Power Management:
Ready for Summer Storms?

Summer brings additional challenges to the power grid and to all electronic business systems. As many of us have learned the hard way, any variation in the consistency of electrical power can cause havoc for computer users. Some of the power variations that cause problems are:

Surges and spikes: brief increases in voltage on the line
Sags: brief reductions in voltage on the line
Brownout: longer periods of reduced line voltage
Frequency fluctuation: when power is not oscillating at 60 Hertz
Power failure: no electrical power is available due to problems on the grid or local problems such as tripped circuit breakers.

The good news is that these problems can be effectively addressed by adding two devices to your computer systems: surge suppressors and uninterruptible power supplies.

Every major component in a computer system needs, at a minimum, protection against transient voltage. A spike (up to two nanoseconds or billionths of a second) or a surge (three nanoseconds or more) can produce enough heat to permanently damage electronic circuity. Replacing a system component is costly and inconvenient, so it makes sense to invest in a surge suppressor for less critical components and more sophisticated protection for more critical devices.

The surge suppressors found on most home and office computer systems range in price from $10 to $100. The more expensive ones offer more elaborate protection circuitry and guarantees.

Servers and the computers that we depend on the most require greater protection than surge suppression because of the higher cost and greater inconvenience of doing without them. To protect critical devices against transient voltage and other electrical problems, an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) should be added.

Uninterruptible power supplies use internal batteries and special circuitry to assure that computers receive consistent electrical power regardless of problems on the line, including power failure. There are two general categories. A standby UPS switches to battery power if electrical power fails. A continuous UPS provides battery power at all times and continuously charges the batteries, providing the most stable and reliable power.

Evaluate your needs and be prepared

In order to minimize the inconvenience and problems caused by electrical power issues this summer, ask Leapfrog or your computer services group to help you evaluate your needs. Determine which systems are critical to your business, and add surge suppressors or UPS units where needed. Replace older ones (or replace UPS batteries). Make sure that the systems you need most have access to stable, reliable power at all times. When it comes to electrical damage and data loss, an ounce of prevention really is worth a pound of cure.

Power Management Tips

Leave computers turned on overnight on weeknights so that they can receive updates from Microsoft and anti-virus solution providers. If you encounter errors or sluggish performance at any time, use the Restart command after saving files. Turn computers off over the weekend.
If you lose power during the day, your UPS will continue to provide power, and most types of UPS will alert you with a light and a sound that power has been interrupted and battery power is the only source. Save changes to any open files, close open applications, and shut down Windows as soon as you can. When the power is restored, turn on your computer and resume normal operations.
If you are in an older building, make sure that all power outlets are 3-wire grounded outlets. If not, have an electrician install new ones. Add surge suppressors to every outlet that supports electronic office equipment, and do not overload the surge suppressors.
Add UPS units to outlets that support servers and business-critical computers. Consult with Leapfrog or your computer service provider for selection and installation of UPS units.

This article originally appeared in the July, 2006 issue of FrogTalk.

Power Management: Ready for Summer Storms?

Power Management Tips

Power Management:
Ready for Summer Storms?