Larger UPSes
We also reviewed three larger UPSes, designed to power up to 10 rack-mounted servers or other pieces of hardware.
APC Smart-UPS 3000
The APC Smart UPS 3000 is the big brother to the 700, and features almost exactly the same features but has much longer battery life in a 3RU form factor. The front panel display is identical, as is the software, and the accessories are interchangable. On the rear, the only difference is that there are eight 10A female power sockets instead of the four on the 700.
Battery life was the best of the large UPSes, lasting over an hour and 20 minutes with the test server and switches, which means it would easily handle a fair-sized group of rackmount servers. Running costs came in at an excellent $46.93 per minute. The same network adaptor is still an optional accessory, but for only around $650 it would be unusual to pass it up, given the usefulness when dealing with multiple servers that may need to be shut down.
Powerware 5125 3000e RM
The Powerware 5125 is part of an extremely scalable power backup solution. This unit contains 10 12V batteries in a 2RU case, but has the capability of having up to four extended battery modules (EBMs) attached for much greater backup capacity.
The front panel is relatively Spartan, with a five-level load indicator and LEDs for error, battery mode, battery service, site wiring fault, and power on. There is no indicator of battery life on the unit since there may be extra EBMs connected to it, which would make calculations difficult.
One useful addition to this system is a test/alarm reset button, which allows you to test the unit or silence the beep in case of an alarm.
Other than more EBMs, this unit supports any of a series of X-Slot modules that consist of a six-port serial module, an Ethernet/Modem/SNMP module, an SNMP/Web Module, or a USB module. Unfortunately none of these modules shipped with the unit for testing.
The rear of the unit has three sets of three 10A sockets, with each set having its own circuit breaker. You also have the option of shutting down each group separately, in the event that the uptime of some equipment is more important than others.
The 5125 came a close second in the battery life tests, and came out with the best overall rating in the return on investment scale with a running cost of $44.72 per minute. The LanSafe III software included in the package provides a good visual indication of the state of the UPS.
Upsonic Pro Power PLUS 3000
The Upsonic Pro Power Plus 3000 is almost exactly the same as its smaller brother, the 700. Overall the unit is quite a bit bigger, increasing to 3RU and an extra 100mm deeper to accommodate the extra batteries. The front panel and software are the same, with the major differences being the rear of the unit, which now supports six 10A sockets. This is probably a couple short of what we would like to see in a unit this size.
Again, accessory information was limited, and though an external network option is available, we would really like to see it inside the system unit—it either has to hang around at the back of the rack or sit on top of the UPS and take up another RU.
The battery life in the test unit was quite poor, lasting only 33 minutes, which gave it a running cost of $153 per minute. To be fair, we feel this unit may have been a test unit for some time, and the batteries might have suffered the effects of temperature and a generally hard life. The excellent Upsilion 2000 software was also included in this package.
