[3803] in RedHat Linux List
Re: UPS reccomendations
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Daniel Senie)
Sun Nov 10 23:28:00 1996
Date: Sun, 10 Nov 1996 23:24:04 -0500 (EST)
From: Daniel Senie <dts@senie.com>
To: redhat-list@redhat.com
In-Reply-To: <199611110219.VAA08225@skyline.rtp.nc.us>
Resent-From: redhat-list@redhat.com
Reply-To: redhat-list@redhat.com
On Sun, 10 Nov 1996, David Myers wrote:
> Eric Smith wrote:
>
> > 3) Smart. These have an EIA-232 serial interface or a network interface for
> > SNMP. Usually they support dumb signalling also. Unfortunately some of
> > the major manufacturers try to keep their serial protocols secret to
> > force you to buy their expensive software (of which they have none for
> > Linux anyhow). Fortunately people have reverse engineered enough of
> > the protocol for the APC SmartUPS to make it work with Linux; there is
> > a package called apcd. I'm not sure whether there is an RPM for it.
>
> Someone made an RPM, but I caution those who install it that it
> doesn't shut down your system properly. It contains a hard-coded
> sequence of commands to halt the OS, rather than signalling the init
> process to carry out an orderly shutdown. Not a good idea.
Perhaps it's not a good idea, but I think there's a reason. First, the
code that's there is lifted from the shutdown code in the kernel (an older
kernel at this point).
Now for the reason to have custom shutdown... it's necessary for the
program doing the shutdown to get off one final command to the UPS to tell
the UPS that it's OK to cut power to the system. Somehow that has to be
sent out. If that command can be sent while still using the standard
shutdown, then that would indeed be preferable.
>
> I'm exchanging mail with APC about licensing their UPS communications
> code. If their licensing terms allow me to create a freely distributable
> UPS daemon, I'll do it. If not, then perhaps I'll borrow the necessary
> code from apcd.
APC has no interest in supporting Linux. I've talked with them. They claim
that their "protocol" is proprietary information and they will not give it
out. The code in APCD will wind up being your best bet.
Dan
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