) and PCPE detect the UPS status change.
3. After 1 minutes, the UPS generate another beep and the PC goes into hibernation (it is not a shut down).
4. As soon as the PC is in hibernation, the UPS autonomy increase from 24 minutes to 70 minutes, the 3 backed-up UPS outlets are still supplies.
5. Half a minutes after I connect the UPS back to the wall outlet.
6. Immediately, the computer leaves the hibernation mode and windows resumes but the UPS stays on the battery mode (battery icon displayed on the LCD).
7. During the windows wake-up process, because UAC is active on my computer, PCPE wait that I confirm it can run.
8. As soon as I confirm that PCPE is an authorized software, the UPS cuts power to the outlets and the computer abruptly switch-off!
9. The UPS starts again working on the main power and put the power on its outlets but the computer remains switched-off until i push on the switch-on button.

From that sequence, I have some comments :

At step 6, I would expect that the UPS switch from battery to main power immediately, without the intervention of PCPE.
At step 8, it becomes obvious to me that the UPS switch from battery to the main power is controlled by PCPE.
Et step 8, the behavior is abnormal because at that point, Windows is not correctly shutdown. one of the reason to use an UPS is to get a correct shutdown of Windows.

I have also observed that if I disconnect the UPS from the wall outlet, and connect it again before the PC go into hibernation, the UPS switch from main power to battery to main power alone without the intervention of PCPE.
In that case, the UPS does not cut the power of its outlets. That let me think that the problem is not a hardware problem but is a PCPE software problem (both for version 2.1.1 and 3.0).

So, what do you suggest to solve that problem?
With that behavior, the UPS is not usable because at one point, the PC will always switch-off unexpectedly.

[BillP]

Hello,

What option have you selected on the PCPE Shutdown? Is it Keep My Computer On as long as possible or at runtime limit?

[BillP]

Since you have chosen that option, the moment that the PC turns off do you immediately connect the UPS back to the wall outlet or do you wait until the UPS enters the sleep mode? Below is the timeline that PCPE is using if you have selected the Preserve Battery Power Option.

# UPS goes to battery and PCPE starts its preserve battery power counter.
# When that counter expires it sends a command to the UPS to start counting its turn off delay and then commands the Operating System to shutdown.
# The Operating System shuts down and the UPS continues to count its turn off delay. (Take note that once that UPS finishes counting its turn off delay it will reboot and nothing can stop this).
# The UPS cuts power to the outlets then rechecks to see if the incoming power is acceptable. If it is not, it waits there until power returns.
Here are some issues that has been posted by other forum users:
# http://forums.apc.com/spaces/9/struxureware-for-data-centers/forums/general/6368/alert-settings-for-...
# http://forums.apc.com/spaces/5/smart-ups-symmetra-lx-rm/forums/general/2555/need-help-in-understandi...

[BillP]

Like what is stated on my post, the UPS continously counts the UPS shutdown command. Once this command is called eventhough power returns it will continously count until 0. Once it reaches 0 it will turn off all the outlets.

A solution that I can see is choosing Keep My Computer On As Long as possible.

[Anonymous user]

Thank you for the answer.

But I still need some clarifications.
When you say that the UPS continuously counts the UPS shutdown command... Does it means that this command is sent by PCPE?

I don't understand why it works like that because for me, it doesn't make sense.
What is the idea behind that? Wouldn't it be more natural that the UPS come back from battery supply to main power supply as soon as the main power come back and the UPS outlets are continuously powered?

The idea by using the first mode (switch-off a few minutes after power loss) is to take no risk, no risk of having a battery not strong enough to allow a correct computer shutdown.
But with the current behavior, I don't see when the first mode can be used? In fact, I think the first mode is never used!

Also, I would expect that PCPE lets the user chose between hibernation and true shutdown.
In case of power loss, I prefer true shutdown. But apparently, PCPE put the PC into hibernation, which is not the same.

[BillP]

On my first question, what I mean is that have you waited long enough for the UPS to cut the power off from the outlet. When we did a test before what happened was the unit went on battery as what we can see on the LED's and PCPE started to count the shutdown timer set on it. PCPE would then shut off/ hibernate the UPS and also counts the UPS turn off command, there is no way to stop the turn off command. During this period wherein it is counting, when you re-apply power to the UPS you'll notice that the unit will go online but again due to the fact that the unit has been commanded to turn off via the software it will still proceed with turning off power on its outlet.

What you can do is before re-applying power, wait until the UPS has turned itself off and on our test UPS we've seen the UPS went on sleep mode.

[Anonymous user]

I've tried the other alternative : "Keep my computer as long as possible", Shut down my computer when the time left on battery backup power is 8 minutes.
And I get the same results as with the first runtime mode.

It means that whichever runtime mode I select, when the programmed trigger is reached, the computer goes into hibernation.
After the computer has gone into hibernation mode, when the main power come back, the computer resume and PCPE switch-off the UPS -> the computer switch-off abruptly.
This is not acceptable and usable.

Is there a way that when the trigger is reached, Windows shutdown properly (and not hibernate)?
Is there a way that when the main power come back after the stop trigger has been reached, that the UPS switch from battery to wall outlet supply without restarting and cutting its outlets in between?
In any runtime mode, if the main power return before the programmed trigger has been reached, the UPS will not restart and its outlets are continuously supplied, but in that case, the computer never go into hibernation.

For now, I think that there is a major problem going back from hibernation.

Thanks.

Message was edited by: superloupiot

Message was edited by: superloupiot

[BillP]

Using Preserve Battery Power:

Have you waited until the UPS enters the sleep mode before re-applying power? Like what I have told you earlier, the UPS will start the countdown shutdown to turn the PC off or hibernation. Whenever the UPS runs on battery, the load doesn't detect that there is a power outlet the transfer time that it takes to switch from online to on battery is too quick for the load to recognize it.

Since you the Preserve Battery Power is selected it turns off/ hibernates the PC and waits there until power returns. When power returns it needs to tell the PC that there was a power interruption and that is why it turns off/turns on the outlets so that the motherboard can detect that there's an interruption. There are certain users who would like their PC to turn on automatically when power returns and this is normally set on the BIOS.

[Anonymous user]

Hmm, not sure I understand everything.

Your first question : Have you waited until the UPS enters the sleep mode before re-applying power?
- I have waited until the programmed time has elapsed (either n minutes after the UPS switch to the battery mode, either n minutes before the UPS battery is completely discharged).
- At that moment, the PC hibernate/shutdown. The UPS generate a beep.
Is that the UPS sleep mode?

Your second remark : The UPS must switch off and than on the outlets so that the motherboard detects that the main power came back
- What I can observe is that when the UPS works on the battery and when the PC is in hibernation, as soon as I connect the main plug in the wall outlet, the PC automatically come out of hibernation and at that time the UPS has not yet switched off/on its outlets.
- As soon as Windows has resumed and PCPE became operational, the UPS switch off the power to all its outlets -> it has the opposite result of what you explain because in this case, the result is that the PC is definitively switched off (and not properly).
- With the shutdown mode activated (opposed to the hibernation mode), the UPS switch-off its outlets practically immediately after I manually restarts the computer(no need to start PCPE nor windows, the motherboard is still booting) . Again, the result of this is that the PC is definitively switched off.

[Anonymous user]

Yes, I understand how it works now.
The UPS has an internal timer that is loaded when the shutdown/hibernate event is sent to Windows.
Once this timer has been loaded, the UPS will anyway switch off its outlets : either it goes in sleep mode (as you, I did the experience here at home), either the power return before the sleep mode but the UPS will restart itself.
What is the effect of a power loss when windows is in hibernation?

Knowing that, the only practical way to use the UPS is to program it so that the shutdown event occurs 4 minutes before the complete battery discharge.
This will maximize the chance that the main power come back before the battery is fully discharged.

Personally, I think that this is not a correct way of working.
Once the main computer (the master) has been put into hibernation, it also has the ability cut the controlled outlets.
Doing that, I can observe that a battery nearly discharged get a new autonomy of one hour because it remains practically unloaded.
That mean that if it was possible to put the PC into hibernation a few minutes after the main power loss (without getting a reboot of the UPS), the UPS would gain several hours of autonomy which would maximize the chance to see the main power come back before the full battery discharge.

I'm not an UPS specialist, but I would suggest that after the computer shutdown, the UPS turns itself off only if the battery charge is really critical (not enough power remaining to supply the UPS itself) and that the UPS switch onto the wall outlet as soon as the main power appears. I think that the timer should only be used to shutdown the computer (and perhaps there is no need of timer as the software can shutdown the computer itself).

I'm a little bit disappointed by the way it works, but at least it is "usable" but not "comfortable to use".

Thanks for your explanation.

[BillP]

I apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you, I hope somehow we made it clear. Regarding your question about the effect of power loss when Windows is in hibernation. In my experience, once the PC hibernates it saves the current state, desktop and applications and turns itself off so that the moment you turn it back on it will give you the same exact screen where you left off.

[Anonymous user · Accepted solution]

Thank you very much for your patience and your valuable help.
With all the information you gave me, I can now configure my UPS for an optimal use and get the most of it.