Most people think of servers when they consider adding an
uninterruptible power supply (UPS) to a computer to keep it running when the power goes out. However, adding a UPS to a Windows 2000 Professional workstation can also be a good idea if you want to make sure that you don’t lose data during a power outage. When the UPS is attached to a workstation, it
gives you time to close documents and shut down the computer when the outage occurs.

The UPS service included with Windows 2000 Professional
enables Windows to control shutdown and related tasks when a power outage occurs. The UPS must be connected to the computer by a serial cable, and the UPS service reads status information from the serial port.

The UPS service can perform a handful of tasks related to power
management. First, it can notify you within an user-specified number of seconds after a power failure. In most cases, a failure is obvious—the lights in your office go dark. However, the notification can also warn you of a UPS failure, such as a
battery that needs to be replaced.

In addition to the notifications, the UPS service can
execute a program when a specified time span on battery power has elapsed. For
example, you might have the system run a pre-shutdown routine to back up
certain files before shutting down.

After attaching a UPS to the computer, you configure the UPS
service with the Power Options applet in the Control Panel. Click the UPS tab,
click Select, and choose your UPS model. Only APC brand models are listed by
default, but you can choose Custom and specify the necessary settings for the
UPS.

After you specify UPS settings and return to the Power
Options Properties dialog box, click Configure to open the UPS Configuration
dialog box and specify how you want Windows to handle power events.

Finally, if you have a system connected to a UPS that boots
normally but shuts down several seconds after startup, Windows could be
detecting a problem with the UPS. Disconnect the serial cable and boot the
system. You can also boot in Safe Mode and disable the UPS Service to determine
if this is the cause of the problem.

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