UPS serial cables (CyberPower).

[cparke]

Interesting ... are you sure it was a extension/straight-through and not a null modem? Maybe the device doesn't even use those crossed lines, it's pretty basic as far as the communication with PC is involved.

Yes, once on battery it beeps constantly (until the battery runs out, power comes back on, or you switch it off) and there is no way to configure it to behave otherwise. So I figured long ago, who needs on screen notification as well?

I actually just got a slightly newer CP550, this one has both the serial and USB ports and it only beeps once every 10 seconds or so when power goes out. I'd rather it beeped constantly like the older one, given that I prefer not to run software to know quickly that the power went out. Using USB connection, PowerPanel Personal Edition 2.2.0 works with this newer UPS (maybe it might work on serial port too if I had a regular serial cable?), and while there is a lot more information available about the UPS in the program, such as the ability to trigger self-test and see battery percentage, there still is no way in the software to configure the audible alarm!

 

[SeaFox]

I actually just got a slightly newer CP550, this one has both the serial and USB ports and it only beeps once every 10 seconds or so when power goes out. I'd rather it beeped constantly like the older one, given that I prefer not to run software to know quickly that the power went out. Using USB connection, PowerPanel Personal Edition 2.2.0 works with this newer UPS (maybe it might work on serial port too if I had a regular serial cable?), and while there is a lot more information available about the UPS in the program, such as the ability to trigger self-test and see battery percentage, there still is no way in the software to configure the audible alarm!

On my APC the configuration is done via the device -- not a control panel on a PC. There's three modes:

1) Always alarm (faster alarm beep when battery is low).
2) Only alarm when battery gets low (backup silently before that).
3) No alarms at all.

 

[cparke]

At any rate, testing the cable, I can confirm for you that pins 7 and 8 are not crossed like a null modem cable would be. The cable is a bit weird in that pins 2 and 3 are is not connected at all, as others have indicated here. Pin 1 is connected straight across. So, if I were to try to buy a replacement, definitely would get a null modem cable and not a straight-through extension! I'm not sure if a USB to serial interface cable would work without also using the null modem cable, as I don't have one presently to test with.

I re-tested today with better tools, and discovered the CyberPower UPS serial cable is indeed a straight extension cable like the OP originally said and has used successfully. I don't know how I mixed that up! I'm going to try to get my earlier post edited by the admin or deleted, as I don't want to be spreading misinformation.

Specifically, the CyberPower UPS cable that they sold to me for their devices has only 5 pins connected: pin 1 (DCD), pin 3 (TX), pin 4 (DTR), pin 7 (RTS), and pin 8 (CTS). It therefore could only support simplex (one-way) protocol, as it's missing RX! A null modem cable surely would not work at all!

I also found a USB to serial dongle adapter (designed to add a serial port to the back of PC, not the other kind designed to connect directly into the peripheral DCE equipment), connected that to my serial cable, and Windows recognized it as a USB UPS device, and the older versions of PowerPanel also work with it, but the UPS still is not found with the most recent version of PowerPanel Personal Edition. Quite surprised here, as I though it would show up in Device Manager as a new COM port rather than a battery, but apparently the USB handshaking protocol is supported on the RS-232C connection from the UPS!

 

[SeaFox]

I also found a USB to serial dongle adapter (designed to add a serial port to the back of PC, not the other kind designed to connect directly into the peripheral DCE equipment), connected that to my serial cable, and Windows recognized it as a USB UPS device, and the older versions of PowerPanel also work with it, but the UPS still is not found with the most recent version of PowerPanel Personal Edition. Quite surprised here, as I though it would show up in Device Manager as a new COM port rather than a battery, but apparently the USB handshaking protocol is supported on the RS-232C connection from the UPS!

I'm not sure what kind of computer you're using here, but have you checked to ensure it does not have a serial header on the motherboard? While the port itself has not been a standard part of the back panel connectors in awhile, many motherboards still have the connection as a header and you can just get a bracket for it.

 

[cparke]

I have the actual RS-232C serial connector on the back, two different machines, and it is working with older versions of PowerPanel on both.

My point, however, is I also tested connecting the UPS serial cable onto a RS-232C to USB adapter dongle instead, and when you do that, the UPS actually installs into Windows as a USB device rather than a new COM port, which I've never seen before. It must mean that CyberPower actually implemented USB protocol to be available through the RS-232C interface.

 

[SeaFox]

I guess I don't understand why you're messing with adapters when you have the native port on your machine? USB->Serial adapters have always been a compatibility question mark with many devices, and the adapters being commodity hardware sold under a dozen different brands with mediocre support does not help. It's one of those dongles you only use when necessary.

 

[cparke]

Yes - but while I was checking everything, wanted to test that as well. It seems to work very well for this application if you need it; in fact, it seems CyperPower planned on people doing this.