SNMP card setup guide

From plugging in the card to receiving your first email alert. Allow about 10 minutes. Works for the USSSNMP (single phase) and UTTSNMP (three phase) cards in all RackPower online UPS.

The cardUSSSNMP or UTTSNMP
A network cableFrom the card to your switch
A Windows PCOn the same network
IPsearchFree from rackpower.co.nz/ups-software

Download IPsearchDownload this guide (PDF)

1

Fit the card and plug in the network cable

If the card was fitted at the factory, just plug the network cable into the card's ETHERNET port and go to step 2.

  1. Undo the two screws on the intelligent slot cover and remove the cover.
  2. Slide the card all the way in along the slot's guide rails.
  3. Tighten the screws at both ends of the card.
  4. Plug a network cable into the ETHERNET port and connect it to your network switch.
  5. Check the PWR light on the card is on.
Intelligent slot on the back of the UPS with the cover fitted
SNMP card fitted with network cable connected and PWR, SYS and DATA lights
Turn the UPS off before fitting the card where you can. The card can be fitted with the UPS running, but take care: there is a risk of electric shock. Card installation should be done by a competent person.
2

Find the card with IPsearch

Open IPsearch on a Windows PC connected to the same network. It searches automatically and lists every RackPower SNMP card it finds, with its IP address and MAC address. The list refreshes every 15 seconds.

IPsearch window listing SNMP cards found on the network
Card not showing? Check the network cable, the PWR light, and that the PC and card are plugged into the same network. Your PC's firewall may also need to allow IPsearch. A new card with no network address server (DHCP) on the network uses 192.168.60.100.
3

Give the card an IP address

Choose automatic (DHCP) if your network hands out addresses, or static if you want the card to keep the same address. For UPS monitoring, a static address is usually best.

Automatic (DHCP)

  1. Click the card in the list.
  2. Click Network Set.
  3. Choose Obtain IP, then click Set.

Static IP

  1. Click the card in the list.
  2. Click Network Set and choose Static IP.
  3. Enter the IP address, subnet mask and gateway your IT team has given you, then click Set.
IPsearch Network Set panel with Static IP selected and address fields
4

Log in and change the password

  1. In IPsearch, click the card, then click Web Page. Or type the card's IP address into your web browser.
  2. Log in with the default administrator account: admin, password 123456.
  3. Click Sys Set in the top menu, open User Management and change the password straight away.
SNMP card web page login screen
SNMP card web page dashboard showing UPS status
Change the default password before you leave site. Anyone on your network who knows the default could otherwise change the card's settings or turn the UPS off.
5

Set the card's clock

Alarms, email alerts and schedules all use the card's clock, so set it before anything else.

  1. Click Sys Set, then Time Set.
  2. Choose your time zone and click Sync Local Datetime to copy the time from your computer.
To keep the clock right automatically, enter a time server such as nz.pool.ntp.org in the time server box.
6

Link the card to your UPS

Cards supplied fitted to a RackPower UPS are already set up. If the web page shows a UPS communication failure alarm, tell the card which UPS it's in:

  1. Click Sys Set, open Device and click Add.
  2. Fill in the settings below, click OK, then Apply.
  3. Refresh the page. If the communication failure alarm has gone, the card is talking to the UPS.
SettingChoose
Equipment typeUPS
ProtocolMegtec for single phase UPS (USS models). TT for three phase 10–40kVA UPS (TT models)
Port type / serial portSerial port / Serial port A
Device number, Modbus addressAny unused number (address 1–247)
Baud rate, Modbus modeThe same as the UPS's communication settings (see the UPS user manual)
7

Set up email alerts

  1. Click Sys Set, then Email Settings.
  2. Enter the settings for your email provider (below), the account the card sends from, and who should receive alerts.
  3. Click Send test email and check it arrives.
  4. Choose which events send an email in Alarm Settings. Level 3 is a general (yellow) alarm; level 4 and above is a serious (red) alarm.
ProviderServerPortConnectionPassword to use
Gmailsmtp.gmail.com587TLSA Google app password (needs 2-step verification)
Outlook.comsmtp-mail.outlook.com587TLSThe mailbox password, with POP and IMAP turned on in Outlook settings
Your company's serverAsk your IT team for the SMTP server, port and connection type
Step-by-step guides with screenshots: email alerts with Gmail and email alerts with Outlook. Some company networks block outgoing email from devices; if the test email doesn't arrive, ask your IT team.
8

Add automatic shutdown and monitoring

The card can now tell your servers to shut down safely before the batteries run flat.

To protectInstall
Windows PCs and serversClientMate on each machine, pointed at the card's IP address
Linux servers, VMware ESXiPowerGuard, added as an SNMP device using the card's IP address
Network management system or BMSTurn on SNMP, Modbus TCP or MQTT under Sys Set. Use the RackPower MIB file for SNMP

All software is free from rackpower.co.nz/ups-software.

Optional extras

Temperature and humidity sensor

  1. Plug the sensor's IN port into the card's COMM port with the supplied cable. Check the sensor's light is green.
  2. Click Sys Set, open Device, click Add and choose the sensor. Make sure the Modbus address matches the address set on the sensor's switches, then click Confirm and Apply.
  3. Readings appear under Device, where you can set high and low alarm limits.

Sensor setup guide (PDF)

Scheduled UPS on/off

The card can turn the UPS output off and on at set times, for example to power down equipment overnight. Because this switches the load off, we send the guide on request.

Request the guide

Windows shutdown without software

If you can't install ClientMate, the card can shut Windows down over SSH. This needs changes to Windows settings, so we send the guide on request.

Request the guide

If something isn't working

IPsearch can't find the card
Check the PWR light is on, the network cable is plugged into ETHERNET (not COMM), and the PC is on the same network. Try allowing IPsearch through the Windows firewall.
The web page won't open
Your PC and the card must be on the same network range. Check your PC's address in Control Panel → Network and Internet → Network Connections, or give the card an address in your PC's range with IPsearch.
"UPS communication failure"
Check the protocol, Modbus address, baud rate and mode in step 6 match the UPS.
No email alerts
Check the server, port and connection type in the table in step 7, and that the card's clock is right (step 5). Gmail needs an app password. Some company networks block email from devices.
Alarm times are wrong
Set the card's clock in step 5.

Still stuck? Call 0800 452 140 or email [email protected] and we'll help you through it.

Prefer to watch?

A short setup video is coming soon. In the meantime, call 0800 452 140 and we'll talk you through it.