It started out so simply: fashion a home network to store critical business and personal files, and also store video, music, and software files. One server turned into two, which turned into three. One external hard drive (used for back-ups and archiving) turned into two, which recently morphed into three. Add a hub and a Wireless Access Point (WAP) and presto, my equipment is sucking heavily at the wattage teat. My last addition, the aforementioned external hard drive proved too much for my (2) APC CS-500 UPS units to handle, and during a recent power outage, once quit after only a minute on the battery.
Of course this could mean that the unit needs a new battery, but instead of bothering with a replacement, I decided to purchase a brand new UPS, one capable of handing the load I require today, but with plenty of room to grow; you never know when that next hard drive, or server, is going to be required.
I looked into purchasing another APC unit, this time one of the company’s Smart-UPS units that ship with
PowerChute Business Edition (it requires
Windows 2000/2003 Server), but the cost proved to be more than my limited budget would allow even with the company’s trade-up program. So I searched for another unit, one cheaper but with the same functionality. After a day of searching, I settled on the
Belkin (F6C1500-TW-RK) UPS System.
Belkin (F6C1500-TW-RK) UPS System
Belkin targets the
F6C1500-TW-RK UPS System at the small to medium business user who needs to power up to 800 watts of equipment from a single UPS System, and also need the ability to monitor UPS functionality over the network, via Serial or USB cables (included), or SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol).
The
Belkin F6C1500 UPS is a free standing traditional UPS system with status light on the front display panel and (8) battery back-up/surge protection three prong (grounded) outlets on the back of the unit. The unit can be used either vertically, or horizontally. The front display panel contains LED status displays indicators, for
On-Line, On-Battery, replace Battery, and Overload. Below these LED’s is a lone round power switch. The
Belkin F6C1500 UPS also features a long 6-foot cord, an audible alarm, and user-replaceable, hot-swappable battery.
As I mentioned above the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS is equipped with (8) battery-powered/surge protected outlets placed vertically in two rows on the back of the unit. They are spaced rather close, so transformer blocks need not apply. And like all modern UPS units the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS can provide surge protection for Ethernet network connections (RJ-45), as well as (RJ-11) telephone lines. There are three ports for each type pf connection: one input and two outputs. The
Belkin F6C1500 UPS is equipped with an Accessory Slot into which can be plugged the optional Belkin SNMP card.
Setup and Configuration
In the Box
•
Belkin F6C1500 UPS
• Bulldog Plus Shutdown Software CD-ROM
• (1) Serial Cable
• (1) USB Cable
• (1) Phone Line Cable
Initial set up of the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS is fairly simple. Unlike other UPS units I have bought and or set up, the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS shipped with the battery plugged into the unit. I decided to plug the UPS into the wall and let it charge overnight; Belkin recommends charging the UPS for 8 hours before placing the first load on the unit, but the day the unit arrived, I was otherwise engaged and lacked the time to put it into place.
Once charged and powered up the UPS can be monitored via a standard serial cable (included), USB or SNMP. I saw no need to purchase the optional SNMP network card; I connected the UPS to my server using the included USB cable instead.
Belkins’ proprietary
Bulldog software can then be used to monitor any computer connected to the UPS. Bulldog will interoperate with the following OS’s
Windows 95/ 98/ME/ NT4/ 2000/ 2003/ XP & Linux.
Although the USB cable was plugged into the UPS and the computer, there was no plug-n-play interoperability until the
Bulldog Automatic Shutdown & Monitoring software was loaded. Once
Bulldog was completely installed I configured the application to monitor the UPS for the type of protection I wanted; i.e. in the event of a power outage you can elect to have the UPS keep your computer on battery power as long as possible, or you elect to have the UPS shutdown the computer automatically after a specified amount of time.
Since most power outages at home typically last for less than five minutes, I configure the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS to do an orderly shut down after ten minutes on battery power, which will be okay since the unit is only at 27% of capacity.
The beauty of
Bulldog Automatic Shutdown & Monitoring software is the ability to monitor and control any computer drawing power from the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS. After I installed the software on the “Master” computer (computer directly connected to the UPS), I installed
Bulldog on the
“Slave” computer (any other computer drawing power from the UPS). Once this was complete I could now monitor and control the automatic shutdown of both computers from the
Master. Sweet!
Testing and Use
Once I charged the battery for eight hours, put the UPS in place, connected the UPS cable, plugged in the two computers, monitors, external hard drives, and installed the Bulldog software, I was ready to test the unit.
Using
Bulldog I ran two tests, one short five second test, and another longer deep battery test, which I ran for ten minutes. In both instances the UPS performed as advertised. And an audible beep could be heard throughout the house signaling the UPS’ use of battery power. The battery back-up capability of this unit is impressive; even after 10 minutes on the battery, power had dropped to only 67%; not bad, not bad at all. Once I was satisfied the battery was doing its job I ended the test using the
Bulldog software.
The
Belkin F6C1500 UPS emits no sound whatsoever; not even a hum from the battery can be heard. The only indicator that the unit is even on is the yellow status light on the front display panel.
Warranty
Belkin backs the
F6C1500 UPS with a 3-year repair or replace warranty and a $200,000 lifetime protection policy. The policy stipulates that Belkin will replace or repair your UPS as well as any other equipment that was connected to the UPS if said equipment was damaged in a power event. Replace cost are up to $200,000.
Conclusion
To me a UPS is a must have, and the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS System is a solid investment in my book. I wanted a UPS robust enough to power two complete computer systems with external hard drives; the ability to monitor those systems from one central location; the ability to automatically shut down the computers in the case of a prolonged power outage; and I wanted room for future growth. The
Belkin F6C1500 UPS System accomplishes all of those goals at a reasonable cost. A comparable UPS from APC would have cost roughly me $100.00 more than this unit, and that was cost I was not willing to bear.
So far the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS Systemis working as advertised. But the real test will come when the next power outage hits, which should coincide with the next set of thunderstorms that rumble through our area. With enough power to support my current needs, plus room to grow, the
Belkin F6C1500 UPS System is the idea solution for home and small to medium business users.
Features
• Output power capacity: 1,500VA/830W
• Voltage input/output 120V
• Dual form factor (horizontal/vertical.
• Compatible with PC and MAC operating systems.
• Backup time (estimate): 120 minutes (half load), 60 minutes (full load)
• Interface (communications) port(s): DB-9 RS-232 (serial), USB, SNMP (add-in card).
• Automatic Voltage Regulation
• Audible alarms
• Automatic self test
• Building wiring fault indicator
• Intelligent battery management
• Lightning & surge protection (1000 joules)
• Re-settable circuit breaker
• Control Panel Status indicator LEDs: status display with On Line; On Battery; Replace Battery and Overload indicators.
• Includes software for unattended safe & graceful shutdown
• 3-year repair or replace warranty & Lifetime $200,000 Equipment Protection Policy.
Specifications
• Net Weight: 23.54 pounds
• Watts: 830 Watts
• Volts: Amps 1500VA
• Surge Energy Capacity: 1000 Joules
• Connected Equipment Warranty: $200,000
• Battery Back-up Surge Protection Outlets: (8) Nema 5-15R Outlets
• Data Line Protection: RJ11 (x3), RJ45 (x3)
Related Reviews:
APC Power Chute Personal Edition
APC Back-UPS CS 500
APC Back-UPS ES 725
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