BB FANS

Not sure if anybody on here would know this.

I've just install a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Source) and while the main PC which is connected via USB will shut down in a controlled fashion if a power failure occurs it would be nice to have the Email PC shut down as well.

I can run the Email PC off another protected outlet on the UPS so at least it doesn't get spiked.

But the software that comes with it mentions a network module to shut a network down but it doesn't support Win 98 which the Email PC runs and I have no intentions of upgrading it.
The included software is MGE UPS systems Solution-Pac 2.
Shame it doesn't have two USB ports though as I've got a USB Hub (came free with the UPS) can I connect to the 2nd PC to control its shut down as well ?

My connections through it at present are , My Network connection to the main PC ,4 external Hard-drives and via just the filtered output the monitor. I have one spare output with power back-up.
The UPS is 600VA ,the second PC is an old Athlon 1GHz which just collects Email all day ,runs my weather station and uploads weather charts to a website.

The main PC is a Systemax P4 2.8 with external hard-drives and 3 internal ones which is now only running mainly in the evenings as the Weather functions have now been moved to the older PC.

Anybody have any ideas ?
Sorry to the non-techies as the above probably means nothing.

Looking at the power consumption and that available I'm going to need a second UPS.

uh?

Don't you understand it all then Hippo? Duh

I of course understood every single word,
















it was just when they were all put together that I got confused.

Yes, I think you need a second UPS.

come on eileen

You can't have the UPS without the DOWNS; I know that much.

For those who don't know the job of a UPS is to prevent instant shut down of a computer if a power cut happens. It runs the PC via a battery and a voltage convertor so the PC sees 240V. But there is either a Serial or USB connection that tells the PC that it's on battery power.
You then use the settings in the 'Power management' setting from the control panel to tell the PC what to do while running from a battery.
Mine is set to power off after 2 minutes and it's set to ignore any non-responsive programs and to force the PC to turn off.

Helps prevent corrupt files ,damaged hard drives and power supply failure due to spikes as the power comes back on.

I didn't expect many to know what I was going on about though we do a a couple of PC techies.

PS I always thought VA = Watts so a 600VA UPS should be rated 600W but no it says it's rated 375 Watts.
We'll see what how it copes with some MPEG to DivX convertions tonight as that really works the PC hard. My BB Harddrive is down to 34MB so I need to convert some of the DVDs to DivX to gain a bit more space as I still have a few episodes to save from 3 BB series (AU, US ,UK).

Was that your way of trying to simplify things Larry?

My motherboard got f****d once after a power surge. I use a surge protector now. The HD was also damaged, luckily about 95% was retrievable thanks to my bruv's IT department (good job I'd saved dodgy pics of ex-girlfriends to disc).

Larry, I'm sure power-loss to a PC can't be great for it but most PCs seem resilient, and corrupt files can be replaced. Isn't a UPS a bit of overkill unless you're running a business which requires 24/7 availability.

PS I seriously advise anyone else to use surge protection - they're not very expensive but think of it as insurance. Also, make sure you back up on CD/DVD valuable personal photos and data! I really can't stress it enough!! Mate's PC was stolen last year. With it went all photos of his kids growing up.

It might be over kill but it saves a lot of work if things go wrong.

1 pc is running 24/7 on Emails and updates to a live website. I've had it happen before when the OS became corrupt due to power failure. And although 95% of the files were backed-up I did loose a few months emails (a couple of thousand) and some project work that I thought I'd backed-up but hadn't.

The main PC which has a large number a mount of stuff that would take a mountain of DVD-ROMs to back them up on is the main one I want to protect. There must be around 500GB of stuff on multiple hard drives ,both internal and external drives. And from work I know how modern day power supplies that will work for very long periods have a tendency to fail after a power cut sometimes due to component failure but other time due to the mains spiking and sometimes being unstable as it's restored.

Sorry Ellie I'm a geeky techie and normally I can see from the other persons expressions when they require further explanation about something I'm trying to explain to them.

Oh take no notice of me Larry, I haven't the faintest clue what you are talking about but it all sounds very intelligent. (which is probably why I don't understand it)

ouch

The simplest description of a the function of a UPS would be that it's a battery backup system the protects your computer in the event of mains power failure.

we have a lad at work who makes you cringe when he's trying to help a customer on the phone. He's manner is a bit short at times and he sounds like he's belittling the customer sometimes. And he will tell people how to get the equipment to do the most complicated things that they would never of thought of let along understand or need. Don't get me wrong he is very helpful and does get there in the end but forgets to ask the basic questions which could have saved him 3/4 hour on the phone