Server Room Air Conditioner Reviews: Battery Backup Failure - Avoid the "Oh No!" Moment When the Power Fails

Everyone in the office is merrily working along, when the lights dim, flicker, and then... DARKNESS!

Yes, that's right, you just had a power failure. It could be an ice storm, thunderstorm, tornado, a car striking a power pole, or perhaps the utility just cut your power to work on the lines. No problem, your server is plugged into a UPS, or "uninteruptible power supply". You you have plenty of run-time on the battery to power your server until the power comes on... or do you? You stroll into your computer room and immediately notice the eerie quiet. The network switch isn't humming, the air conditioner is quiet, and... THE SERVER IS OFF!

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Battery Backup Failure - Avoid the "Oh No!" Moment When the Power Fails

You wait for the power to be restored and confidently press the server power switch. The server begins booting. You see the Windows logo. Then... Nothing. The server appears to be locked up, or you see a message about missing or corrupt files. You turn off the server, then turn it on again with the same result. With panic rising and employees idle you give it one last try.

That is when you have the "Oh No!" moment!

What happened? Isn't the UPS supposed to protect against power outages? How come my server shut down? Why are the files corrupted, or worse?

Your UPS that you thought was protecting your server no longer holds a charge in its battery. UPS batteries wear out over time. How long they last depends upon your electrical environment. In a "clean" environment, one where you have very few power spikes, brownouts, or outages, the battery will last a long time. In "dirty" power environments where you have an unstable power supply to the UPS, the battery will wear out much more quickly. This is common in manufacturing environments where power hungry equipment causes great fluctuation in the line voltage.

Essentially, the UPS is "taking the bullet" to protect the equipment connected to it, much like a Secret Service Agent taking a bullet for the President. The UPS is designed to be sacrificed for the protection of your valuable equipment and data.

How do you know how old your battery is? If you keep good records and pay attention, you will just look at your calendar after three years and find a note to replace the UPS or battery. Right! On the other hand, the rest of us can install UPS monitoring software that will alert us when this is needed.

My advice is to use a quality UPS that is made to protect servers. My personal favorite are those from APC. Most server-class units have hot-swappable batteries. You don't even have to shut down the server to replace the battery. When you purchase a replacement battery, package the old one in the same box the new one arrived in, and send it back to APC for recycling. APC even pays for the return trip!

The components in a UPS other than the battery can wear out too, particularly in "dirty" power environments. This is why I recommend changing the battery once after 3-4 years, then replacing the entire UPS after that. Note that there may be exceptions to this rule for some of the higher end UPS units, such as the big rack-mount devices that you find in a data center.

One more piece of advice: Always use certified replacement batteries from the manufacturer of your UPS. Don't use third party batteries. They are cheaper, but will they protect you when you need it? Isn't it worth it to have peace of mind? How old is the battery in your UPS? If it is over three years old you should consider replacing the battery or UPS. If it is over four years old, don't think twice, replace the battery NOW.

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Battery Backup Failure - Avoid the "Oh No!" Moment When the Power Fails

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Battery Backup Failure - Avoid the &quot;Oh No!&quot; Moment When the Power Fails

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Battery Backup Failure - Avoid the "Oh No!" Moment When the Power Fails