power down UPS unit

[BillP]

Kind of a weird request. We have an exhibit that is powered off by relays. In that exhibit we have computers on it that I want to use a UPS to power down cleanely rather than just cutting the power to them. I know I can use a UPS to do that, but is there a setting for the UPS to turn off as well, and then have it power back on when power is applied? I don't want to be running the battery dry every night as that will drastically shorten the battery life. 

[BillP]

Hi Patrick,

Back-UPS products can gracefully shutdown your typical Windows, Mac, Linux Operating systems via USB but are limited to one USB client/connection. You'd have to script or rig something up to get more than one client to shutdown based on a Back-UPS status. Smart-UPS products offer the ability to gracefully shutdown multiple clients over the network or via a serial connection. A modern Smart-UPS usually has USB and serial and if you had two clients, you could get away with using both at the same time. Otherwse, you'd have to look at an interface expander option if you had more than (2).

A typical UPS also would go to battery power, run until its battery is exhaused (or it is configured to shutdown earlier than that to preserve battery power), and then turn back on when AC power returns. If you're going to do the graceful shutdown and then AC power is removed from the UPS and reapplied, then what you said should work.

Smart-UPS would also allow you to log in and turn the UPS input on and off with a Network Management Card installed.

Another option you may want to look at is a Switched Rack PDU to control outlets if you don't need battery back up power.

[BillP · Accepted solution]

Thanks. These are for locations that do not have network access, otherwise I would just control them via the computers (wake-on-lan, ect...). 

I know I can shut down the computers via the UPS software. There would be one UPS per computer hooked up via USB. What I'm wondering about is how the batery life will be after 364 days a year (closed Christmas) being shut off and battery run down every night. The locations are powered off via the lighting system relays. I want to gracefully shutdown the compuers versus the pulling the plug method we have right now, which I know I can do, I just would prefer to have the UPS unit shut off the battery power once the computer is off, so it is not draining completely every night.