Uninterruptable power supplies (UPS) or PC battery backups are, without a doubt, a worthwhile addition to your personal computer or NAS server. They sit near your machine and function as an intermediary for the power from your wall outlet. Simply put, they act just like a laptop battery, providing a seamless transition when the AC plug is removed. They allow you to continue using your machine or server for a certain period when the power goes off unexpectedly.
Some UPS devices have several outlets on them for various devices and even LED screens to show voltage information. However, these are features that you get on the higher end of a budget. Regardless, all backup devices provide emergency backup power for your NAS server or PC. If you are on the market for a UPS, you might be wondering why you need one in the first place. That being said, here are some reasons to get PC battery backup or UPS. If you are looking for a battery shop I would recommend you see ‘UPS Battery Shop‘.
What Does a UPS Protect Against?
Most uninterruptable power supplies will have three primary functions- protecting your machine from power surges, acting as a battery backup, and regulating voltage. The surge protector handles the blast from something such as a lightning strike that gets too close. The voltage regulator evens out any power fluctuations, forming a brownout for example. A battery backup, as the term suggests will give your device adequate time to shut down in the right manner (usually between 5 to 30 minutes, depending on your situation and UPS type).
Power fluctuations like sag, noise, surges and outright blackouts can have a substantial effect on your machine’s hardware. Take the example of cooking a piece of meat; if it does not get adequate heat, it will not be edible and if it gets too hot, it will burn to something unedible. The same applies to your PC’s motherboard and hard drive. Even if your hardware is not shocked into retirement, repetition will degrade it faster compared to when it’s running under normal conditions.
An ideal UPS will automatically correct the voltage to make sure your computer and other connected devices receive the right amount of power.
Protect Your Operating System
Power surges can sometimes take a toll on your OS, especially if it occurs during an installation or update. Do a quick ‘power outage OS won’t boot’ search on Google and you’ll come across thousands of results of people who have experienced a similar problem.
More often than not, this issue calls for a fresh reinstall of the OS, which can be inconvenient and a hassle if you had important files. To avoid this, consider getting a UPS. If you set it up correctly, it should signal your computer to shut down when a blackout happens, thus saving your files and OS as well.
Protect Your Data
Interrupting data that’s being written or transferred to an external drive when a power surge happens, can be corrupted beyond recovery. This can be a particularly big issue if you are running your machine on a NAS server. That’s because these devices are constantly writing and rewriting data and so, a power surge or blackout can impact substantial damage to the server. Having adequate time to shut off, provided by a UPS, can be the difference between a close call and damaged equipment and lost data.