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Small Business Battery Backup: Eaton's 3,000VA PW5130
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1. Power-Ware By Eaton/Powerware: PW5130

We looked at various mainstream uninterruptible power supply (UPS) devices more than a year ago. While this sounds like a long time, it is important to realize that product cycles are much longer in this market than they are in the component segment. The devices we reviewed then were designed for workstations and entry level servers, so we made the next step and looked at a more flexible device for small and medium businesses: the Powerware PW5130.

To Protect and Supply

It is important to keep in mind that, although UPS units are made to sustain power in the case the main power fails, they typically aren’t designed to bridge a longer power outage. Rather than trying to serve that role, UPS devices have become more efficient and smarter when it comes to handling power emergencies.

They include surge suppressors and filtering functionality for electric power. Depending on how much battery capacity you add, you can indeed last through a certain period of downtime. Or you can implement a smarter system that determines which devices can be shut down after a defined period of time to stretch the battery. Advanced UPS units come with options to manage several sub-systems in your network and shut them down according to a custom strategy in the case of a failure.

Managing the Power Units

The Powerware PW5130 accesses several sub-systems through a master system, which it connects to via USB 2.0, a serial RS232 port, or an optional network connection. Once the management software is installed, you’ll have access to an impressive power supply management solution, which exceeds the feature ranges people typically associate with these devices.

2. Uninterruptible Power Supplies

UPS units serve multiple purposes, and they come in different form factors.

Enterprise-class devices are usually created for 19” rackmount environments; this is the case for the device we reviewed. However, there are many pedestal units available as well, which can be positioned right next to the systems they are intended to support.

All UPS unit share (or at least should share) a common characteristic, which is substantial weight as a result of the batteries used to provide backup power. Although there are much more capable battery solutions, lead-acid batteries are still most commonly used because they are affordable, reliable, and pretty predictable. In addition to lithium-ion technology, they are safe, as they cannot catch fire.

UPS Features

An uninterruptible power supply is meant to maintain power in case of a power outage. Depending on the battery capacities and load, different UPS devices can bridge a certain amount of load for a particular amount of time. Some UPSes are designed to provide just enough power for a short power outage, to allow administrators or the UPS software itself to shut down systems safely. Others are designed to bridge a longer period of time, although you’ll have to get a diesel generator or similar to be able to run servers truly independently from the power grid. Almost all UPS units come with surge suppressors to protect attached devices, and most also come with hardware to filter the electric current in an effort to maximize the power “quality.”

UPS Interfaces

Devices typically have one power input and several outputs. The input has to be connected to the power grid, while the outputs can be used to connect client devices. Some outputs provide only surge suppression and filtering, while those providing backup power may also be divided into different segments for different buffering scenarios. The Powerware PW5130 unit even has a C19 output, which is good for up to 16 A, while the other C13 outputs (three pin power connectors) serve up to 10 A. Some UPS units also have ports to protect network paths from surges, but this isn’t the case for our review unit.

UPS Types

Professional UPS devices may use a rectifier (double conversion online UPS) or a transformer (delta conversion) in front of the battery, but this applies to enterprise-grade UPS devices, which we aren’t interested in at this point. The two most popular types are standby UPS units, which remain in standby mode and only switch to the battery if main power fails, and line-interactive designs. The latter is based on having the AC/DC inverter as part of the active circuit at all times.

Battery Backup Basics

Once you know the functional details and features, you’ll have to pick a UPS unit that will be powerful enough for your type of application. The first step is the power rating, which is typically specified in VA (volt-amps). It is important to know that these ratings consist of effective power and reactive power, hence the number does not reflect the actual maximum power the UPS device can supply. You have to look into the product’s data sheet to find out the difference. In the case of the Eaton/Powerware unit, this is 2,700 W based on a 3,000 VA total power rating. The data sheet will then tell you how long the battery will run based on a certain load.

3. Eaton Powerware PW5130, 3000 VA

In and out: nine outputs, one input and management ports are available on the PW5130.In and out: nine outputs, one input and management ports are available on the PW5130.Eaton’s Powerware PW5130 is a mid-range UPS product that is flexible enough to be used with multiple server systems at the same time. Eaton specifies a 2,700 W output for this model, which is made available through eight IEC-C13 ports and one IEC 320-C19 port. The latter supports up to 16 A, while the conventional ports are rated at 10 A. One of the key characteristics of the PW5130 is its ability to manage power and the status of important systems via the local network. The 3,000 VA unit provides a 12V, 9 Ah battery unit.

A Battery Heavyweight

The PW5130 is a true behemoth, weighing in at 34 kg (or 74.5 lbs.). Its huge box includes the UPS unit, several cables, and rails for mounting the unit into 19” racks. Eaton also adds two brackets for vertical orientation of the device, and we even found a screwdriver inside, which was nice to see. Before you use the PW5130 for the first time, you have to connect the battery units, which come disconnected for shipping. Connect and close the front panel, and you’re ready to go.

Efficiency, Cooling and Startup

You can access the battery bay from the front. Batteries aren’t connected during shipping for safety reasons.You can access the battery bay from the front. Batteries aren’t connected during shipping for safety reasons.The unit's data sheet claims an efficiency level of 94%, which translates into 180 W of power loss if you consider the total output of 3000 VA. As you can imagine, that 180 W is converted into heat, which has to be dissipated through three integrated fans—yes, even a UPS unit requires cooling.

We found that the batteries were almost fully charged when we started the device, so we could get to testing right away. There are eight power ports on the back side of the UPS, split into three segments: four ports belong to the main power segment, two ports are organized as load segment one, and two more ports belong to load segment two. These can be managed independently, depending on your requirements.

You will find the full specifications within the data sheet from Eaton's Web site. Product family information can be found here: http://powerquality.eaton.com/Products-services/Backup-Power-UPS/5130.aspx

Editor's Note: In Germany, where the PW5130 was reviewed, most standard plugs enable 16A on a 230V plug. That's plenty for a 3,000VA UPS. Here in the US, however, most plugs support 15A on a 120V line. In order to properly support this 3,000VA device, you'd need an available NEMA L5-30P socket able to deliver 120V/30A. Eaton does sell battery backup devices designed for smaller equipment loads. If you only have 15A circuits available, a 1,250VA unit plugs into a standard NEMA 5-15P socket. Or, a 1,750VA model plugs into the fairly-common NEMA 5-20P socket. 

4. Networked Power Management: Shutdown And Resume

We used a program from MGE, which is a more powerful tool for the Powerware UPS. Click on Settings to start the configuration.We used a program from MGE, which is a more powerful tool for the Powerware UPS. Click on Settings to start the configuration.

Before we start testing, we always check the manufacturer Web site for the latest software versions. The Powerware homepage provides a software suite called LanSafe 6, which, despite working with our UPS sample, did not support all of its features. We contacted Eaton and found out that this is because Eaton acquired MGE UPS approximately two years ago and hasn’t been able to fully migrate all of its software products yet. LanSafe seems to be the original Powerware product, while the PW5130 is based on MGE OPS technology.

We then swapped over to the newer software, using the Network Management Proxy as the controller and the Network Shutdown Module on client systems attached to the Powerware PW5130 UPS. We installed the Network Management Proxy on the main system, to which we attached the UPS backup.

Once you connect the system to the UPS via USB 2.0, you can start the configuration by clicking on the Settings option in the main window.

Shutdown Criteria

You can set three different shutdown criteria, which, once reached, will initiate system shutdown via the UPS unit through the network software and the client. We will look at that on the following page. You can define a timer in seconds: in our example, we set it to 120 seconds. Once these limits have passed, the shutdown will commence. Other options include battery level or remaining battery backup time. It is also possible to combine two or three shutdown options, if desired.

There are more shutdown criteria that need to be defined. Generally, shutdown means that all applications will be terminated after the software saves all changes. If you click on the drop-down menu, you may also select “power off” or “hibernate.” While you may know the gist of hibernation from using a notebook (a feature that copies all main memory content into a hibernation file and then shuts off the system), you can actually have the Powerware UPS unit trigger a hard shutdown. It will then physically switch off the systems attached to the power outlets according to its settings. This doesn’t sound like a good course of action for servers, but it works well for printers, routers, or similar devices you may want to turn off immediately when the power goes out.

Hibernation typically is a great choice, as it preserves the system state. But it may take several minutes to hibernate a system with a large amount of RAM. The UPS itself can also shut off after a given period of time. In our example, we selected 1,200 seconds. Keep in mind that all systems should be shut down before you tell the UPS itself to go offline (obviously).

Power Restored

Should the power be restored while the UPS is still shutting down, it will not interrupt the process. The battery will already start to charge at this point, though. If you want the powered-down systems to be switched back on once power is restored, you have to select the appropriate BIOS option to power on after power loss.

5. Networked Power Management: Options

The MGE software by Powerware supports email notification.The MGE software by Powerware supports email notification.

The email notification feature is fairly standard in business-class battery backup. You can define an email server, sender, recipient, and the message in sufficient detail. In addition, you can select the notification level, which basically is a threshold that specifies the gravity of the event to cause notification, such as “critical,” “major,” or just information. However, it is not possible to define different user groups that would allow informing different people of various events.

Outlet Groups

Four out of the eight power plugs of the PW5130 are grouped into two additional outlet groups, which can be configured separately.Four out of the eight power plugs of the PW5130 are grouped into two additional outlet groups, which can be configured separately.

The Powerware device offers four power outlets within the main power group, and two additional power groups with two outlets each, which can be configured separately. In our example, we defined group 1 to be switched off once the battery reaches 30%. There are multiple criteria that can be set for each of the outlet groups: in addition to  the battery charge level, you can set a shutdown and a startup timer.

Device Strategies

More attached devices also mean more responsibility in choosing the right outlets for various devices, as the wrong backup strategy may be counter-productive.

Less important devices that still require power when they are in standby (printers, for example) should be connected to an outlet group that completely switches off power at an early point to save the batteries. Some devices should not even receive battery power, such as displays, KVM switches, secondary network hardware, and so forth.

At the same time, critical devices, such as PoE switches for VoIP or routers, should receive power for as long as possible; this is also important because the Powerware device shutdown management only works with functioning network connections. This option sounds scary, as it would completely empty the battery and probably leave insufficient time for shutting down other systems. If you want to be sure you can sustain power to essential devices for a long time, we recommend purchasing a separate, simple UPS unit for them. In this case you can utilize the Powerware PW5130 to deploy a reasonable shutdown scenario across your connected systems.

6. Testing Power Loss And Client Management

You may export all UPS settings to store them off site.You may export all UPS settings to store them off site.

According to the data sheet, the PW5130 can sustain its maximum power output for a period of three minutes, which would typically not even be sufficient to shut down servers. You can extend the “range” of the battery by adding external battery modules (EBMs). This way, you can reach a total bridge time of up to one hour, as all upgrade battery units provide more power than just the 9 Ah included by default.

We hooked up an old dual-processor Xeon machine to the UPS unit, which constantly required 390 W at full load. In this scenario, the PW5130 was able to sustain system operation for a total time of 31 minutes until it had reached 20% battery capacity. Since this level is the minimum threshold, the test ended here. The minimum makes sense, in fact, as the UPS has to ensure a safe shutdown of critical devices at all times.

Client Software: The Network Shutdown Module

If your Powerware PW5130 is properly installed on a host system, you can install the Network Shutdown Module on other systems that may be hooked up to the UPS unit. It is important to select the right proxy to allow for the network system to be shut down by the UPS. In this case, the proxy is the system that is directly attached to the UPS via USB 2.0 or serial port, which runs the master software. In our case, the software did not find the proxy system automatically, so we had to manually enter the IP address, which worked fine. It took a few seconds for the client to display the status information (see the screen shot up top).

It is possible to manually set the shutdown mode or timer, which we found questionable. Although it may be helpful to override the main settings stored on the proxy system, any change to the pre-set timers or modes may disrupt or even completely destroy the intended shutdown strategy. Clearly, the tool should only be accessible to administrators and be left unattended to execute according to the main settings.

7. Conclusion

Eaton’s Powerware PW5130 isn’t an entry-level device, although the pricing model suggests otherwise: the 3,000 VA model costs roughly $1,200 plus tax (or €1,100 including typical European VAT), but you can also get versions with 2,500, 1,750, and 1,250 VA. The last of these is rather affordable at approximately $600 (or €600). It might actually make sense to select the model you really need, as the battery capacity can be upgraded later on. Just keep in mind that the upgrades are more expensive than getting a higher power version right from the start. All versions can be rack mounted or operate as pedestal devices.

A Solid UPS

All UPS units (except entry-level products) support surge protection against voltage bursts and power outages, and most also filter electric power to deliver it in a smooth and reliable manner to electronic devices. The Powerware PW5130 supports battery hot-swapping and online expansion through so-called external battery modules, known as EBMs. These modules look like the actual UPS and you can add up to four units.

Eaton offers four different service plans, which start with basic factory warranty and max out with 24-hour response, expedited delivery of replacement parts, and preventive maintenance for batteries and UPS units.

Smart Network Power Management

While the LanSafe 6 software has not yet been fully adjusted to support the PW5130, the Network Management Proxy and Network Shutdown Module worked smoothly. It’s important to keep in mind that this UPS product wasn’t designed to provide maximum battery backup time, but rather to implement a smart, staggered shutdown process for multiple devices such as servers, routers and more. Thanks to three different power outlet groups, it is possible to switch off some devices right away, continue with server shutdown after a few minutes, and make sure that network relevant devices stay up for as long as possible.