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United States Patent

US007099934B1

(12) (10) Patent No.: US 7,099,934 B1
Ewing et al. (45) Date of Patent: Aug. 29, 2006
(54) NETWORK-CONNECTING POWER 4,442,319 A 4/1984 Treidl
MANAGER FOR REMOTE APPLIANCES 4,495,568 A 1/1985 Gilbert et al.
4,611,289 A 9/1986 Coppola
(76) Inventors: Carrel W. Ewing, 285 Deer Ct., Incline 4,647,721 A * 3/1987 Busam et al. .......... 379/102.04
Village, NV (US) 89451; Andrew J. 4,701.946 A 10/1987 Oliva et al.
Cleveland, 5419 Greenview Ct., Reno, 4,709,318 A 11/1987 Gephart et al.
NV (US) 89502; Brian P. Auclair, 4,780,714 A 10/1988 Moustakas et al.
4540 Great Falls Loop, Reno, NV (US) aH A -619907 Sasaki tal
89511 5,164,609 A * 11/1992 Poppe et al. ................ 307/147
5,198,806 A 3/1993 Lord
(*) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
patent is extended or adjusted under 35 (Continued)
We toa by by tL days. FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
(21) Appl. No.: 09/732,557 WO PCT/US91/08543 5/1993
(22); Filed: „Dec: 8,2000 OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Related U.S. Application Data American Power Conversion, “Call-UPS?”, 1991, #996-0070, APC,
(63) Continuation-in-part of application No. 09/375,471, West Kingston, RI 02892:USA,
filed on Aug. 16, 1999, now Pat. No. 6,711,613, (Continued)
which is a continuation-in-part of application No. ] .
08/685,436, filed on Jul. 23, 1996, now Pat. No. — Primary Examiner—Jeflrey Pwu
5,949,974. Assistant Examiner—Ashok Patel
(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Klarquist Sparkman, LLP
(51) Int. CI.
GO6F 15/173 (2006.01) (57) ABSTRACT
(52): US. Cb haha 709/223; 361/601; 361/622;
713/340; 439/652; 337/186; 307/11; 307/18; A network comprises a power manager with a network agent
307/31; 307/32; 307/39; 307/37; 307/43; in communication over a network with an network manager.
307/149; 307/150 The power manager is connected to control several intelli-
(58) Field of Classification Search .................. 307/34, | gent power modules each able to independently control the
307/35, 36, 37, 38, 32, 43, 149, 150; 361/601, power on/off status of several network appliances. Power-on
361/622; 713/340; 439/652; 337/186, 11, and load sensors within each intelligent power module are
337/18, 31 able to report the power status of each network appliance to
See application file for complete search history. the network manager with variables in response to com-
. mands. Each intelligent power module is equipped with an
(56) References Cited output that is connected to cause an interrupt signal to the

U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS

4,051,326 A 9/1977 Badagnani et al.
4,101,878 A 7/1978 Shimizu et al.
4,206,444 A 6/1980 Ferlan
4,356,545 A 10/1982 West

network appliance being controlled. The network manager is
able to test which network appliance is actually responding
before any cycling of the power to the corresponding
appliance is tried.

7 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets

US 7,099,934 B1
Page 2

U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS

5,319,571 A 6/1994 Langer et al.

5,359,540 A * 10/1994 Ortiz .............. ene 700/295
5,374,922 A 12/1994 Ebersohl

5,381,554 A * 1/1995 Langer etal. ................ 714/14
5,410,713 A 4/1995 White et al.

5,412,645 A 5/1995 Younkin et al.

5,436,510 A * 7/1995 Gilbert ................. s. 307/38
5,481,730 A 1/1996 Brown et al.

5,485,576 A 1/1996 Fee et al.

5,495,607 A 2/1996 Pisello et al.

5,506,573 A 4/1996 Ewing et al.

5,506,790 A * 4/1996 Nguyen ........... ee 700/286
5,537,462 A 7/1996 Utter et al.

5,561,769 A 10/1996 Kumar et al.

5,579,201 A * 11/1996 Karageozian ............... 361/119
5,585,678 A 12/1996 Dijk et al.

5,596,628 A 1/1997 Klein

5,652,893 A * 7/1997 Ben-Meir et al. ........... 713/310
5,687,079 A * 11/1997 Bauer et al. .................. 700/70
5,717,934 A 2/1998 Pitt et al.

5,721,934 A 2/1998 Scheurich

5,761,084 A 6/1998 Edwards

5,781,434 A 7/1998 Tobita et al.

5,835,700 A * 11/1998 Carbonneau et al. ......... 714/44
5,862,391 A 1/1999 Salas et al.

6,029,092 A 2/2000 Stein

6,046,513 A * 4/2000 Jouper et al. ................. 307/31
6,408,395 Bl 6/2002 Sugahara et al.

6,496,103 Bl 12/2002 Weiss et al.

6,507,273 Bl 1/2003 Chang et al.

6,519,509 Bl 2/2003 Nierlich et al.

6,715,088 Bl 3/2004 Togawa

2002/0007463 Al* 1/2002 Fung sss sees eee 713/320
2003/0200473 A1* 10/2003

OTHER PUBLICATIONS

American Power Conversion, *Measure-UPS?", Mar. 1993, #996-
0127, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion,"Introducing the UPS to build your
business on... ”, Oct. 1993, #996-0207-A, APC, West Kingston,
RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “Application Note #A2”, Oct. 1993,
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “Application Note #A6”, Oct. 1993,
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “Internetworking Power Protection",
Jan. 1994, # 996-0295, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.
American Power Conversion, “PowerNet* SNMP Adapter”, Jan.
1994, #996-0126, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.
American Power Conversion, “Solutions ’94”, Feb. 1994, #996-
0131, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “APC NetShelter”, 1995, #996-0643-
A, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “PowerNet”, Sep. 1995, #996-0325-
b, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “APC Smart-UPS RM”, 1996, #996-
0618-B, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “APC Smart-UPS XL”, 1996, #996-
0630-B, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “Smart-UPS”, 1996, #996-0386-E,
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “PowerChute plus”, 1996, #996-
0041-C, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “Internetworking Power Protection",
1996, #996-0295-B, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.
American Power Conversion, “UPS Accessories”, 1996, #996-
0411-C, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “Application Notes”, Oct. 1996,
#996-0495-C, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

American Power Conversion, “PowerNet”, 1998, #996-0325D,
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892 USA.

B. Ewing and J. Mallory, “Power-ON/OFF-Product Information”,
1990, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Raphael Needleman, “Power-ON/OFF Lets You Turn on Remote
PCs by Phone", Feb. 1991, Info World Impression, V. 13, Issue 5.
Server Technology, Inc., “Any-To-Any Matrix Communications
Switch", 1996, Server Technology, Inc. Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “Sentry Ambassador”, 1996, Server Tech-
nology, Inc. Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “LAN WAN, Enterprise, Internet Access
Equipment”, 1996, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.
Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRYRACK”, 1996, Server Technol-
ogy, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRYINTERNATIONAL”, 1996,
Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc. “SENTRY Communications and User
Interface”, 1996, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRYSHELF”, 1996, Server Tech-
nology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY Power Modules”, 1996, Server
Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY ShutDown Remote Power
Manager”, 1997, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY Administrator R-450 Remote
Power Manager", 1999, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.
Server Technology, Inc., “How Do You ReBoot Remote Equip-
ment?", 1999, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., "SENTRY R-2000 Remote Power Man-
ager", 1999, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., *MasterSwitch?", 1996, Server Technol-
ogy, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

W. Richard Stevens. *TCP/IP Illustrated, vol. 1—The Protocols",
pp. 359-361, 1994.

Michael Slater. “Microprocessor-Based Design—A Comprehensive
Guide to Hardware Design”, pp. 19-24, 1989.

Peter Drake. “Using SNMP to Manage Networks”, pp. 2/1-2/4,
1991.

Novak, T. “Remote Management of Individual Power Supplies”,
netman.cit.buffalo.edu/CDN-M, p. 1, May 10, 1995.
Uninteruptable Power Source FAQ, v. 1.0, pp. 1-10, Feb. 10, 1994.
Davison, M., et al. UPS Management Information Base, Internet
Draft, IETF, pp. 1-28, May 13, 1992.

Sentry Power Manager—48 VDC Product Family © 2000.
Distributed Power Module Product List, Sep. 23, 2002.

Sentry Power Modules € 1999,

Sentry Power Tower Products € 2001/2002.

Sentry Commander R-400 Remote Power Mgr. € 2001/2002.
Sentry Commander R-400 Remote Pwr. Mgr. Datasheet © 1999.
Sentry Administrator R-450 € 2001/2002.

NEW BOX Specification, dated Mar. 6, 1991.

RPM-15 Power Module Specification, Mar. 18, 1991.

Sentry Remote Power Manager, Operational Instructions, Sep. 24,
1992.

“Keeping Up With .. .", INTERNET TELEPHONY, Mar. 2000, pp.
84-87.

"Rebooting Across the Net", PC Magazine, May 5, 1998.
“Server Technology Sentry R-2000", PC Magazine, May 5, 1998.
"APC MasterSwitch", PC Magazine, May 5, 1998.

US 7,099,934 B1
Page 3

American Power Conversion, “Smart-UPS”, 1996, #996-0386-E
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.

American Power Conversion, “PowerChute plus”, 1996, #996-
0041-C, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.

American Power Conversion, “Internetworking Power Protection",
1996, #996-0295-B, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.
American Power Conversion, “UPS Accessories”, 1996, #996-
0411-C, APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.

American Power Conversion, “Application Notes”, Oct. 1996,
#996-0495-C APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.

American Power Conversion, “PowerNetl”, 1996, #996-0325D,
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.

B. Ewing and J. Mallory, “Power-ON/OFF-Product Infomation”,
1990, Server Technology, Inc., Reno. Nevada.

Raphael Needleman, “Power-ON/OFF Lets You Turn on Remote
PCs by Phone”, Feb. 1991, Info World Impressions, V. 13, Issue 5.
Server Technology, Inc., “Any-To-Any Matrix Communications
Switch", 1996, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., "Sentry Ambassador", 1996, Server Tech-
nology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “LAN, WAN, Enterprise, Internet Access
Equipment”, 1996, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.
Server Technology, Inc., "SENTRYRACK", 1996, Server Technol-
ogy, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRYINTERNATIONAL”, 1996,
Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY Communications and User
Interface”, 1996, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., "SENTRYSHELF", 1996, Server Tech-
nology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY Power Modules”, 1996, Server
Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY ShutDown Remote Power
Manager”, 1997, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY Administrator R-450 Remote
Power Manager”, 1999, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.
Server Technology, Inc., “How Do You ReBoot Remote Equip-
ment?", 1999, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., “SENTRY R-2000 Remote Power Man-
ager”, 1999, Server Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., *MasterSwitch", 1996, Server Technology,
Inc., Reno, Nevada.

Server Technology, Inc., "Sentry Power Tower", 2000, Server
Technology, Inc., Reno, Nevada.

American Power Conversion, *MasterSwitch plus", Dec. 6, 2000,
APC, West Kingston, RI 02892USA.

American Power Conversion, "Built-in Serial UPS Support In
Windows 2000 Developd by APC", Dec. 6, 2000, APC, West
Kingston, RI 02892USA.

Western Telematic, Inc., *NPS Series Network Power Switch Mod-
els NPS-115 & NPS-230, WTI Part No. 12927 Rev. C, User's
Guide,"34 pages, marked € 1999 and Jul. 1999.

Server Technology, Inc., “VersaTimer Operations Manual, Thank
you for purchasing the VersaTimer,” 3 pages, marked © 1995.
Server Technology, Inc., “VersaTimer, A 7-Day, Programmable
Power Scheduler,” 2 pages, marked © 1994.

Western Telematic, Inc., “RMM Rack Mount Data/Fax Modem,
WTI Part No. 12548 Rev. F, User’s Guide,” 15 pages, marked ©
1998 and Sep. 1998.

MIRAPATH, A Cyclades Premier Partner, “AlterPath PM User
Guide,” 49 pages, marked © 2003 and Jun. 2003.

* cited by examiner

US 7,099,934 B1

Sheet 1 of 3

Aug. 29, 2006

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US 7,099,934 Bl

NETWORK-CONNECTING POWER
MANAGER FOR REMOTE APPLIANCES

CO-PENDING APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 09/375,471, filed Aug. 16, 1999, titled
REMOTE POWER CONTROL SYSTEM THAT VERI-
FIES WHICH DEVICES WILL BE SHUT-DOWN
BEFORE SUCH ACTION IS COMMIITED, now U.S. Pat.
No. 6,711,613, which in turn is a continuation-in-part of
USS. patent application Ser. No. 08/685,436, that was filed
on Jul. 23, 1996 and is titled; SYSTEM FOR READING
THE STATUS AND CONTROLLING THE POWER SUP-
PLIES OF APPLIANCES CONNECTED TO COMPUTER
NETWORKS, and now U.S. Pat. No. 5,949,974, issued Sep.
7, 1999.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates generally to automatic power con-
trol and more particularly to remote control methods and
devices to reboot computer-based appliances that have fro-
zen, locked-up, crashed, or otherwise become inoperable.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Anthony Coppola describes a computer power manage-
ment system in U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,289, issued Sep. 9, 1986.
A uninterruptable power supply with a limited power storage
is connected to supply one or more computers with operat-
ing power. A power manager implemented with a micropro-
cessor is connected to signal the computers when power
reserves are running short and a graceful shut-down should
be executed. This allows data to be saved to disk for use
later. The power manager also signals the computers when
power conditions have been restored to normal. The com-
puters can signal the power manager to tell it when backup
power can safely be cut off.

If such computers were located at some remote site and
they shut down, some other means would be necessary to
find out why. And if these remote computers were to crash
or lock-up due to some software fault, the power manager
described by Coppola has no way to be commanded to
power cycle the power to any of the computers.

By at least 1991, American Power Conversion (APC)
(West Kingston, RI) marketed CALL-UPS, which was a
telephone-actuated remote UPS turn-on accessory. The
CALL-UPS was intended to work with the APC SMART-
UPS to protect computers from brownouts and power out-
ages. Such CALL-UPS connected between a remote com-
puter's modem and the telco subscriber line outlet. When an
incoming call was detected by its ring or loop current, the
CALL-UPS would command the SMART-UPS to turn on.
This, in turn, would cause the computer to boot-up, load
application software, and take the call. The power would
stay up a few minutes after the call terminated so call-backs
could be handled without the reboot delay. Serial data
communication only progressed after the computer booted
up, loaded the application software, and finished the modem
handshaking. The so-called CALL-UPS-IL was introduced
about February of 1994 and it enabled a locked-up LAN
service to be remotely corrected by rebooting crashed
devices through an out-of-band modem link.

Avery similar but much earlier arrangement is described
by Guido Badagnani, et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,051,326,
issued Sep. 27, 1977. A call ring signal is used to turn on a
data terminal. Once the data terminal completes its initial-

ization, it sends a ready-to-receive signal and a data con-
versation can begin. Another telephone-activated power
controller is described by Vincent Busam, et al., in U.S. Pat.
No. 4,647,721, issued Mar. 3, 1987.

Another one like these is described by Arthur P. Ferlan, in
U.S. Pat. No. 4,206,444, issued Jun. 3, 1980, and titled
REMOTE POWER CONTROLLER UTILIZING COM-
MUNICATION LINES. The stated objective is to allow
remote computers to turn off and be powered up only when
needed. For example, when another computer calls in and
wants service. But here encoded messages are used on
dedicated telephone lines, e.g., Dataphone Service. The
remote verifies who is calling, and allows access only if
authorized. If authorized, the remote computer is powered
up.
A kind of alarm clock was added to this basic configu-
ration by Raymond A. Oliva, et al., their device for control-
ling the application of power to a computer is described in
USS. Pat. No. 4,701,946, issued Oct. 20, 1987. The alarm
clock can turn the remote computer on and off according to
a preset schedule.

Two of the present inventors, Carrel Ewing and Andrew
Cleveland, described technology along these general lines in
PCT International Publication Number WO 93/10615, pub-
lished May 27, 1993. This is a system for protecting and
restarting computers and peripherals at remote sites which
are accessible by telephone communication. They also filed
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/061,197, on May 13,
1993, and now abandoned, fora REMOTE POWER CON-
TROL SYSTEM FOR COMPUTER AND PERIPHERAL
EQUIPMENT. Such specifically described power-cycling to
reset a remote computer that had become hung up.

Things have changed quite a lot since then. Computer-
based appliances are now required to be on all the time. Any
down-time is costly. But computers being what they are,
they lock up occasionally and a power-on reset is about the
only way to generate a reboot. When such computer-based
appliances are network servers, routers, and bridges located
at telco modem-farm locations, it isn’t practical to send a
technician to the site to force the operating power on-off-on.
Much more than a simple phone call to a dial-up number is
needed too, an accidental reboot could cause serious damage
to user’s data and the service provider’s goodwill.

Enterprise networks exist to support large world-wide
organizations and depend on a combination of technologies,
e.g., data communications, inter-networking equipment
(frame relay controllers, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)
switches, routers, integrated services digital network (ISDN)
controllers, application servers), and network management
application software. Such enterprise networks can be used
to support a large company’s branch offices throughout the
world, and, as such, these networks have become mission
critical to the functioning of such organizations. Masses of
information are routinely expected to be exchanged, and
such information exchanges are necessary to carry on the
daily business of modern organizations. For example, some
international banks have thousands of branch offices placed
throughout Europe, Asia and the United States that each
critically depend on their ability to communicate banking
transactions quickly and efficiently with one another and
headquarters.

A typical enterprise network uses building blocks of
router and frame relay network appliances mounted in
equipment racks. Such equipment racks are distributed to
remote point of presence (POP) locations in the particular
network. Each equipment rack can include frame relay
controllers, routers, ISDN controllers, servers and modems,

US 7,099,934 Bl

etc., each of which are connected to one or more power
sources. The value of POP equipment can range from
$200,000 to $500,000, and the number of individual devices
can exceed a thousand.

Many enterprises rely on an uninterruptable power supply
(UPS) to keep their network appliances operational. Many
network appliances are typically connected to a single UPS,
and this sets up a problem. When an individual router locks
up, the router’s power cannot be individually cycled on and
off externally at the UPS because it is connected to a
multiple power outlet. The recovery action choices available
to the network control center operator thus do not include
being able to reinitialize the individual equipment through a
power interruption reset. The network operator could com-
mand the UPS to power cycle, but that would reset all the
other attached devices that were ostensibly operating nor-
mally and carrying other network traffic. Another option is
to dispatch someone to the remote location to reset the
locked-up device. Neither choice is an attractive solution.

In large organizations that have come to depend heavily
on enterprise networks, there is great pressure to develop
ways to control costs and thus to improve profits. Organi-
zational down-sizing has been used throughout the corporate
world to reduce non-network costs, and that usually trans-
lates to fewer technical people available in the right places
to support large and complex in-house global networks.
Such reduced repair staffs now rely on a combination of
centralized network management tools and third-party main-
tenance organizations to service their remote POP sites. The
costs associated with dispatching third-party maintenance
technicians is very high, and the dispatch and travel delay
times can humble the business operations over a wide area
for what seems an eternity.

Global communication network operators, located at a
few centralized network management centers, are relying
more and more on automated network management appli-
cations to analyze, process, display and support their net-
works. An increasing number of network management soft-
ware applications are being marketed that use open-system
standardized protocols. Particular network application tool
software is possible to report lists of the network appliances,
by location, and can issue trouble lists and keep track of
software versions and releases. Simple network manage-
ment protocol (SNMP) applications are conventionally used
to issue alarms to central management consoles when
remote network appliances fail.

SNMP is conventionally used to send messages between
management client nodes and agent nodes. Management
information blocks (MIBs) are used for statistic counters,
port status, and other information about routers and other
network devices. GET and SET commands are issued from
management consoles and operate on particular MIB vari-
ables for the equipment nodes. Such commands allow net-
work management functions to be carried out between client
equipment nodes and management agent nodes. The agent
nodes can issue alert or TRAP messages to the management
center to report special events.

SNMP is an application protocol for network manage-
ment services in the internet protocol suite. SNMP has been
adopted by numerous network equipment vendors as their
main or secondary management interface. SNMP defines a
client/server relationship, wherein the client program, a
“network manager”, makes virtual connections to a server
program, an “SNMP agent”, on a remote network device.
The data base controlled by the SNMP agent is the SNMP
management information base, and is a standard set of
statistical and control values. SNMP and private MIBs allow

jak

the extension of standard values with values specific to a
particular agent. Directives issued by the network manager
client to an SNMP agent comprise SNMP variable identifi-
ers, e.g; MIB object identifiers or MIB variables, and
instructions to either GET the value for the identifier, or SET
the identifier to a new value. Thus private MIB variables
allow SNMP agents to be customized for specific devices,
e.g., network bridges, gateways, and routers. The definitions
of MIB variables being supported by particular agents are
located in descriptor files, typically written in abstract syn-
tax notation (ASN.1) format. The definitions are available to
network management client programs.

SNMP-based network management systems (NMS) can
be implemented with Compaq INSIGHT MANAGER, Nov-
ell NETWARE, Hewlett-Packard OPENVIEW, Castlerock
SNMPC, Banyan VINES, Artisoft LANTASTIC, Microsoft
WINDOWS, SunNet MANAGER, IBM AS/400, etc. Spe-
cific control of an agent is traditionally afforded by hardware
manufacturers by supplying MIB extensions to the standard-
ized SNMP MIB library by way of source-text files on
floppy disks or compact disks (CD's). These MIB extensions
load on the NMS, and an assigned IP-address for the agent
is entered-in by a user at the NMS. Connecting the agent and
the NMS to a properly configured network is usually enough
to establish communications and control.

In 1994, American Power Conversion (West Kingston,
RI) marketed a combination of their SMART-UPS, POW-
ERNET SNMP ADAPTER, MEASURE-UPS, and an
SNMP-based management station. POWERNET SNMP
agents were used to generate traps or alarms for attention by
the management station. The SNMP agents were described
as being able to supply real-time UPS status and power-
quality information, e.g., UPS run-time, utility-line voltage,
and UPS current load.

In 1996, American Power Conversion was marketing their
MASTERSWITCH embodiment that comprises a single
rack-mountable box with eight relay-controlled power out-
lets on the back apron. A built-in 10 Base-T networking plug
allows connection to a LAN. It further includes an embed-
ded SNMP agent responsive to the networking plug that can
control individual power outlets. A Telnet agent was also
included. Revisions of the MASTERS WITCH that appeared
by 2000 further included a hypertext transfer protocol
(ATTP) agent that can generate information and control
webpages on a logged-in web browser. SNMP traps were
relied on to generate unsolicited alarm inputs. Automatic
IP-address assignment is provided by a Bootup process.

By at least 1998, American Power Conversion began
marketing a “complete enterprise power management sys-
tem”. A POWERNET manager controls SMART-UPS
devices over a network using SNMP. An SNMP agent is
associated with each controlled SMART-UPS and a graphi-
cal user interface (GUI) on the manager allows a user to see
the power status of each SMART-UPS. Shutdowns and
reboots of individual SMART-UPS sites are initiated from
the GUI. The POWERNET EVENT ADAPTER converts
SNMP traps into events that are reported in a GUI, e.g., the
TIVOLI ENTERPRISE CONSOLE (TEC). In 1998, volt-
age, current, temperature, and relative humidity were being
reported, e.g., by MEASURE-UPS, and displayed in the
POWERNET MANAGER GUI.

All such patents and patent applications mentioned herein
are incorporated by reference.

US 7,099,934 Bl

5
SUMMARY

Briefly, a power manager embodiment comprises a net-
work comprising a power manager with a network agent in
communication over a network with a network manager. The
power manager is connected to control several intelligent
power modules each able to independently control the power
on/off status of several network appliances. Power-on and
load sensors within each intelligent power module are able
to report the power status of each network appliance to the
network manager with variables in response to commands.
Each intelligent power module is equipped with an output
that is connected to cause an interrupt signal to the network
appliance being controlled. The network manager is able to
test which network appliance is actually responding before
any cycling of the power to the corresponding appliance is
tried.

Certain embodiments may provide a system and method
that can help an operator avoid the mistake of turning on or
off the wrong network appliance in a busy equipment rack
at a remote site. Certain embodiments may provide a system
and method for power supply status and control.

Certain embodiments may provide a system and method
that allow a network console operator to investigate the
functionality of the electrical power status when a router or
other network device has been detected as failing.

Certain embodiments may provide a system and method
for reducing the need for enterprise network operators to
dispatch third party maintenance vendors to remote equip-
ment rooms and POP locations simply to power-cycle failed
network appliances.

Certain embodiments may provide a system and method
for reducing the time it takes to restore a failed network
appliance and improving service levels.

Certain embodiments may provide a system and method
for reducing organization losses from network downtime.

These and many other objects and advantages of the
present invention will no doubt become apparent to those of
ordinary skill in the art after having read the following
detailed description of the preferred embodiments which are
illustrated in the various drawing figures.

IN THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a first power
manager system embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a second power
manager system embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of a third power
manager system embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE
PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 represents a power manager system embodiment
of the present invention, and is referred to herein by the
general reference numeral 100. A network management
system (NMS) 102 is connected by a network 104 to a
remote site 106. A power controller 108 forwards operating
power through a sensor 110 and relay-switch 112 to a
computer-based appliance 114. Such operating power can be
the traditional 110VAC or 220VAC power familiar to con-
sumers, or direct current (DC) battery power familiar to
telephone central-office “plant” employees. A network inter-
face controller (NIC) 116 may be used to connect the
computer-based appliance 114 to the network 104. This

would be especially true in the computer-based appliance
114 were a server, router, bridge, etc.

The problem to be solved by the power manager system
100 is the maintenance of the operating health of the
computer-based appliance 114. Such computer-based appli-
ance 114 is prone to freezing or crashing where it is
effectively dead and unresponsive. It is also in some mis-
sion-critical assignment that suffers during such down time.
It is therefore the role and purpose of the power manager 100
to monitor the power and environmental operating condi-
tions in which the computer-based appliance 114 operates,
and to afford management personnel the ability to turn the
computer-based appliance 114 on and off. Such allows a
power-on rebooting of software in the computer-based
appliance 114 to be forced remotely from the NMS 102. The
operating conditions and environment are preferably
reported to the NMS 102 on request and when alarms occur.

The power controller 108 further includes a network
interface controller (NIC) 118 connected to a security fire-
wall 120. If the network 104 is the Internet, or otherwise
insecure, it is important to provide protection of a network
agent 122 from accidental and/or malicious attacks that
could disrupt the operation or control of the computer-based
appliance 114. The network agent 122 interfaces to a remote
power manager 124, and it converts software commands
communicated in the form of TCP/IP datapackets 126 into
signals the remote power manager can use. For example,
messages can be sent from the NMS 102 that will cause the
remote power manager 124 to operate the relay-switch 112.
In reverse, voltage, current, and temperature readings col-
lected by the sensor 110 are collected by the remote power
manager 124 and encoded by the network agent 122 into
appropriate datapackets 126. Locally, a keyboard 128 can be
used to select a variety of readouts on a display 130, and also
to control the relay-switch 112.

The NMS 102 typically comprises a network interface
controller (NIC) 132 connected to a computer platform and
its operating system 134. Such operating system can include
Microsoft WINDOWS-NT, or any other similar commercial
product. This preferably supports or includes a Telnet appli-
cation 136, a network browser 138, and/or a SNMP appli-
cation 140 with an appropriate MIB 142. A terminal emu-
lation program or user terminal 144 is provided so a user can
manage the system 100 from a single console.

If the computer-based appliance 114 is a conventional
piece of network equipment, e.g., as supplied by Cisco
Systems (San Jose, Calif.), there will usually be a great deal
of pre-existing SNMP management software already
installed, e.g., in NMS 102 and especially in the form of
SNMP 140. In such case it is preferable many times to
communicate with the network agent 122 using SNMP
protocols and procedures. Alternatively, the Telnet applica-
tion 136 can be used to control the remote site 106.

An ordinary browser application 138 can be implemented
with MSN Explorer, Microsoft Internet Explorer, or
Netscape NAVIGATOR or COMMUNICATOR. The net-
work agent 122 preferably includes the ability to send
http-messages to the NMS 102 in datapackets 126. In
essence, the network agent 122 would include an embedded
website that exists at the IP-address of the remote site 106.
An exemplary embodiment of a similar technology is rep-
resented by the MASTERSWITCH-PLUS marketed by
American Power Conversion (West Kingston, RI).

FIG. 2 represents another power manager system embodi-
ment of the present invention, and is referred to herein by the
general reference numeral 200. A network management
system (NMS) 202 like that in FIG. 1 is connected by a

US 7,099,934 Bl

network 204 to an equipment rack 206. For example, such
rack is an industry standard 84" tall 19" wide RETMA rack
located at a modem farm or a telco office. A typical rack 206
houses a number of network routers, switches, access serv-
ers, bridges, gateways, VPN devices, etc., that all receive
their operating power from the modem farm or telco office.
Internet Service Providers (ISP’s), telecommunication car-
riers, and other network service providers have installed
thousands of such sites around the world. In one example,
the telco operating power comes from a -48V DC battery
supply, and so the use of uninterruptable power supplies
(UPS) that operate on and supply AC power would make no
sense. A major supplier of the network equipment contem-
plated here is Cisco Systems (San Jose, Calif.). The Cisco
ONS15190 optical network IP-concentrator that operates on
-48V DC power is typical of the kind of equipment repre-
sented in FIG. 1 by a number of network-equipment units
208—212.

The problem to be solved by the power manager system
200 is the maintenance of the operating health of the
network-equipment units 208—212. When an individual one
of the network-equipment units 208—212 experience a soft-
ware lock-up, or crash, it is effectively dead and will not be
responsive. A typical rack 206 can be responsible for sup-
porting a major piece of the public Internet or a corporate
extranet. It is therefore the role and purpose of the power
manager 200 to monitor the power and environmental
operating conditions, and to afford management personnel
the ability to turn the computer-based network-equipment
units 208—212 on and off. Such allows a power-on rebooting
of software to be forced remotely from the NMS 202. The
operating conditions and environment are preferably
reported to the NMS 202 on request and when any alarms
occur, e.g., excess temperature or load current.

Vertical space in the rack 206 is typically at a premium,
so all the possible vertical rack space is reserved to the
network-equipment units 208-212 and not to any power
supplies or controllers. Therefore, a power-distribution strip
214 is implemented as one or two long skinny plug strips
mounted vertically in the back inside corner spaces. It
includes a software-controlled relay-switch for each corre-
sponding power cord set from the network-equipment units
208-212. For example, sixteen plug outlets and relay-
switches each. A sensor 216 measures the total power
entering the power-distribution strip 214, and can output
volts, current, or power readings to a local display 218. The
sensor also provides such volts, current, or power readings,
as well as ambient temperature measurements in the top and
bottom of the rack 206 to a remote power manager 220.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the
power-distribution strip 214 associates a “tickle” signal with
each power supply connection to corresponding ones of the
network-equipment units 208—212. This allows a channel to
be exercised and tested so a systems administrator can
develop confidence that a power on-off command will not
run amok and turn off an unintended device.

The equipment rack 206 further includes a network inter-
face controller (NIC) 222 connected to a security firewall
224. Ifthe network 204 is the Internet, or otherwise insecure,
it is important to provide protection of a network agent 226
from accidental and/or malicious attacks that could disrupt
the operation or control of the network-equipment units
208—212. The network agent 226 converts software com-
mands communicated in the form of TCP/IP datapackets 228
into signals the remote power manager can use. For
example, messages can be sent from the NMS 202 that will
cause the remote power manager 220 to operate the power

relay-switches in the power-distribution strip 214. In
reverse, voltage, current, and temperature readings collected
by the sensor 216 are collected by the remote power man-
ager 220 and encoded by the network agent 226 into
appropriate datapackets 228.

The NMS 202 typically comprises a network interface
controller (NIC) 232 connected to a computer platform and
its operating system 234. Such operating system can include
Microsoft WINDOWS-NT, or any other similar commercial
product. This preferably supports or includes a Telnet appli-
cation 236, a network browser 238, and/or an SNMP appli-
cation 240 with an appropriate MIB 242. A terminal emu-
lation program or user terminal 244 is provided so a user can
manage the system 200 from a single console.

FIG. 3 represents a third power manager system embodi-
ment of the present invention, and is referred to herein by the
general reference numeral 300. A network management
system (NMS) 302 like those in FIGS. 1 and 2 is connected
by a network 304 to an equipment rack 305. For example,
such rack houses a number of network routers, switches,
access servers, bridges, gateways, VPN devices, etc., that all
receive their operating power from a battery bank 306
charged by a rectifier 307.

The problem to be solved by the power manager system
300 is the maintenance of the operating health of the
network-equipment units 308—312. When an individual one
of the network-equipment units 308—312 experience a soft-
ware lock-up, or crash, it is effectively dead and will not be
responsive. A typical rack 305 can be responsible for sup-
porting a major piece of the public Internet or a corporate
extranet. It is therefore the role and purpose of the power
manager 300 to monitor the power and environmental
operating conditions, and to afford management personnel
the ability to turn the computer-based network-equipment
units 308—312 on and off. Such allows a power-on rebooting
of software to be forced remotely from the NMS 302. The
operating conditions and environment are preferably
reported to the NMS 302 on request and when any alarms
Occur, e.g., excess temperature or load current.

Vertical space in the rack 305 1s typically at a premium,
so all the possible vertical rack space is reserved to the
network-equipment units 308—312 and not to any power
supplies or controllers. Therefore, a power-distribution strip
314 is implemented as one or two long skinny plug strips
mounted vertically in the back inside corner spaces. It
includes a software-controlled relay-switch for each corre-
sponding power cord set from the network-equipment units
308—312. For example, sixteen plug outlets and relay-
switches each. A sensor 316 measures the total power
entering the power-distribution strip 314, and can output
volts, current, or power readings to a local display 318. The
sensor also provides such volts, current, or power readings,
as well as ambient temperature measurements in the top and
bottom of the rack 305 to a remote power manager 320.

A disk 321 represents a database of user configuration
information. Prior art systems required users to set all the
configuration options one-by-one through Telnet, SNMP, or
http commands. In large systems with many configuration
choices to be made, errors and other data entry problems can
develop. A model set of configurations can be published by
a large user with many racks 305 to setup, all on a distri-
bution disk 321. Alternatively, once a rack 305 has been
configured, its configuration can be copied to disk 321 for
downloading at the other locations.

The disk 321 can also be used to store an image that can
be reloaded in the event agent 326 or remote power manager

US 7,099,934 Bl

320 crash or have to be replaced. Keeping such configura-
tion information on disk 321 generally saves on installation
time and reduces error.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the
power-distribution strip 314 associates a “tickle” signal with
each power supply connection to corresponding ones of the
network-equipment units 308—312. This allows a channel to
be exercised and tested so a systems administrator can
develop confidence that a power on-off command will not
run amok and turn off an unintended device.

The equipment rack 305 further includes a network inter-
face controller (NIC) 322 connected to a security firewall
324. Ifthe network 304 is the Internet, or otherwise insecure,
it is important to provide protection of a network agent 326
from accidental and/or malicious attacks that could disrupt
the operation or control of the network-equipment units
308—312. The network agent 326 converts software com-
mands communicated in the form of TCP/IP datapackets 328
into signals the remote power manager can use. For
example, messages can be sent from the NMS 302 that will
cause the remote power manager 320 to operate the power
relay-switches in the power-distribution strip 314. In
reverse, voltage, current, and temperature readings collected
by the sensor 316 are collected by the remote power man-
ager 320 and encoded by the network agent 326 into
appropriate datapackets 328.

The NMS 302 typically comprises a network interface
controller (NIC) 332 connected to a computer platform and
its operating system 334. A disk 335 represents systems and
applications software that can be loaded on the computer
platform and its operating system 334 to control the network
agent 326. The computer platform and its operating system
334 typically include Microsoft WINDOWS-NT, or any
other similar commercial product. This preferably supports
or includes a Telnet application 336, a network browser 338,
and/or an SNMP application 340 with an appropriate MIB
342. A terminal emulation program or user terminal 344 is
provided so a user can manage the system 300 from a single
console.

Many commercial network devices provide a contact or
logic-level input port that can be usurped for the “tickle”
signal. Cisco Systems routers, for example, provide an input
that can be supported in software to issue the necessary
message and identifier to the system administrator. A device
interrupt has been described here because it demands imme-
diate system attention, but a polled input port could also be
used.

Network information is generally exchanged with proto-
col data unit (PDU) messages, which are objects that contain
variables and have both titles and values. SNMP uses five
types of PDUs to monitor a network. Two deal with reading
terminal data, two deal with setting terminal data, and one,
the trap, is used for monitoring network events such as
terminal start-ups or shut-downs. When a user wants to see
if a terminal is attached to the network, for example, SNMP
is used to send out a read PDU to that terminal. If the
terminal is attached, a user receives back a PDU with a value
“yes, the terminal is attached”. If the terminal was shut off,
a user would receive a packet informing them of the shut-
down with a trap PDU.

In alternative embodiments of the present invention, it
may be advantageous to include the power manager and
intelligent power module functions internally as intrinsic
components of an uninterruptable power supply (UPS). In
applications where it is too late to incorporate such func-
tionally, external plug-in assemblies are preferred such that
off-the-shelf UPS systems can be used.

Once a user has installed and configured the power
manager, it is necessary to establish a connection to the
power manager. About any terminal or terminal emulation
program can be chosen for use with the power manager.

For modem access, the communication software is
launched that supports ANSI or VT100 terminal emulation
to dial the phone number of the external modem attached to
the power manager. When the modems connect, a user
should see a “CONNECT” message. A user then presses the
enter key to send a carriage return.

When setting up the power manager for the first time, the
first modem call made to the power manager should be made
with the dialing modem set to 9600 bits per second (BPS),
which is the factory default modem data rate for the power
manager. This should guarantee that the first connection will
succeed, after which the power manager’s modem initial-
ization data rate can be increased with the “SET MODEM
RATE” command and the dialing modem’s data rate can be
increased in the communication software

For direct RS-232C access, a user starts any serial com-
munication software that supports ANSI or VT100 terminal
emulation. The program must configure the serial port to one
of the supported data rates (38400, 19200, 9600, 4800, 2400,
1200, and 300 BPS), along with no parity, 8 data bits, and
one stop bit, and must assert its Device Ready signal (DTR
or DSR). A user then presses the Enter key to send a carriage
return.

For Ethernet Network Connections, a user connects to the
power manager by using a TELNET program and connect-
ing to the TCP/IP address configured for the ServerTech
MSSI installed in the power manager. The power manager
will automatically detect the data rate of the carriage return
and send a username login prompt back to a user, starting a
session. After the carriage return, a user will receive a banner
that consists of the word “power manager” followed by the
current power manager version string and a blank line and
then a “Username:” prompt.

Regarding “power manager Version X.Xx, Username: _”,
the power manager Banner will be displayed after the initial
connection or after the LOGIN command. In response to the
“Username:” prompt, a user enters a valid username string.
A username is a character string up to 16 characters long
followed by a carriage return. Usernames may not contain
either spaces or the colon “:” character. Usernames are not
case sensitive. A user has up to 60 seconds to enter a
username string. If data is not entered with in the time limit,
the session is ended with the following message: “Sorry the
time is up. Try again later!”

After a user responds to the “Username:” prompt, a user
will be prompted for an associated password with the
“Password:” prompt.

Regarding “Password: _”, the power manager will not
echo characters typed in response to the password prompt.
Passwords are up to 16 characters and are case sensitive.
Alphanumeric and other typeable characters (ASCII 32 to
126 decimal) may be used. The power manager will validate
a username/password strings against the internal table of
usernames/passwords that has been previously defined. If a
user enters an invalid username string or password, the
power manager will send an error message as follows:
“Sorry, a username/Password a user has entered is NOT
valid!”. A user will then receive the “Username:” prompt
again. A user will have three chances to enter a correct
username/password. If a valid username/password is not
specified on the third attempt, the following message will be
sent: “Check the Username/Password and try again later!”’.
The current user session will then be ended. As with a

US 7,099,934 Bl

username, a user has up to 60 seconds to enter a password
string. If data is not entered with in the time limit, the session
is ended with the following message: “Sorry the time is up.
Try again later!".

The power manager allows up to 128 usernames to be
defined. The system has three built username/password
pairs. The power manager supports a two-level username/
password scheme. There is one system-administrative level
username (ADMN), and up to 128 general-user level user-
names.

A user logged in with the administrative username
(ADMN) can control power and make configuration
changes. A user logged in with a general username can
control power. Also, while a user logged in with the admin-
istrative username can control power to all IPMs, a user
logged in with a general username may be restricted to
controlling power to a specific IPM or set of IPMs, as
configured by the administrator.

There are three built in usernames and passwords:

Password: admn
Password: gen1
Password: gen2

Username: admn
Username: genl
Username: gen2

These usernames cannot be deleted and by default all
three have access to all IPMs. The *admn" username is the
administrative username. These default usernames are able
to view the status of all ports in the power manager chain
even if they do not have access to the IPMs for turning
power on and off. Newly added usernames can view the
status of ports to which they have power on and off access.
This means that a user logged in with any ofthe three default
usernames can determine the number ports in a power
manager by issuing the STATUS command (described later
in this manual) because the status of all ports will be
reported. A user logged in with a non-default username will
be able to view the status of ports to which a username has
power on and off access.

When logging in for the first time, the system adminis-
trator should use the default administrative username. This
will allow the system administrator to configure all the
options, as well as to change the default passwords. Chang-
ing the passwords is done using the “SET PASSWORD”
command from the command prompt. The command as well
as the other administrative commands are described in the
next section.

The command prompt interface is used for both power
control and configuration of some options, including adding/
deleting usernames, changing passwords and changing the
modem initialization data rate. From the command prompt,
power control actions can be applied to individual IPMS or
to a group of IPMs.

All configuration changes made at the command prompt
are saved to non-volatile RAM and are effective immedi-
ately.

Once a valid username and password has been entered,
the power manager Commander displays a command
prompt, “power manager: _”.

To get a display of available commands, press enter at the
power manager prompt, which will show power manager
commands are “CONNECT LOGIN OFF ON QUIT
REBOOT RESYNC SET ADD DEL LIST SHOW STATUS
VERS”.

The RESYNC, SET, ADD, DEL, and LIST commands
will be available when logged in with the administrative-

level password. In addition the SHOW command will be
available if the administrator grants SHOW privileges to a
username. By default the genl and gen2 usernames have
SHOW privileges. New usernames do not have SHOW
privileges unless specifically granted by the administrator
via the SET SHOW command described later in this manual.

The port name and group parameters in the OFF, ON,
REBOOT, and STATUS commands are user-defined names
from the Power Control Screens. Multiple IPMs or groups
can be specified, each separated by a space, up to 50
characters. In addition port names may be specified as
absolute port names. Preceding the port name with a period
specifies an absolute port name (“.”). Appending the power
manager Board letter (e.g., “A” for the first board, *B" for
the second board, etc. with the port number on the specific
board creates the absolute port names. For example, the third
port on the third power manager Board in the chain of boards
would have an absolute port name of “.C3”. If the chain of
power manager Boards is altered for any reason, the absolute
port names change. For example, if the second board in the
chain is removed (perhaps it fails), and what used to be the
third board is now connected to the first board (it is now the
second board in the chain), then the absolute port names on
the new board change from “C1, C2, C3, C4 to B1, B2, B3,
B4". An absolute port name always refers to a single port on
a single board.

“OFF {Port NamelGrouplALL} [{Port NamelGroup}*]”
turns off an individual IPM, a predefined group of IPMS, or
all IPMs for which access is allowed by the current password
level. For example in, “OFF Device” the OFF command
returns information, “n port(s) turned off, m port(s) locked’.
“n” indicates the number of referenced IPMS that turned off.
“m” indicates the number of referenced IPMS that are
locked in their current state either by the administrator or
because the current username does not have access rights to
that IPM. “(n+m}” is the total number of IPMs that were
referenced by the parameters.

“ON {Port NamelGrouplALL} [{Port NamelGroup}*]”
turns on an individual IPM, a predefined group of IPMs, or
all IPMs for which access is allowed by the current password
level. For example in, “ON Device”, the ON command
returns information, “n port(s) turned on m port(s) locked”.
“n” indicates the number of referenced IPMs that turned on.
“m” indicates the number of referenced IPMs that are locked
in their current state either by the administrator or because
the current username does not have access rights to that
IPM. “(n+m)” is the total number of IPMs that were refer-
enced by the parameters.

“REBOOT {Port NamelGrouplALL} [{Port
NamelGroup}*]” turns off, pauses, and turns back on, an
individual IPM, a predefined group of IPMS, or all IPMs for
which access is allowed by the current password level. The
delay before turning back on is either 15 seconds, or the
Minimum-Off Time from the Power Control Screen, which-
ever is greater. For example in, “REBOOT Device’, the
REBOOT command returns information, n port(s) rebooted,
m port(s) locked. “n” indicates the number of referenced
IPMS that were rebooted. “m” indicates the number of
referenced IPMs that are locked in their current state either
by the administrator or because the current username does
not have access rights to that IPM. “(n+m)” is the total
number of IPMs that were referenced by the parameters.

*STATUS [Port NamelGrouplALL] [ (Port
NamelGroup) *]" returns the status of an individual IPM, a
predefined group of IPMs, or all IPMS. For the three default
usernames (e.g., admn, genl, and gen2), this command can
report the status for an IPM for which power control access

US 7,099,934 Bl

is not allowed. For all other usernames this command can
report status for IPMs for which a username has power
control access. For example in “STATUS Device”, the
STATUS command returns information in the form, “n
port(s) on, m port(s) off’. “n”? indicates the number of
referenced IPMs that are on. “m” indicates the number of
referenced IPMs that are off. *(n--m)" is the total number of
IPMs that were referenced by the parameters.

Regarding “SHOW[PagelIMODEM] . [CONNECT(|
[SWITCHIMODEMILINKICONSOLEINETWORK]",
with no parameter or with a page name, this command puts
the power manager Commander into the screen oriented
interface mode. With no parameter specified, display starts
at the Power Control Screen of the first four power modules.
If a page name is specified, display starts at the Power
Control Screen with that page name.

With the MODEM parameter, a page is displayed that
shows the current modem data rate and the current status of
the modem initialization strings.

With the CONNECT parameter, one of the five serial port
names listed above must be specified. The SHOW CON-
NECT command displays the current setting of DSR and
CTS checking for the specified serial port name.

The SHOW command is always available to the default
usernames (e.g. admn, genl and gen2). By default new
usernames are not allowed to use the SHOW command. The
administrator (e.g., admn username) may add and delete
SHOW command privileges to other usernames using the
SET SHOW command.

The *CONNECTÍ116ISerialPortNamelIPMNamel
CONSOLEIMODEMILINKINETWORK" command
attempts to make a connection to a serial device attached to
one of the four pass-through ports (CONSOLE, MODEM,
LINK or NETWORK) or to one of 4 side switch ports that
are identified by the power manager Port Name of the IPM
(IPM Name) on the board. That is, the first side switch port
is identified by the Port Name of the first IPM, the second
side switch port is identified by the PORT Name of the
second IPM, etc. The CONNECT command can also be used
to connect to 1 of 16 possible serial ports that are connected
on the LINK port at the end of a chain of power managers.
Ifthe CONNECT command is entered with a single param-
eter which is a number from 1 to 16, the connection is
attempted to one ofthe ports attached to the LINK port at the
end of the chain.

To ease the use of the CONNECT command, an admin-
istrator can configure any of the possible serial ports that are
available with names. The CONNECT command can then
be used with the assigned name (e.g., the Serial Port Name
parameter) to connect to the port associated with the Serial
Port Name. When the CONNECT command is used with a
Serial Port Name or with a number from 1 to 16 as a
parameter, the IPM access restrictions do not apply. All users
can use the CONNECT command to connect to any serial
port that has a Serial Port Name or is accessed with a number
from 1 to 16.

If the CONNECT command is entered with no param-
eters, a list of possible names is displayed on the screen. A
user can then use the CONNECT command with one of the
names displayed to attempt a serial port connection. The
administrator can use the ADD, DEL, and LIST commands
to set up the Serial Port Name configuration.

For all CONNECT commands, the power manager
defaults to requiring that the attached device assert both
Data Set Ready (DSR) and Clear To Send (CTS), in order to
successfully connect. These requirements can be individu-
ally enabled and disabled with the *SET CONNECT" com-

mand. When a connection is successful, the message “Con-
nection complete” will be displayed, at which point
communication to the attached device will be transparent
through the power manager.

When finished communicating to the serial device, type
“1*login<CR>”. The keyword “login” is not case sensitive.
This disconnection character sequence returns a user to the
login username prompt at which point a user may login
normally to the power manager.

A disconnection will also automatically occur when CD
or DSR go inactive (as caused by hanging up a modem or
exiting a communications program) or when a Telnet session
is disconnected.

RESYNC ends the session and resynchronizes the chain
of boards. This command should be issued after adding or
removing a board from the chain if all of the chain is not
accessible. This is an administrative-level command.

VERS displays the firmware version of the first power
manager Commander in the chain. No parameters.

QUIT ends the session. No parameters.

Set commands are available when logged in with the
administrative username (e.g., admn). To get a display of
available SET commands, enter “SET” at the power man-
ager prompt, which will show SET commands are “CON-
NECT LOCATION MODEM PANEL PASSWORD SHOW
SCREEN TEMPH TEMPL, LOADL LOADH ENABLET

DISABLET".
“SET CONNECT [SWITCHICONSOLEIMODEMI
LINKINETWORK}, (DSRCHECKINODSRCHECKI

CTSCHECK! NOCTSCHECK]" turns on or off active sig-
nal checking when connecting to a pass-through port when
using the CONNECT command. There are two required
parameters with the command. The first is one of five
possible serial port names. The SWITCH serial port name is
for the side-switch connection. All four of the possible
side-switch connections are controlled by setting the
SWITCH serial port. It is not possible to set individual
side-switch connections to different signal values.

DSRCHECK requires that DSR be active from the
attached device to connect. NODSRCHECK ignores that
state of DSR. CTSCHECK requires that CTS be active from
the attached device to connect. NOCTSCHECK ignores that
state of CTS. The defaults are DSRCHECK and
CTSCHECK.

“SET LOCATION {Location}” sets the location descrip-
tion field of the Power Control Screen for the entire power
manager Commander chain. This is an alternative to enter-
ing the location description on each Power Control Screen,
which allows each Power Control Screen to have a unique
name. With this command, spaces can be entered in the
description, whereas editing the location description from
the Power Control Screen does not. The location field of the
first Power Control Screen is displayed as part of a ““Wel-
come to .... " message when a session is started. Up to 16
characters, including spaces, can be entered. Extra charac-
ters will be truncated from the location field.

Regarding
“SETMODEM{RATE{NONE30011 20012400148001960011 92
00384001), SET MODEM 1[INITIIINIT2INIT2I

ATTENTIONIHANGUP! {DEFAULTINONEF}}”, SET
MODEM RATE sets the initialization data rate for the
modem attached to the power manager. The data rate can be
set to any of the listed speeds (300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600,
19200, or 38400 Bits Per Second). The NONE parameter is
used to disable all modem initialization string support. The

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default is 9600 BPS. The initialization takes place at a user
selectable data rate, with no parity, 8 data bits, and one stop
bit.

SET MODEM INITI, INIT2, INIT3, ATTENTION, or
HANGUP allows an individual modem initialization string
to be enabled (DEFAULT) or disabled (NONE). All default
to enabled (DEFAULT).

The power manager initializes the modem when the
power manager is first turned on, whenever the modem is
turned on or connected and after every user session (via
modem) with the power manager. During initialization, the
power manager sends each of the five-fixed modem initial-
ization strings that is enabled to the modem in the order:

Attention String: @@@

Hang-up String: ATH<CR>

Initialization String 1: AT<CR>

Initialization String 2: AT EO Q1 S0=3 $2=64 S12=50 &C1
&D2<CR>

Initialization String 2: AT SO = 1<CR>

The Attention String is sent to break from online mode to
command mode if a modem is connected. The attention
string can be set on most modems to match the @@@ string
used by the power manager.

The Hang-up String is sent to cause the modem to hang
up if there is an active connection.

Initialization String 1 is sent to alter the modem and to
allow the modem time to prepare for the next command.

Initialization String 2 is sent to initialize the modem to
defaults required by the power manager. The “EO” turns off
the echoing of data, the *Q1" turns off result codes and the
“S0=3” sets the modem to answer on the 3” ring.

Initialization String 3 is sent to set the modem to answer
on the 1° ring. The modem initialization features allow a
choice for the modem to answer on either ring number 1 or
ring number 3. The Initialization String 3 is “AT
S0=1<CR>”. Like the other initialization strings, Initializa-
tion String 3 defaults to being enabled, and is sent in
sequence after Initialization String 2. When this happens the
modem answers on ring number 1. To have the modem
instead answer on ring number 3, disable Initialization
String 3 with the command “SET MODEM INIT3 NONE”.

For most modems, Initialization String 1 or 2 being sent
by the power manager to the modem at one of the supported
data rates is all that is needed for the modem to work with
the power manager. This is because most modems will
communicate to the attached serial device (in this case, the
power manager) at the data rate of the last AT command that
was sent to it. A modem that operates in this manner is
operating in fixed data rate mode. Since the power manager
sends the last AT command at one of its supported data rates,
the modem will talk back to the power manager at that same
data rate when it is on-line with another modem.

Some high-speed modems, however, can be configured to
operate in variable data rate mode. With a modem set to
operate in variable data rate mode, when the modems
connect, the modem may change from the speed of the last
AT command to a different data rate, automatically adjusting
to a data rate that is best for the actual modem-to-modem
connect speed. If the data rate changes to one of the
supported data rates, then the power manager Commander
will be able to communicate. But, if the data rate changes to
a non-supported data rate, such as 14400, 28800, or faster
than 38400 BPS, the power manager Commander will not be

able to communicate. Thus, it is best that the modem be
configured to operate in fixed data rate mode, NOT variable
data rate mode.

Configuring the modem to operate in fixed data rate mode
is not addressed by the modem initialization built into the
power manager Commander because the command that sets
the modem to use fixed data rate mode varies significantly
with different modem manufacturers.

If the modems are able to connect with each other, but
there is not communication with the power manager Com-
mander, the modem attached to the power manager is
probably in variable data rate mode and has switched to an
unsupported speed. In this case, in the modem's manual,
lookup the appropriate AT command(s) for the modem to
operate in fixed data rate mode. Then attach the modem to
a PC with a terminal program, send the command(s) to the
modem, followed by an &W to write the new setting to the
modem's memory and make it the default, and then re-attach
the modem to the power manager.

“SET PANEL (NONEIDEFAULT?" changes the opera-
tional behavior of the front panel pushbuttons. NONE dis-
ables the pushbuttons. DEFAULT sets the front-panel push-
buttons to cycle through 2-states (ON and OFF) for non-
Shutdown ports, and three states (ON, Shutdown, and OFF)
for Shutdown ports. This is the default operating mode from
the factory.

The “DEFAULT” option supports locking a port in the on
or off state by pressing and holding the port’s pushbutton for
two seconds, at which point the LED above will flicker
rapidly. If the port is on, this action will lock the port on. If
the port is off, this action will lock the port off. To unlock a
port, again press and hold the port’s pushbutton for two
seconds is a the port will stay in the same on or off state, it
will be unlocked again.

When a port is locked, the power state of the port can not
be changed remotely by a user. A user logged in with the
“admn” username, however, can lock or unlock a port
remotely from the Power Control Screen by positioning the
cursor in the column of the target port, and then pressing “L”
to lock or “U” to unlock the port.

Regarding “SET PASSWORD [username]|", the SET
PASSWORD command is used to change the password of
any username. A user may specify a username for which the
password is to be changed as a parameter to the SET
PASSWORD command or he may enter the SET PASS-
WORD command with no parameters. If a user enters the
SET PASSWORD command without specifying a username,
the system will prompt a user for a username with the
following prompt: *Username:". If a valid username is not
specified either as a parameter on the SET PASSWORD
command or in response to the “Username:” prompt, the
following message is displayed: “Sorry, a username a user
has entered is NOT valid!”, and the SET PASSWORD
command is terminated. If a user enters a valid username he
is prompted for the new password and also for a verification
of the new password. A user must specify the current
password in order to change the password for the adminis-
trator username (e.g., admn). For all other usernames the
password is changed without having to first specify the
existing password. The password can not contain more than
16 characters or the command is aborted with the following
message: “Sorry, the password a user has entered is NOT
valid!”. The following message is displayed when the pass-
word is changed: “Password successfully changed”.

The power manager will echo the “*” character for all
characters entered by a user for passwords when using the
SET PASSWORD command. This includes the new pass-

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word, the verification of the new password and the verifi-
cation of the existing password in the case of changing the
ADMN password.

Regarding “SET SHOW [username] [ONIOFF]”, the SET
SHOW command is used to enable or disable SHOW
command access for a username. The SET SHOW command
can be entered with no parameters, with a single parameter
(which is a username) or with two parameters (which are
username followed by “on” or “off” to indicate the SHOW
command is to be enabled or disabled). If a parameter is not
specified, a user is prompted first for a user name with the
“Username:” message followed by a prompt for the “on” or
“off” specification with the “Specify ON or OFF:” message.
Ifa user does not specify a valid username in response to the
“Username:” prompt, the command aborts with the follow-
ing message: “Sorry, a username a user has entered is NOT
valid!”. If a user enters a single parameter, the “Specify ON
or OFF:” prompt occurs. If a user specifies both a username
and “on’’/“off’ parameters there is no prompting. The appro-
priate error message is issued and the command aborted if a
username is invalid, regardless if the *on"/*off" value is
specified as a parameter on the command line or is entered
in response to a prompt. If the command completes suc-
cessfully, the following message is displayed: “Show com-
mand enabled/disabled for USERNAME”. In this message,
USERNAME is replaced by the specified username and
either enabled or disabled is displayed depending on the
action taken.

Regarding "SET SCREEN (NOCONFIRMICONFIRM]",
the SET SCREEN command is used to enable or disable a
confirmation message when using the power manager full
screen interface. When the CONFIRM option is set a user is
prompted with an “Are the sure? (Y/“N”)” message when
making changes via the SHOW command screen. When the
NOCONFIRM option is set changes are made immediately.
This command changes the confirm option on all boards in
a power manager chain.

The following SET commands are used to set parameters
pertaining to SNMP traps that can be generated by power
managers. Not all power manager hardware support all
SNMP traps. Some of these commands use Board Name as
a parameter. The Board Name is the name specified in the
Page field of the SHOW command full screen interface. In
addition to specifying the mnemonic name from the SHOW
command page field, a user may specify an absolute Board
Name by preceding the Board Name with a period (“.”).
Appending the power manager Board letter (e.g., “A” for the
first board, “B” for the second board, etc. to the leading
period creates the absolute Board Names. For example, the
third power manager Board in the chain of boards would
have an absolute Board Name of *.C". If the chain of power
manager Boards is altered for any reason, the absolute Board
Names change. For example, if the second board in the chain
is removed (perhaps it fails), and what used to be the third
board is now connected to the first board (it is now the
second board in the chain), then the absolute Board Name on
the new board changes from *'.C to .B". An absolute Board
Name always refers to a single port on a single board.

The “SET TEMPH [Board NamelALL] [value]" com-
mand is used to set the SNMP temperature trap high limit.
The SET TEMPH command takes two optional parameters.
The first is the Board Name. If the Board Name parameter
is not specified on the command line the power manager
prompts for the Board Name with the “Board:” prompt. A
user may specify an absolute Board Name, a mnemonic

Board Name from the SHOW command page field or the
keyword ALL to cause all boards in the chain to be modified
by the command.

The second parameter is the temperature limit value to be
set. The value is in degrees Celsius and may be any value
from 1 to 125. If the value is not specified on the command
line, the power manager prompts for the value with the
“Temperature:” prompt. If the value specified is not within
the proper range, the following error message is displayed:
"Invalid Temperature Valid range 1 to 125".

When the command completes the following message is
displayed *Limit Value Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s)
Command Completed Successfully!”. The *X" in the mes-
sage indicates the number of boards modified by the com-
mand.

The “SET TEMPL [Board NamelALL;] [value]" command
is used to set the SNMP temperature trap low limit. The SET
TEMPL command takes two optional parameters. The first
is the Board Name. If the Board Name parameter is not
specified on the command line the power manager prompts
for the Board Name with the “Board:” prompt. A user may
specify an absolute Board Name, a mnemonic Board Name
from the SHOW command page field or the keyword ALL
to cause all boards in the chain to be modified by the
command.

When the command completes the following message is
displayed “Limit Value Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s)
Command Completed Successfully!". The *X" in the mes-
sage indicates the number of boards modified by the com-
mand.

The *SET LOADH [Port NamelGrouplALL] [value]"
command is used to set the SNMP load sense trap high limit.
The SET LOADH command takes two optional parameters.
The first is the Port Name. If the Port Name parameter is not
specified on the command line the power manager prompts
for the Port Name with the *Port Name:" prompt.

The second parameter is the amps limit value to be set.
The amps value may be any value from 1 to 60. If the value
specified is not within the proper range, the following error
message is displayed: “Invalid Amps Value Valid range 1 to
60”.

When the command completes the following message is
displayed “Limit Value Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s)
Command Completed Successfully!”. The *X" in the mes-
sage indicates the number of power manager ports modified
by the command.

The “SET LOADL [Port NamelGrouplALL] [value]"
command is used to set the SNMP load sense trap low limit.
The SET LOADL command takes two optional parameters.
The first is the Port Name. If the Port Name parameter is not
specified on the command line the power manager prompts
for the Port Name with the “Port Name:” prompt.

When the command completes the following message is
displayed “Limit Value Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s)

US 7,099,934 Bl

Command Completed Successfully!". The *X" in the mes-
sage indicates the number of power manager ports modified
by the command.

The "SET ENABLET
{STRTITEMPIMSTAICSTAILOAD} [Port NamelBoard
NamelGrouplALL]" command is used to enable an SNMP
trap. The SET ENABLET command takes two parameters.
The first is the type of trap to be enabled. There are four
types of traps that are supported by the power manager,
STRT is a trap generated when the power manager is started
or resynchronized; TEMP is a trap generated when the
power manager temperature probe senses a temperature too;
MSTA is a trap generated when an IPM indicates an error
(Module STAus error); and, CSTA is a trap generated when
a power change occurs (Control STAus change).

LOAD is a trap generated when the load on an IPM is too.
If the first parameter is not specified the command does not
complete.

The second parameter is the Board Name for board wide
traps (e.g., STRT and TEMP) and is the Port Name for IPM
specific traps (e.g., MSTA, CSTA and LOAD). If the Board
Name parameter is not specified on the command line the
power manager prompts for the Boar Name with the
*Board:" prompt. If the Port Name parameter is not specified
on the command line the power manager prompts for the
Port Name with the “Port Name:” prompt.

When the command completes the following message is
displayed “Trap Enabled/disabled on X unit(s)/port(s) Com-
mand Completed Successfully!". The *X" in the message
indicates the number of boards or ports for which the
specified trap is enabled or disabled by the command.

The "SET
DISABLET{STRTITEMPIMSTAICSTAILOAD} [Port
NamelBoard NamelGrouplALL]" command is used to dis-
able an SNMP trap. The SET DISABLET command takes
two parameters. The first is the type of trap to be disabled.
There are four types of traps that are supported by the power
manager. They are:

STRT is a trap generated when the power manager is
started or resynchronized.

TEMP is a trap generated when the power manager
temperature probe senses a temperature too.

MSTA is a trap generated when an IPM indicates an error
(Module STAus error).

CSTA 1s a trap generated when a power change occurs
(Control STAus change).

LOAD is a trap generated when the load on an IPM is too.
If the first parameter is not specified the command does not
complete.

The second parameter is the Board Name for board wide
traps (e.g., STRT and TEMP) and is the Port Name for IPM
specific traps, e.g., MSTA, CSTA and LOAD. If the Board
Name parameter is not specified on the command line the
power manager prompts for the Board Name with the
“Board:” prompt. If the Port Name parameter is not specified
on the command line the power manager prompts for the
Port Name with the “Port Name:” prompt.

When the command completes the following message is
displayed “Trap Enabled/disabled on X unit(s)/port(s) Com-
mand Completed Successfully!”. The *X" in the message
indicates the number of boards or ports for which the
specified trap is enabled or disabled by the command.

Regarding “LIST TRAP [Board NamelALL]", the LIST
TRAP command is used to list the current SNMP trap
settings on one or more boards in a chain of boards. The
LIST command is also used to list usernames and ports and

these functions are described in a username/password
administration section of this manual.

The LIST TRAP command takes a single parameter that
is the name of the board to be listed. If this parameter is
omitted, the power manager prompts for the board name
with the “Board:” prompt. If a user specifies and absolute
board name (e.g., a period “.” followed by a letter), infor-
mation on that specific board will be displayed. If a mne-
monic name is entered, the command will display informa-
tion on all boards with that board name with a “Press:
*N')exet, *Q')uit" prompt between board displays. The
following is an example of the display that is returned by the
LIST TRAP command,

TRAP INFORMATION FOR UNIT: .A
power manager Start Up Trap: [X]
Temperature Error Trap: [X]
Temperature High Limit: 50 Deg C.

Temperature Low Limit: 1 Deg C.

Al .A2 A3 .A4
Control Status Trap [X] [X] [X] [X]
Module Status Trap [X] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Device Load Trap [X] bI De) []
Load High Limit 4 4 4 4
Load Low Limit 1 1 1 1
Press: *N')ext, *Q')uit: n

The display begins with a line that prints the absolute
board name for the board being displayed. Then a line is
displayed that indicates whether the Start Up trap (STRT)
and the Temperature trap (TEMP) are active on this board.
An *X" between the brackets means the trap is active. Even
if the Start Up trap is active, start up traps are generated on
the first board in the chain of boards.

The next line shows the current Temperature trap limits
for this board. Following the temperature limits, is a four
column matrix that shows which traps are enabled for which
ports on this board. An *X" between the brackets corre-
sponding to the trap and the port indicates the trap is active.
Only the absolute port names are displayed. Following the
enabled/disabled display for the traps, is a display of the
current device load high and low limits for each of the four
ports on this board. Finally, a prompt to continue with the
next board or quit is displayed. When the command is
complete a “Port List Complete” message is printed.

Username/password and Serial Port Name administration
commands are available when logged in with the adminis-
trative username (e.g., admn). These commands are used to
add/delete users, to allow/disallow access to power manager
IPMs for usernames and to view the current usernames and
their associated IPM access. They are also used to assign
names to the various serial ports that can be accessed via the
CONNECT command.

Regarding “ADD {USERIPORTISNAME}
[Usernamelserial Port ID] [Port NamelSerial Port Name]",
the ADD command is used to add usernames to the system,
to add Serial Port Names, and to add port access to a
username. The ADD command takes one required parameter
and up to two optional parameters.

The first parameter is required and indicates whether a
username is to be added (ADD USER) or whether port
access is to be granted to a user (ADD PORT), or whether
a Serial Port Name is to be added (ADD SNAME).

The ADD USER command is used to add a new username
to the system. The command can be entered with a single

US 7,099,934 Bl

parameter (which is the new username) or with no param-
eters. If a parameter is not specified, a user is prompted for
a username with the following prompt: “Username:”. A
non-blank username that contains no more than 16 charac-
ters, and does not contain the colon “:” character, must be
entered at this prompt or the command is aborted with the
following message: “Sorry, a username a user has entered is
NOT valid!”. A username is not case sensitive.

Once a username is specified, a user is prompted for a
password via the “Password:” message. A user is prompted
for a verification of the newly entered password after enter-
ing the password. The verification password must match the
first password entered or the command is aborted with the
following message: “Sorry, the password a user has entered
is NOT valid!". The “*” character is echoed in response to
the characters typed for the password and the password
verification strings. The password value entered at this
prompt and successfully verified is stored as the password
for this username and is used to validate this username
during normal power manager logon processing. The pass-
word can not contain more than 16 characters or the com-
mand is aborted with the following message: “Sorry, the
password a user has entered is NOT valid!". The password
is case sensitive.

Once the information has been entered, a user receives the
following message: “Username successfully added”. Note
that a value in a username is required in this command.
Blank or empty responses to the password prompt and the
password verification prompt are accepted as valid.

By default, a new user does not have access to any
resources on the power manager Board, and cannot use the
SHOW command. To allow a user to access a power module
or a communications connection, the ADD PORT command
must be used. To allow a user to use the SHOW command
the SET SHOW command must be used.

The ADD PORT command is used to allow a username to
access a port in the power manager Board chain. The
specified port name gives access to both the power module
and the communications port referenced by the port name.
The command can be entered with no parameters, with a
single parameter (which is a username) or with two param-
eters (which are username followed by the port name). If a
parameter is not specified, a user is prompted first for a user
name with the “Username:” message followed by a prompt
for the port name with the following prompt: “Port Name:”.
Ifa user does not specify a valid username in response to the
“Username:” prompt, the command aborts with the follow-
ing message: “Sorry, a username a user has entered is NOT
valid!”. A non-blank port name must be entered after the
“Port Name:” or the command is aborted with the following
message: “Sorry, the port name a user has entered is NOT
valid". The same message is produced if the power manager
does not recognize the port name. If a user enters a single
parameter, the port name prompt occurs. If a user specifies
both a username and port name parameters there is no
prompting. The appropriate error messages are issued and
the command aborted if either a username or port name is
invalid, regardless if the value is specified as a parameter on
the command line or is entered in response to a prompt. If
the command completes successfully, the following message
is displayed: “Access to PORTNAME is granted to USER-
NAME”. In this message PORTNAME is replaced by the
specified port name and USERNAME is replaced by the
specified username.

The PORTNAME specified in this command can be an
absolute port name, a user created port name, or a group port
name.

rek

The ADD SNAME command is used to add a new name
to a serial port in a power manager chain. The command can
be entered with no parameters, with a single parameter
(which is the serial port ID—identifies which port is to be
named) or with two parameters (which are the serial port ID
followed by the serial port name). If a parameter is not
specified, a user is prompted first for the serial port ID with
the “Serial Port ID:” message followed by a prompt for the
serial port name with the following prompt: *Name:". If a
user does not specify a valid serial port name in response to
the *Name:" prompt, the command aborts with the follow-
ing message: “The serial port name a user has entered is
NOT valid!”. Valid serial port names are from 1 to 16
characters with blanks not allowed.

In response to the “Serial Port ID:” a prompt, a user may
enter either a number from 1 to 16 (to specify one of the 16
possible ports connected at the end of the chain), or a two
character pass through port identifier that begins with a letter
and is followed by a number from 1 to 4. The parameter is
verified to ensure the serial port exists and that the serial port
is not already named. If the specified serial port is already
named, it must first be deleted using the DEL command and
then added.

Regarding *DEL {USERIPORTISNAME}
[UsernamelSerial Port NAME] [Port Name]", the DEL com-
mand is used to delete usernames from the system, to delete
Serial Port Names, and to delete access to ports for a specific
username. The DEL command takes one required parameter
and up to two optional parameters.

The first parameter is required and indicates whether a
username is to be deleted (DEL USER) or whether port
access is to be removed from a user (DEL PORT), or
whether a Serial Port Name is to be deleted (DEL SNAME).

The DEL USER command is used to remove a username
from the system. The command can be entered with a single
parameter (which is a username to remove) or with no
parameters. If a parameter is not specified, a user is
prompted for a username with the following prompt: “User-
name:". A valid system username must be entered at this
prompt or the command is aborted with the following
message: "Sorry, a username a user has entered is NOT
valid". This command cannot be used to remove any of the
three default usernames (e.g., admn, genl, or gen2).

When the DEL USER command completes successfully,
a user receives “Username successfully deleted". A success-
ful DEL USER command causes access to all ports for the
specified user to be removed.

The DEL PORT command is used to remove access for a
username to a port in the power manager Board chain. The
command can be entered with no parameters, with a single
parameter (which is a username) or with two parameters
(which are username followed by the port name or by the
keyword “ALL” to indicate access to all ports should be
removed). If a parameter is not specified, a user is prompted
first for a user name with the “Username:” message followed
by a prompt for the port name with the following prompt:
“Port Name:”. If a user does not specify a valid username in
response to the “Username:” prompt, the command aborts
with the following message: “Sorry, a username a user has
entered is NOT valid! ". A valid port name must be entered
after the “Port Name:” or the command is aborted with the
following message: “Sorry, the port name a user has entered
is NOT valid!”. A user may enter the keyword “ALL” in
response to the “Port Name:” prompt, in which case access
to all ports for this username is removed. If a user enters a
single parameter, the port name prompt occurs. If a user
specifies both a username and port name parameters there is

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no prompting. The appropriate error messages are issued and
the command aborted if either a username or port name is
invalid, regardless if the value is specified as a parameter on
the command line or is entered in response to a prompt. If
the command completes successfully, the following message
is displayed: *Access to PORTNAME is denied to USER-
NAME". In this message PORTNAME is replaced by the
specified port name (or the keyword *ALL") and USER-
NAME is replaced by the specified username. Note that
access for the administrator cannot be removed.

The DEL SNAME command is used to remove a serial
port name. The command can be entered with no parameters,
or with a single parameter (which is the serial port name). If
a parameter is not specified, a user is prompted first for the
serial port name with the “Name:” message. If a user does
not specify a valid serial port name in response to the
“Name:” prompt, the command aborts with the following
message: “The serial port name a user has entered is NOT

valid!".
Regarding “LIST
(USERIUSERSIPORTIPORTSISNAME} — [Username!Port

Name]” the LIST command is used to list the current
usernames active in the power manager system with their
current SHOW command access and the ports to which a
username has access, to list the current users allowed access
to the system ports, and to list the currently defined Serial
Port Names.

The LIST command can be used to list all users in the
system (LIST USERS), to list a single user and all ports to
which the specified user has access (LIST USER), to list all
ports in the power manager chain and all users with access
to all ports (LIST PORTS), and to list a single port and all
users with access to that port (LIST PORT).

The LIST USER command is used to display information
about a single user. This information includes a list of all
ports on the system to which a user has access and whether
the SHOW command is enabled or disabled for a user. The
command can be entered with a single parameter (which is
a username to list) or with no parameters. If a parameter is
not specified, a user is prompted for a username with the
following prompt: *Username:". A valid system username
must be entered at this prompt or the command is aborted
with the following message: “Sorry, a username a user has
entered is NOT valid!".

If a valid username is specified the following message is
displayed: Active Port List for Username XXXXXX Show
command enabled/disabled.

In the above message XXXXXX is replaced by a user-
name and either enabled or disabled is displayed depending
on the status of the SHOW command for this username.

After the header message is displayed, a list of all ports to
which a username has access is displayed. The absolute port
name is displayed, followed by a user defined port name (if
there is one) followed by the group name (if there is one).
If the list of ports fills a screen, a user is prompted to press
“N” for additional names or “Q” to end the list. The
following is an example of the screen display,

Al PortAl GroupAl
-A2 PortA2 GroupAl
ZA PortZ4 GroupAl

Press: “N” ext, “Q” uit

All ports will have at least the absolute port name dis-
played; however a user assigned port name and the group
name may or may not be present based on the configuration
of the port.

The LIST USERS command is used to display a list of all
the valid users on the system along with a display of whether
the SHOW command is enabled or disabled for a user. If a
username list fills the screen, a user is prompted to press “N”
for additional names or “Q” to end the list. The following is
an example of the LIST USERS display,

admn Show command enabled
genl Show command enabled
gen2 Show command enabled
sentry1 Show command disabled

Press: “N”)ext, “Q” uit

When all users have been listed, the following message is
displayed: “Username List Complete”.

The LIST PORT command is used to display a list of all
users with access to a specific port on the system. The
command can be entered with a single parameter (which is
the port name to list) or with no parameters. If a parameter
is not specified, a user is prompted for the port name with the
following prompt: “Port Name:”

After a port name is specified, a list of usernames with
access to the port is displayed on the screen. The port name
being listed is displayed followed by a list of usernames. The
port name is displayed as the absolute port name followed by
a user created port name (if there is one) followed by the
group port name (if there is one). The following example
illustrates the first group of a specific port name display,

.C4 USERPORTI GROUPPORTI
usernames:

admn genl gen2
sentryl sentry2 sentry3
sentry4 sentry5 sentry6
sentry7 sentry8 sentry9
sentry10 sentryll sentryl2
sentry13 sentryl4 sentryl5
sentryló sentryl7 sentry18
sentry19 sentry20 sentry21
sentry22 sentry23 sentry24
sentry25 sentry26 sentry27

Press: “N”)ext, “Q” uit

When all users for a specific port have been displayed the
following message is displayed: “Username List for PORT1
Complete”.

A LIST PORTS command is used to display a list of all
ports on the system with all users with access to each port
on the system. The display is the same as for a single port
name list as illustrated in the LIST PORT command above,
except the *N')ext, "Quit prompt is displayed after the
“Username List for PORT1 Complete” message is displayed
rather than returning to the power manager prompt. Ports are
displayed in port order starting with absolute port .A1 and
ending with the forth port on the last board in the chain
(unless a user specifies “““Q’”’ before the last port is listed).

When all users for all ports have been listed, the following
message is displayed: “Port List Complete”.

The LIST SNAM command is used to display the current
serial port names and the port associated with the serial port

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name. The command takes no parameters. The output of the
LIST SNAM command is a display of the current serial port
names. Each serial port name is followed by the associated
power manager port for the name. The names are displayed
in groups of twenty ports. After each group of twenty ports
is displayed a user is prompted to press “N” for additional
names or “Q” to end the list. The following is an example of
the screen with twenty serial port names displayed, three are
listed here for illustration,

TERMINALPORT -Al
NTSYSTEM .B4
LINKPORT 12

Press: *N")ext, *Q')uit

From the Power Control Screen, a user can control power
and configure the power manager by simply moving around
the screen using the arrow keys and pressing an action key.
All configuration changes made in the Power Control Screen
are saved to non-volatile RAM and are effective immedi-
ately. Not all of the power manager hardware supports all of
the functions illustrated in the descriptions. If a capability is
not supported, a user will see an **N"/A" displayed in the
field on the screen.

A Power Control Screen is accessed by a SHOW com-
mand from a command prompt,

power manager: SHOW

A SHOW command displays an ANSI power control screen,
e.g., eighty characters wide by twenty-four lines,

Power Control System (c) Server Technology, Inc.
1 of 2

Location: [ ]
Port Name: [ | L TE O]
Control Status: (x) On (x) On (x) On (x) On

( )OfF ( )Of ( )OF ( )Of
Module Status: Normal Normal Normal Normal
Device Load: 2.50A 2.50A 2.50A 2.50A
Minimum-On Time: 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00
Minimum-Off Time: 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00
Shutdown Delay: Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
Wake-Up State: On On On On
Group: L L 3 O]
Access: All All All All
Page: [wv]
Temperature: 27.0 Deg C.
Press: C)mnd, E)dit, *N'")ext, *Q')uit, Space-Bar to Select

Power managers can support up to twenty-six boards in a
chain of boards. Each board has its own set of four intelli-
gent power modules (IPM’s). The power manager has a
power control screen for each of the boards in the power
manager chain. Some modules have on board and therefore
a single power control screen. Other have multiple boards
and therefore multiple power control screens (one for each
board). Each power control screen is considered a different
page and each power control screen controls four IPM’s.
The page currently being viewed is displayed in the upper
right corner of the screen, as is the total number of pages.
The page currently being viewed is also indicated by the

name in the page field in the lower left of the screen. A help
line at the bottom indicates what key presses are available
for specific functions,

C)mnd puts the power manager back into Command Prompt mode at
the “power manager:” prompt.

E)dit is used to edit fields enclosed by square brackets.
When “E” is pressed, the cursor moves to the end of the
current entry. The backspace key erases one character.
Press Enter or Tab when done editing the field.

“N” ext displays the next Power Control Screen page.
P)revious displays the previous Power Control Screen page.
“Q” uit ends the current session.

S)pace-Bar to Select indicates that the space bar is used on
non-editable fields to toggle between the predetermined
settings. The space bar is also used on the status line to
change the power state of a port to the state of the current
cursor location (either On or Off). The plus and minus keys
can also be used to toggle forward or backward through the
predetermined settings.

A Port Name is an eight character descriptive field for the
device plugged into the IPM. This field is used both as a
description and as a parameter to the ON, OFF, REBOOT,
and STATUS commands.

A Control Status of the IPM is shown by a character in the
On or Off field. An “x” is displayed if the port is accessible
remotely. An asterisk is displayed if the IPM is locked on by
the administrator, or if the IPM is not accessible by the
current password level.

To change the power state of an IPM, the cursor is moved
to the desired state (On or Off), and the space bar is pressed.
The “x” will move to the new state, indicating the power
changed to that state.

A user can press “R” when in the On or Of field to reboot
the port. If the port is already off, it will turn on immediately.
If it is on, it will turn off, delay, then turn back on. The delay
before turning back on is either 15 seconds, or the Mini-
mum-Off Time, whichever is greater. During the reboot
delay, an “r” is displayed in the Off field, indicating the port
is going to reboot.

When in the On or Off field, a user logged in with the
administrative password can lock or unlock a port by
pressing “L” to lock, or *U" to unlock. A locked port will
display an asterisk in the On or Off field, and cannot be
controlled by a general user is a it can be unlocked by the
administrator.

The Module Status is an informational field that displays
the current status of the associated IPM as reported to the
power manager. If the IPM is working correctly, this filed
will display “Normal”. If the power manager is unable to
communicate with the associated IPM this field will display
“No Rspns". If the IPM is set to “On” and the power
manager detects the associated IPM is not on, this field will
display *OnS Fail", e.g., for On Sense Failure. If the IPM is
set to *Off" and the power manager detects the associated
IPM is on, this field will display “Off Fail”. Note that power
managers equipped with these “ON SENSE” IPMs can be
configured to generate SNMP traps when On Sense errors
are detected.

The Device Load is an informational field that displays
the amount of current in Amps that is flowing through the
associated IPM. This field is significant if the power man-
ager is equipped with the Server Technology “LOAD
SENSE” IPMs that are capable of sensing the load going
through the IPM and relaying this information to the power
manager. If the power manager is not equipped with these
“LOAD SENSE” IPMs this field has no meaning and

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“N”/A” is displayed. This field will display the current in
Amps when current is flowing. If the associated IPM is set
to off and no current is flowing (this is the normal case), the
field will display “Not On”. Power managers equipped with
“LOAD SENSE” IPMs can be configured to generate SNMP
traps when load sense values fall outside a user configurable
range.

The Minimum-On Time is the minimum amount of time
that an IPM will stay on before it can be turned off by actions
at the power manager command prompt. Manual actions in
the Power Control Screen On or Off fields, however, are
always immediate, ignoring this value. The default is 0.

The Minimum-Off Time is the minimum amount of time
that an IPM will stay off before it can be turned on by actions
at the power manager command prompt. Manual actions in
the Power Control Screen On or Off fields, however, are
always immediate, ignoring this value, except in the case of
a reboot. This field determines the off delay time of a reboot,
if greater than 15 seconds. The default is 0.

The Shutdown Delay is the amount of time the power
manager will delay when a Power Off command is issued for
an IPM before the IPM is actually set to the Power Off state.
This delay is designed to allow a Power Off signal to be sent
to an operating system on a machine that is attached to the
IPM. Pressing the space bar when positioned to this field
changes this value. The value can be set from “Disabled”
(e.g., no delay) to a series of choices ranging up to an
eight-minute delay. Please refer to the power manager
Shutdown and Windows-NT UPS Service Configuration
section of this manual for information on configuring auto-
matic operating system shutdown.

The Wake-Up State is the state that the IPM will be in
when controller power is turned on or when controller power
is restored after a power outage. The options are ON and
OFF. The default is ON.

The Group field takes an eight character group identifier.
All IPMs with the same group name can be acted upon
simultaneously by command line actions (ON, OFF, and
REBOOT). The group field can be left blank so that an IPM
is not part of a group.

The Access field allows changing the access to the asso-
ciated IPM for the three default usernames. Ifa user is using
more that the three default usernames on his system, access
must be set via a username/password administration com-
mands described earlier in this manual. With this field access
can be granted to all three default usernames by setting the
“ALL” value. To limit access to the admn username the field
is set to “Admn”. To limit access to the admn and genl
usernames the field is set to “Gen1”. To limit access to the
admn and gen2 usernames the field is set to “Gen2”. This
field can be modified when logged in with the admn user-
name. The admn username always has access to all IPMS.
The default is All.

The Page field is an eight character identifier to describe
the current screen page, as a more descriptive alternative to
the page numbering in the upper-right-hand corner of the
screen. This entry is used as a parameter to the SHOW
command to display the Power Control Screen of a specific
set of four IPMs. If page names are entered, each page
MUST have a unique page name.

The temperature field displays the current temperature in
degrees Celsius as detected by the temperature probe on the
board if the board is equipped with a temperature probe. If
the power manager is not equipped with a temperature
probe, this field has no meaning and ““N’/A” is displayed.

A session can be ended from either the command prompt
or the Power Control Screen,

From the command prompt, type QUIT and press Enter.

From the Power Control Screen, press “Q”.

A session will automatically be terminated after 5 minutes
of inactivity. With a modem connection, the modem will
automatically be hung-up by the power manager lowering
DTR to the modem, as well as sending the attention and
Hang-up strings to the modem, if they have not been
disabled.

A session will also automatically end when CD or DSR go
inactive into the Modem port, which occurs when the
modem is hung-up or the communication software is exited.

When a session is ended, a user is notified with the
message, “Session ended”. There is then a period of about
fifteen seconds after a session is ended before another
session can be started so the power manager can reinitialize
the modem after a session is ended. If a modem is not used
and the modem initialization strings are turned off, the time
between sessions is about seven seconds.

A non-volatile RAM preferably stores all configurable
power manager options, including the passwords, can be
reset to factory defaults. This clears all a user-editable fields
on the Power Control Screens and resets all the command-
line configurable options to defaults, including the pass-
words.

Resetting to factory defaults can be done in two ways is
a by an administrative-level command at the power manager
prompt, or by a Reset button press during power up. This
second method is necessary if the passwords are forgotten.

An administrative-level command reset is performed with
the command, “SET CNFG ALL FACTORY". This will
reset all the power manager products in a chain.

The button press during power up reset must be done on
the first power manager at the beginning of a chain. The reset
is performed by pressing and holding down the Reset button
while turning on power with the On/Off toggle switch.
Continue to hold down the Reset button for two seconds
after turning on the power, then let go.

This will reset the first power controller board in the
power manager at the beginning of a chain. The rest of the
chain should then be reset by logging in with the adminis-
trator username (e.g., admn), and then issuing the adminis-
trative reset command shown above.

The network option of the power managers is imple-
mented by an OEM version of the MSS1 Micro Serial Server
manufactured by Lantronix. This device is enclosed within
the power manager case and provides the Telnet-to-asyn-
chronous functionality that allows the power manager to be
accessed over a TCP/IP Ethernet network.

For purposes of this document, the MSSI shall be con-
sidered part of the power manager. References will be made
to the power manager as an Ethernet device, when, in
actuality, it is the MSSI inside the power manager that
provides the network functionality. The MSS1 will generally
be referred to as the power manager “NIC”.

Before the power manager can be accessed over a net-
work, the NIC must first be configured with an IP Address,
Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway. These instructions
explain how to configure the network parameters through
either a Modem or Console connection.

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Start a session with the power manager through either the
Modem or Console port. Start this session with a data rate
of 9600.

At the “power manager:” prompt, issue the command
“CONNECT NETWORK”. This should connect the session
to the internal NIC’s serial port and display the message
“Connection complete”.

Press enter multiple times. A version message from the
NIC inside the power manager Commander should be
displayed, followed by a “Login password>” prompt: Serv-
erTech MSSI Version STI3.6/1 (991214). Type HELP at the
*Local 12" prompt for assistance.

Enter the following default Login password: access
«Enter».

The password is case sensitive. A "Local 12" prompt
should appear: At the "Local 12" command prompt of the
NIC, issue the command: SET PRIVILEGED «Enter».

This will log a user in as a privileged user. A *Password»"
prompt will be displayed, at which point a user must enter
the following default privileged password: system «Enter».

The password is case sensitive. When the valid password
is entered the command prompt will change to "Local 122"
(two greater than signs), indicating a user are in a privileged
user mode.

From the privileged command prompt, enter the com-
mand: CHANGE IPADDRESS xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx «Enter»,
where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP address that a user want to
assign to the power manager Commander. This command
stores the IP address in the memory of the power manager
Commander NAD.

Issue the command: SHOW SERVER «Enter», on the
screen displayed, verify the information entered in the above
steps is correct. If the “TCP/IP Gateway:” entry is “(unde-
fined)’, or the “Subnet Mask:” is incorrect for the network,
a user should also issue the following commands: CHANGE
GATEWAY xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx «Enter»; and/or, CHANGE
SUBNET MASK xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx <Enter>, where
XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX is the appropriate IP address(es). Once a
user has finished network configuration, issue the com-
mands: SHOW SERVER «enter», SHOW PORT «enter», to
verify the information entered in the above commands.
When finished, issue the command: INIT DELAY 0 «enter»,
to logout and re-initialize the NIC in the power manager
with the new settings. Wait one minute for the NIC to
re-initialize.

Break the connection to the NIC by typing the string
sequence “!*LOGIN” followed by Enter. Log back into the
power manager and QUIT. Additionally the connection will
break when the modem is hung up, or the cable is discon-
nected from the Modem or Console port, or power is cycled
to the power manager.

For other methods of configuring the NIC TCP/IP param-
eters, refer to the Lantronix web site at www.lantronix.com.

To start a power manager session via the TCP/IP NIC, a
user must connect a Telnet session to the IP address of the
power manager using Port 2001. This is done with the
command: telnet xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx 2001<Enter>, where
XXX.XXX.XXX.xxx is the IP address that was assigned to the
power manager.

Once the telnet connection is established, a user will be
presented with the standard power manager Login prompt.
If the “Username” prompt is not presented, press the Enter
key for one second and then release. This sends a series of
carriage returns that will start the power manager session.

It is possible to change the telnet port used to connect to
the power manager via the NIC. By default a telnet connec-
tion to the default telnet port connects users to the NIC

console. This allows users to enter commands to configure
and view the settings of the NIC. To connect to the power
manager, users connect to telnet port 2001. It is possible to
change the telnet port to cause the default telnet port to
connect to the power manager rather than to the NIC
console. To change the connection for the default telnet port,
a user must connect to the NIC console and use the change
TELNETDEST command. The command is restricted to
privileged users.

CHANGE TELNETDEST {ConsolelSerial} parameters
specify either Console or Serial where, Console causes
Telnet Port connections to connect to the NIC console.

Serial causes Telnet Port connections to connect directly
to the serial port (just as if they connected to Telnet Port
2001).

If the CHANGE TELNETDEST command is used to
change the default Telnet connection to the serial port and
then a user wish to change the default back to the NIC
console a user must connect to Telnet Port 7000. This
connection results in a “#’ prompt from the NIC. Respond
to this prompt with the default login password (e.g., access)
to begin a session with the NIC console. A user can then use
the CHANGE TELNETDEST command to change the Tel-
net default port back to the console.

An inactivity timeout is not enforced when both connect-
ing to a power manager and using a serial pass through port
to connect to another device. The NIC inactivity timeout
remains in effect. If users wish to disable or modify the NIC
inactivity timeout, there are two NIC console commands
available for this purpose. The first is the CHANGE INAC-
TIVE LOGOUT command. This command is used to enable
or disable the inactivity timeout. This command requires
privileged user status as described previously. The format of
the command is as follows: CHANGE INACTIVE
LOGOUT (EnablediIDisabled).

Use the Disabled parameter to disable the inactive logout
timer. Use the Enabled parameter to enable the inactive
logout timer.

To change the length of the inactive timer use the
CHANGE INACTIVE TIMER command. This command
requires privileged user status as described previously. The
format of the command is as follows: CHANGE INACTIVE
TIMER {XXslYYYm}.

The parameter is specified either in seconds (five to sixty)
or in minutes (one to one hundred twenty). For seconds add
an “s” after the number. For minutes add an “m” after the
number. The default value is thirty minutes.

Support for encrypted Telnet connections with the NIC is
possible. Connections can be made from a Win32 PC to the
NIC. Win32 connections are established, e.g., using a Lant-
ronix-supplied Telnet application.

For Win32 to NIC encrypted logins Lantronix provides
the TCPSCRAM.EXE utility program. This program allows
a user on a Win32 platform to form an encrypted connection
to a power manager NIC.

The target NIC must be configured with the encryption
password. Use the command: CRYPT PASSWORD
“XXXXXXX”.

Note that the password can be up to seven alphanumeric
characters and is case sensitive. After entering the encryp-
tion password, the unit must be rebooted.

To create a connection run the program TCP-
SCRAM.EXE. In the fields provided specify the IP address
ofthe NIC, the Telnet port to be used for the connection, and
the encryption password. Note that the password specified in
the application must match the password (case sensitive)
configured on the MSS itself.

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The TCPSCRAM program will then form a connection to
the power manager and all data passed between the PC and
the power manager will be encrypted. The TCP-
SCRAM.EXE file is possible on the Lantronix FTP server in
the /priv/misc tools/tcpscram directory.

Units that support encrypted connections support a key
size of fifty-six bits.

For more information on the commands described in this
section, and/or to view the complete MSS1 manual and
support files see the Lantronix WWW page at http://www-
Jantronix.com.

The power manager (with the NIC option) supports the
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). For a
complete description of the power manager SNMP support
please refer to the power manager SNMP Support section of
this manual. If SNMP support is required, the following
section describes the commands that must be issued on the
NIC (e.g., the MSS1—all commands require privileged
access).

Login to the MSS1 as described in the previous section or
by connecting via Telnet to the port 23 rather than port 2001.
Once connected enter privileged mode as described in the
previous section. The current settings can be viewed with the
command: SHOW PWR-MGR.

The power manager SNMP support is enabled and dis-
abled in the MSS1 with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP
(ENABLEDIDISABLED].

The default is *DISABLED" The power manager SNMP
support must be enabled for access to Sentry2 MIB objects
and for the generation of all Sentry2 traps.

The power manager SNMP MSSI-to-power manager
session timeout is configured with the command: PWR-
MGR SNMP TIMEOUT [5 ...55].

Valid entries are between 5 and 55, which represents the
session timeout in seconds. The default is 15 seconds.

When the MSSI receives a GET/SET SNMP request that
requires communication to the power manager controller
board(s), the MSS1 opens a serial session with the power
manager, during which time other access paths (Modem,
Console, Telnet) cannot establish a session with the power
manager. The timeout setting controls how long the MSS1-
to-power manager SNMP serial session must be inactive (no
longer needed for SNMP request fulfillment) before the
session is automatically closed, thus again allowing other
access paths.

The power manager SNMP MSSI-to-power manager
session speed is configured with the command: PWR-MGR
SNMP SPEED data_rate. Valid entries are 300, 1200, 2400,
4800, 9600, 19200, and 38400.

When the MSS1 receives a GET/SET SNMP request that
requires communication to the power manager controller
board(s), the MSS1 opens a serial session with the power
manager. During that session, the SPEED controls the serial
data rate that the power manager uses for returning
responses to query commands from the MSS1.

The power manager trap destination is defined in the
MSSI with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP TRAPDEST
nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn, where nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn is the IP Address
of the SNMP management station that will receive all traps.
An entry of 0.0.0.0 clears the address, setting it to “(unde-
fined)". The default is "(undefined)". The trap destination
must be configured for traps to be generated.

The power manager trap community string is defined in
the MSS with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP TRAP-
COMM “string”, Default=“sentry-trap”. The community
strings can be between one and fifteen characters. By
enclosing in double quotes, the case is preserved, otherwise

Kek

it is converted to all uppercase. An entry of “ ” clears the
string. All traps are sent with this trap community string. The
trap community string must be configured for traps to be
generated.

The power manager GET community string is defined in
the MSS with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP GET-
COMM “string”. The community strings can be between
one and fifteen characters. By enclosing in double quotes,
the case is preserved, otherwise it is converted to all upper-
case. An entry of clears the string.

GETCOMM is a string that will give access to the
sentry2ChainGroup read-MIB objects. The use of this string
will start a session with the power manager.
Default=“sentry”.

The power manager SET community string is defined in
the MSS with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP SET-
COMM “string”. The community strings can be between
one and fifteen characters. By enclosing in double quotes,
the case is preserved, otherwise it is converted to all upper-
case. An entry of “ ” clears the string.

SETCOMM is a string that will give access to the
sentry2ChainGroup read-MIB objects and the read-write
sentry2PortPowerAction MIB object. The use of this string
will start a session with the power manager. Default=“**”.
The SETCOMM community string must be configured for
power control operations to succeed.

The power manager GET community string for extended
power manager error information is defined in the MSS with
the command: PWR-MGR SNMP ERRCOMM “string”.
The community strings can be between one and fifteen
characters. By enclosing in double quotes, the case is
preserved, otherwise it is converted to all uppercase. An
entry of ** " clears the string.

ERRCOMM is a string that will give access to the
sentry2ErrorGroup read-MIB objects. The use of this string
will NOT start a session with the power manager.
Default-"sentry-error".

None of the power manager community strings should be
set to “public”. This is because “public” is the fixed GET
community string for the MSS1’s native SNMP support for
MIB I, MIB II, and RS232 MIB objects.

When finished, issue the command: SHOW PWR-MR
<enter>. To verify the settings a user has entered are correct,
then issue the command: INIT DELAY 0 <enter>. To logout
and re-initialize the NIC in the power manager with the new
settings. Wait one minute for the NIC to re-initialize.

For more information on the commands described in this
section, and/or to view the complete MSS1 manual and
support files see the Lantronix WWW page at http://www-
Jantronix.com.

If TACACS support is required, the following section
describes the commands that must be issued on the NIC
(e.g., the MSS1—all commands require privileged access).

Login to the MSS1 as described in the previous section or
by connecting via Telnet to port 23 rather than port 2001.
Once connected enter privileged mode as described in the
previous section. The current settings can be viewed with the
command: SHOW PWR-MGR.

The power manager TACACS support is enabled and
disabled in the MSS1 by setting the TACACS IP address and
defining the TACACS key. TACACS support is compatible
with TACACS Plus servers. To set the TACACS Plus server
IP address issue the following command: PWR-MGR
TACACS SERVER nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn, where
nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn is the IP Address of the TACACS PLUS
server that will authenticate telenet connection to the power
manager.

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The power manager TACACS Plus key string is defined
in the MSS with the command: PWR-MGR TACACS KEY
“string”. The key string should be enclosed in double quotes
to ensure the case is preserved. Since the key does not echo
it is important to be sure the key is specified correctly with
case being significant. The key must match the key specified
on the TACACS PLUS server.

Setting the TACACS KEY to any value activates
TACACS PLUS authentication. Clearing the TACACS KEY
by entering a null string in double quotes (e.g., * ") disables
TACACS PLUS authentication.

Once a user has enabled TACACS PLUS authentication
and rebooted the MSS1 a user will not be able to telnet to the
power manager without successfully completing TACACS
PLUS authentication. If a user enter an invalid key, a user
will be unable to access the power manager without reload-
ing the MSS1. If the TACACS PLUS server is unavailable
a user will not be able to access the power manager via
telnet.

When finished, a user issues the command: SHOW PWR-
MGR «enter». To verify the settings a user has entered are
correct, then issue the command: INIT DELAY 0 <enter>.
To logout and re-initialize the NIC in the power manager
with the new settings. Wait one minute for the NIC to
re-initialize.

SecurID support is possible with the power manager NIC.
The MSS1 with SecurID version string is “STI3.5/5+
(981103). SecurID is not enabled by default. It is enabled
and configured by several privileged-level MSS1 com-
mands.

Prior to enabling SecurID, the power manager unit should
be entirely configured and operational. A user must also
already be familiar with how to log into the MSS1 and how
to set privileged-user mode.

These instructions also assume thorough understanding of
the ACE/Server configuration items and processes.

There are six configurable SecurID parameters: the pri-
mary ACE/Server IP address, the secondary (backup) ACE/
Server IP address, the SecurID authentication request tim-
eout, the maximum number of authentication request retries,
the encryption method, and the SecurID port (TCP/IP socket
number).

The current SecurID parameter settings can be displayed
by the MSS1 privileged-level command: SHOW PWR-
MGR. SecurID is enabled if either the primary or secondary
ACE/Server IP Addresses is defined. This is done with the
MSSI privileged-level command: PWR-MGR SECURID
{PRIMARYISECONDARY} {ipaddressINONE}, where
ipaddress is in decimal numerical form. NONE removes the
ipaddress definition. Changing an ACE/Server IP Address
clears the MSS1’s Node Secret. The other MSS1 SecurID
commands are: PWR-MGR SECURID TIMEOUT n, where
n is the number of seconds between authentication request
retries. Default=3.

PWR-MGR SECURID MAXRETRY n, where n is the
maximum number of authentication request retries.
Default-5.

PWR-MGR SECURID ENCRYPTION {SIDIDES},
where SID or DES selects the encryption method.
Default-DES. This must match the client configuration on
the ACE/Server. new ACE/Server versions renamed the SID
encryption to SDI.

PWR-MGR SECURID PORT nnnnn, where nnnnn is the
SecurID authentication socket number. Default-5500. This
must match the port configured on the ACE/Server.

PWR-MGR SECURID FACTORY resets all the SecurID
configuration parameters to their factory defaults.

In the ACE/Server Database Administration, create and
configure an MSS] client, selecting “Communication
Server" as the Client Type. The MSS1 can do multiple
transactions and therefore can display the Next Tokencode
and New PIN prompts.

When SecurID is enabled, the standard MSS1 password
protection is redundant, and a user will probably want to turn
it off. A user can leave it on if a user want, in which case a
user will first be prompted for the MSS1 login password, and
then, after a successful entry, will be prompted for the
SecurID username/passcode. To turn off the standard MSS1
password protection, use the privileged-level MSS1 com-
mands,

CHANGE PASSWORD PROTECT DISABLED

CHANGE INCOMING NOPASSWORD

CHANGE PASSWORD INCOMING DISABLED

Security Enabling SecurID does not affect power manager
SNMP support for controlling power. power manager SNMP
support defaults to DISABLED, so it is an issue if it is
enabled. The “SHOW PWR-MGR” command will display
the current power manager SNMP status.

The power manager NIC supports two passwords—a
Privileged password and a Login password. The Privileged
password is used to become the privileged user (adminis-
trator), which is required to change settings of the NIC. This
password was used in the previous two procedures with the
SET PRIV command. The NIC defaults to not using the
Login password, but can be configured to require the Login
password when logging on (before entering a user name)
and/or to establish a Telnet session using Port 2001 to begin
a power control session with the power manager.

The default Privileged password is “system”, which is
changed with the CHANGE PRIVPASS command. The
default Login password is “access”, which is changed with
the CHANGE LOGINPASS command. Both passwords can
be made up of up to six case-sensitive alphanumeric char-
acters. Changing either password requires privileged user
status.

To configure the NIC to require the Login password when
logging in, use the CHANGE INCOMING PASSWORD
command. To not require the Login password when logging
in, use the CHANGE INCOMING NOPASSWORD com-
mand.

To configure the NIC to require the Login password when
starting a Telnet session to port 2001, use the CHANGE
PASSWORD INCOMING ENABLED command. To con-
figure the NIC to not require the Login password when
starting a Telnet session to port 2001, use the CHANGE
PASSWORD INCOMING DISABLED command.

The power manager NIC also supports an IP Security
option that a user may wish to implement. IP security allows
the system administrator to restrict incoming and outgoing
TCP/IP sessions and access to the serial port. Connections
are allowed or denied based upon the source IP address for
incoming connections and the destination IP address for
outgoing connections.

IP security information can be added to the IP local host
table using the CHANGE IPSECURITY command. Specify
an address in standard numeric format. An address with 0 or
255 in any segment restricts all addresses in that range.

To add an entry, specify an IP address and whether to
allow or deny connections. The following exemplary com-
mand disables connections for all addresses between
192.0.1.1 and 192.0.1.254.

The following example disables the address 192.0.220.77:
CHANGE IPSECURITY 192.0.220.77 DISABLED.

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35
The CHANGE IPSECURITY command requires privi-
leged user status.

In order to view the host table entries, the user must enter
a SHOW IPSECURITY command. To remove an entry, the
DELETE IPSECURITY command is followed by the IP
address that the user wants to remove.

The power manager (with the network option) supports
the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). This
allows a network management system to use SNMP “get”
and “set” requests to retrieve information about, and control
power to, the individual ports on the power manager. Prop-
erly implemented and integrated, this feature could allow a
network management system to automatically reboot a net-
work device that it has detected to be down or locked-up.

The ServerTech MSSI includes an SNMP v1 agent that
supports the standard MIB I, MIB II, and RS-232 MIB
objects. Additionally, the ServerTech MSSI and the power
manager together support a private enterprise MIB extension
that provides remote power control via SNMP. This collec-
tion of private enterprise MIB objects is called the power
manager MIB.

The power manager MIB defines objects that allow a
network manager to check the value of power manager
configuration items, to check the power status of individual
ports on the power manager, and to control power to the
individual ports on the power manager. Power to a port can
be turned on, turned off, or rebooted. Ports with shutdown
support will automatically signal a shut down to the oper-
ating system of the attached device prior to turning off or
rebooting the device.

In addition to the power manager SNMP support for the
query and action type operations that allow externally origi-
nated SNMP actions to be passed to the power manager from
an attached MSSI, power manager SNMP support includes
power manager generated trap information. The trap infor-
mation is collected at the power manager and then passed to
an attached MSS1 where it is formatted for SNMP and then
delivered to an external SNMP trap destination. The power
manager MIB defines the trap objects that are generated by
the power manager. The power manager MIB and associated
SNMP definitions can be obtained directly from Server
Technology via their anonymous FTP site.

The power manager SNMP trap support is designed to
recognize new trap conditions and transmit messages as
soon as possible. To prevent network congestion, trap con-
ditions that remain in a steady state, e.g., in a continuing
error condition, generate traps once a minute.

Traps can be transmitted when there is no active user
session with the power manager Chain. This means that if a
power manager chain is being used for connection via a side
switch to a server and a user connections are frequent or are
of long duration, traps messages will be delayed. Use of a
power manager chain for trap monitoring and for frequent or
long duration user sessions is possible but may not be
desirable.

Multiple trap conditions may occur with a single trap
message indication. For example, a trap message is sent for
each change of state of a power module. If a user logs on and
turns a single port on and off several times, a single trap
message will be generated after a user logs off. As another
example, if a temperature limit is exceeded then returns to
normal and then is exceeded again during an active user
session, a single trap message will be generated after a user
logs off indicating the current state of the temperature trap.

There are five activities that are monitored by the power
manager in order to generate SNMP traps. Each of these
activities and the traps they generate are described in the
sections.

Each board in a chain can have a single temperature probe
that measures the current temperature at the probe in degrees
Celsius. For each board high and low temperature limits can
be set. When these limits are exceeded, an SNMP trap will
be generated. When the temperature returns to the normal
range another SNMP trap is generated, e.g., a temperature
within the high and low limits as specified by a user. When
the temperature first exceeds the specified limits, a trap is
generated as soon as possible. Once the first trap is gener-
ated, the trap becomes a steady state trap. A new trap will be
generated every one minute when a steady state temperature
trap occurs until the temperature returns to the normal range
and remains in the normal range for one steady state trap
timer period.

For illustration, a temperature high limit is set at 100°
Celsius and a low limit is set at 800 Celsius. If the tempera-
ture rises to 101°, a trap is generated and a steady state timer
is set. During the steady state timer period, the temperature
falls to 99° and then rises back to 100°. When the timer
expires, a second temperature too trap is generated and the
timer is set once again. During this timer period the tem-
perature falls below 1000 and stays there until the timer
expires. When the timer expires, a temperature normal trap
is generated and the timer is not set. The temperature trap is
no longer in a steady state and a new trap will be generated
whenever the temperature once again falls outside the limits.
There are three possible temperature traps that can be
generated, too high, too low, and normal range. All of the
traps include the current temperature value, e.g., as sensed
by the board-temperature probe.

When a user enables the Start Up Trap, the board gener-
ates an SNMP trap whenever the board is reset. Even if the
trap is enabled on all boards in a chain, the first board will
generate a start up trap when reset.

When a user enables the Control status Change Trap for
an IPM on a board, an SNMP trap is generated whenever the
control value of the IPM is changed. If multiple control
status change events occur during a period when it is not
possible for the power manager to send traps, a single trap
will be generated indicating the last control status value.

As an example, a user has activated Control Status
Change Traps for all ports on all boards in the power
manager chain. A user logs on to the power manager and
uses the “ON” command to turn on several ports. While a
user is logged on to an active session, traps are not sent so
all of the ports that were turned on have pending Control
Status Change Traps. During this same session a user
realizes he has made a mistake and wants to start over, so he
uses the “OFF” command to turn all ports in the power
manager chain off. A user then uses the “ON” command to
turn on the single port he whishes to leave in the “ON” state.
A user then logs off the system. After a user logs off, there
will be a single SNMP trap generated for all of the ports in
the system. Each trap will indicate the current control status
of the port. There will be a single trap for all ports even
though several of the ports have had more than one control
status change.

When a user enables the Module Status Error Trap for an
IPM on a board, and SNMP trap is generated whenever an
error condition occurs on an IPM and another SNMP trap is
generated when the error condition is ended and the IPM
returns to a normal status. Like the temperature limits
exceeded trap, a steady state condition timer is set after the

US 7,099,934 Bl

initial trap and subsequent traps are generated on a timer
expired basis until the module returns to the normal state and
remains in the normal state for a timer period.

The four Module Status states that an IPM may have are,
Normal is a the IPM is functioning normally; No Response
is a the power manager is unable to communicate with the
IPM; On Failure is a the IPM is set to ON, but there is no
power on the output side of the relay; and, Off Failure is a
the IPM is set to OFF, but there is power on the output side
of the relay.

Each of the IPMs attached to a board may have the ability
to sense the power load flowing through the IPM. For each
IPM on a board high and low Device Load limits can be set.
When these Device Load limits are exceeded, an SNMP trap
will be generated. When the Device Load returns to the
normal range (e.g. within the high and low limits as
specified by a user), another SNMP trap is generated. When
the Device Load first exceeds the specified limits, a trap is
generated as soon as possible. Like the temperature limits
exceeded trap and the Module Status Error Trap, a steady
state condition timer is set after the initial trap and subse-
quent traps are generated on a timer expired basis until the
Device Load returns to the normal state and remains in the
normal state for a timer period.

There are three possible Device Load traps that can be
generated, device load too high, too low, and normal range.
All of traps include a current Device Load value as indicated
by the IPM.

Windows-NT must be shut down prior to turning off
power. When a user is at the computer, a user can manually
do the necessary shutdown. However, if the Windows-NT
system is used as an unattended or remote mission-critical
server, no one will be present at the computer to do a
shutdown prior to a remote power off or reboot action.

The power manager embodiments preferably provide a
Shut Down notification for each system controlled by an
individual Intelligent Power Module. When the Shut Down
notification feature is installed, the power manager will
automatically send a Shut Down signal to the operating
system whenever an IPM is instructed to power off or
reboot. A user defined “Shutdown Delay” timer decrements
as the shutdown signal is asserted. This delay allows the
operating system time to shut down the system in an orderly
manner. When the delay time expires, power is immediately
turned off. The length of the power manager “Shutdown
Delay" is determined by the “Shutdown Delay” field on the
power manager Power Control Screen as described earlier in
this manual.

The mechanism for attaching the power manager to the
Windows-NT system depends on the specific power man-
ager hardware model a user has purchased. Please refer to
the power manager Installation and Setup manual that is
included with the power manager for details on connecting
the power manager to the Windows-NT system.

Windows-NT provides a UPS Service to monitor a serial
port for the shutdown signal, and to provide the operating
system shutdown when the signal is asserted.

Configuring the Windows-NT UPS Service for use with
the power manager includes setting the service to automati-
cally startup when Windows-NT loads, and entering the
proper COM port and operating parameters of the power
manager. The “Services” and “UPS” icons in the Control

15 Panel of Windows-NT are used for this. The “Expected

Battery Life” must be less than the “Shutdown Delay” time
configured on the power manager Power Control, otherwise,
power may be turned off before the Windows-NT system has
completed the shutdown.

When set for two minutes, the Windows-NT system will
start to shutdown immediately when the power manager
signals it to. There is no “grace” time or initial warning
messages. There is a final shutdown message and then the
actual shutdown. For this reason, a user may need to increase

?5 the "Expected Battery Life" on the Windows-NT UPS

configuration screen and the “Shutdown Delay” on the
power manager Power Control Screen. Every minute above
two minutes will be time that Windows-NT will broadcast
and display warning messages about the impending shut-
down, before starting the final shutdown. This gives users
time to finish and save their working before the shutdown
occurs.

When Windows-NT boots, a user is expected to press
<Ctrl><Alt><Del> to bring up a dialog box for login with
user name and password. This can pose a problem for remote
booting and logon since a user is not at the system to press
the keys.

Fortunately, Windows-NT supports an automatic log-on

40 feature to allow the system to automatically logon with a

default user name, default password, and default domain
name. Instructions for enabling this Automatic log-on fea-
ture can be obtained from Microsoft, e.g., http://www.mi-
crosoft.com/kb/articles/q97/5/97.htm, Article ID #: Q97597,

45 Title: “How to Enable Automatic log-on in Windows-NT”.

The following Table X is an example of an MIB source-
text extension that can be supplied to users to load on their
power manager workstations.

TABLE X

Sentry2-MIB DEFINITIONS ::= BEGIN

IMPORTS

MODULE-IDENTITY, NOTIFICATION-TYPE,

OBJECT-TYPE, Integer32, enterprises

SNMPv2-SMI

DisplayString, TEXTUAL-CONVENTION

SNMPv2-TC;

FROM

sentry2RemotePowerManager MODULE-IDENTITY
LAST-UPDATED “0009251200Z” -- 25 Sep 2000
ORGANIZATION “Server Technology, Inc.”
CONTACT-INFO

“Server Technology, Inc.
1040 Sandhill Drive
Reno, NV 89511

Tel: (775) 284-2000
Fax: (775) 284-2065

US 7,099,934 Bl

TABLE X-continued

Email: mibmaster@servertech.com”
DESCRIPTION

“This is the MIB module for the second generation
of the

Sentry Remote Power manager family, which
includes

“Temperature-Sense”, “On-Sense”, and “Load-
Sense" support.

All embodiments in the Sentry embodiment family
provide remote

power control. The basic element of control is
a power

module “port”. Up to four ports (1-4) are
present on each

power control circuit “board”. Up to twenty-six

boards

(A-Z) can be linked together in a “chain”.

Different community strings are used in the SNMP
protocol

to provide access to two mutually exclusive
subsets of

objects defined in this MIB. Two community
strings, one

for read-only access and one for read-write
access, allow

access to the sentry2ChainGroup objects. A
third community

string allows read-only access to the
sentry2ErrorGroup

objects. Notifications (traps) are sent with a
fourth

community string.

All Sentry network options, including enabling
SNMP support,

configuring the community strings, and defining

the trap

destination, are configurable through a telnet
session to

port 23.

All Sentry power control options, including the
naming of

devices, the setting of trap threshold levels,
and the

enabling or disabling of specific traps, are
configurable

through a telnet session to port 2001. A telnet
session to

port 2001 is an alternate method of accessing,
configuring,

and controlling the Sentry.”
REVISION “0009251200Z” -- 25 Sep 2000
DESCRIPTION
“Second revision. Added the
sentry2BoardInputLoad object
and the sentry2BoardInputLoad High, Low, and

Normal traps."
REVISION “9912081100Z” -- 8 Dec 1999
DESCRIPTION
“First revision. Added the sentry2ChainLocation
object to

the sentry2Board and sentry2Port traps.”
REVISION “9910051600Z” —— 5 Oct 1999
DESCRIPTION
"Initial release version."
n= { serverTech 2 }
serverTech OBJECT IDENTIFIER ::= { enterprises 1718 }
Sentry2BoardId ::- TEXTUAL-CONVENTION
DISPLAY-HINT “1a”

STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“A Sentry board in a Sentry chain is identified
as
<a>
where <a> is an upper-case letter in the range
of A-Z.

Examples of Sentry2BoardId are “A” and “C”.
SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(1))
Sentry2PortId ::- TEXTUAL-CONVENTION
DISPLAY-HINT “2a”

of A-Z

US 7,099,934 Bl
41 42

TABLE X-continued

STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“A Sentry port in a Sentry chain is identified as
«a»«n»
where «a» is an upper case letter in the range

and «n» is a number in the range of 1-4.
Examples of the Sentry2PortId are *A1" and *C4".
SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(2))
sentry2ChainGroup OBJECT IDENTIFIER ::- (

sentry2RemotePowerManager 11

sentry2ErrorGroup OBJECT IDENTIFIER ::= {

sentry2RemotePowerManager 2}

the

Chain Group and Objects

sentry2ChainLocation OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(0..32))
MAX-ACCESS read-only

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“The location or name of the chain.”
n= { sentry2ChainGroup 1 }
sentry2ChainLastBoard OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX Sentry2BoardId
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION

“An upper-case letter identifying the last board
a Sentry chain. The value of Sentry2BoardId and
first octet of Sentry2PortId have a valid range

“A” to the value returned for this object.”
n= { sentry2ChainGroup 2 }

-- Board Table and Objects

sentry2BoardTable OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX SEQUENCE OF Sentry2BoardEntry
MAX-ACCESS not-accessible

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“A table of Sentry board entries.”
n= { sentry2ChainGroup 3 }
sentry2BoardEntry OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Sentry2BoardEntry
MAX-ACCESS not-accessible
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“A set of attributes for a conceptual row of
sentry2BoardTable."
INDEX { sentry2BoardIndex }
n= { sentry2BoardTable 1 }
Sentry2BoardEntry ::- SEQUENCE {

sentry2BoardIndex Sentry2Boardld,
sentry2BoardPageName DisplayString,
sentry2BoardCodeVersion DisplayString,
sentry2Board Temperature DisplayString,
sentry2BoardInputLoad DisplayString
}
sentry 2BoardIndex OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Sentry2BoardId
MAX-ACCESS not-accessible
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION

“The unique identifier of the board.”
n= { sentry2BoardEntry 1 }
sentry2BoardPageName OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(0..24))
MAX-ACCESS read-only

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“The name of the board.”
n= {sentry2BoardEntry 2 }
sentry 2BoardCodeVersion OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Display String(SIZE(0..16))
MAX-ACCESS read-only

US 7,099,934 Bl

TABLE X-continued

STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The version of the application code that the
board is
running.”
n= { sentry2BoardEntry 3 }
sentry2BoardTemperature OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX Display String(0..16))
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The value from the temperature sensor attached
to the
board.”
n= { sentry2BoardEntry 4 }
sentry 2BoardInputLoad OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(0..12))
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The current load (amperage) measured at the
single
power input to one or more power modules
controlled
by the board. This value represents the load of
all
devices powered by the single power input.”
n= { sentry2BoardEntry 5 }
-- Port Table and Objects
sentry2PortTable OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX SEQUENCE OF Sentry2PortEntry
MAX-ACCESS not-accessible
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“A table of Sentry port entries.”
n= { sentry2ChainGroup 4 }
sentry2PortEntry OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Sentry2PortEntry
MAX-ACCESS not-accessible
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“A set of attributes for a conceptual row of
sentry2PortTable."
INDEX { sentry2PortIndex }
n= { sentry2PortTable 1 }
Sentry2PortEntry ::= SEQUENCE {
sentry 2PortIndex
sentry2PortPowerAction
sentry2PortDeviceName
sentry2PortControlStatus
sentry2PortModuleStatus
sentry2PortDeviceLoad
sentry2PortIndex OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Sentry2PortId
MAX-ACCESS not-accessible
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The unique identifier of the port.”
n= { sentry2PortEntry 1 }
sentry2PortPowerAction OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX INTEGER {
powerOff(1),
powerOn(2),
reboot(3),
noop(4)
MAX-ACCESS read-write
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This object is used to change
sentry2PortControlStatus.
Setting this object to *powerOff" causes the
port to
turn power off to the attached device. Setting
this

object to “powerOn” causes the port to tum

Sentry2PortId,
INTEGER,

DisplayString,
DisplayString,
DisplayString,
DisplayString

power on

“reboot”

US 7,099,934 B1
45 46

TABLE X-continued

to
the attached device. Setting this object to

causes the port to turn power off to the

attached device,

seconds,

on to the

a result

on time,

module.”

delay for the configured minimum-off time or 15
whichever is greater, and then turn power back

attached device.
The actual operational effect may be delayed as

of the pre-configured minimum-off time, minimum-

or shutdown delay.
A snmp get of this object returns “noop”.”
n= { sentry2PortEntry 2 }
sentry2PortDeviceName OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(0..24))
MAX-ACCESS read-only

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“The name of the device attached to the power

n= { sentry2PortEntry 3 }
sentry2PortControlStatus OBJECT-TYPE

SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(0. .12))
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The current status of the power control signal
to the
power module.”
n= { sentry2PortEntry 4 }
sentry2PortModuleStatus OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX DisplayString (SIZE(0..12))
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The current operational status of the power
module.”
n= { sentry2PortEntry 5 }
sentry2PortDeviceLoad OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX DisplayString(SIZE(0..12))
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“The current load (amperage) of the device
attached to
the power module.”
n= { sentry2PortEntry 6 }
- Error Group and Objects
sentry2ErrorReqId OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Integer32
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This object contains the request-id of the most
recent
SNMP operation which returned an error-status of
genErr.”
n= { sentry2ErrorGroup 1 }
sentry2ErrorCode OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX Integer32
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This object contains a value identifying a
particular
error which occurred when processing the SNMP
operation
identified by sentry2ErrorReqId:
Value Error
100 Port not available
200 Link command timeout
210 Link command negative response

220 Link command invalid response

US 7,099,934 Bl
47 48

TABLE X-continued

240 Last Board Query command failure

300 Query command failure

400 Operation command timeout

410 Operation command negative response

420 Operation command invalid response
1000 Session unexpectedly lost

An expanded definition of these error codes may
be
obtained from Server Technology, Inc."
n= { sentry2ErrorGroup 2 }

- Notifications
sentry 2NotificationGroup OBJECT IDENTIFIER ::-
{ sentry2RemotePowerManager 100 }
sentry2Events OBJECT IDENTIFIER ::= {

sentry2NotificationGroup 0 }
—- the 0 is for V1 compatibility
-- Chain Specific Traps
sentry2ChainStart NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS í( sentry2ChainLocation L
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the Sentry has completed

application-code boot process. This can occur
from
either a power up or a resynchronization of the
Sentry
chain.”
n= { sentry2Events 1 }
—- Board Specific Traps
sentry2BoardTemperatureHighError NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS { sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2BoardIndex,
sentry2BoardPageName,
sentry2BoardTemperature
T
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the value from a
temperature
sensor attached to a Sentry board is above a
pre-
configured high threshold level.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists.”
n= { sentry2Events 2 }
sentry 2BoardTemperatureLowError NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS { sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry 2BoardIndex,
sentry 2BoardPageName,
sentry 2BoardTemperature
}
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the value from a
temperature
sensor attached to a Sentry board is below a
pre-
configured low threshold level.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists.”
n= { sentry2Events 3 }
sentry2BoardTemperatureNormal NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS {__ sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry 2BoardIndex,
sentry 2BoardPageName,
sentry2Board Temperature
T
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the value from a
temperature
sensor attached to a Sentry board returns to the
normal
range within the pre-configured high and low

US 7,099,934 Bl
49 50

TABLE X-continued

threshold
levels, after having been above or below the
threshold
levels.”
n= { sentry2Events 4 }
sentry 2BoardInputLoadHighError NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS [| sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2BoardIndex,
sentry2BoardPageName,
sentry2BoardInputLoad

STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the value from the input
load
sensor of a Sentry board is above a pre-
configured
high threshold level.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists.”
n= { sentry2Events 11 }
sentry 2BoardInputLoadLowError NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS { sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2BoardIndex,
sentry2BoardPageName,
sentry2BoardInputLoad

j
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the value from the input
load
sensor of a Sentry board is below a pre-
configured
low threshold level.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists."
n= { sentry2Events 12 }
sentry2BoardInputLoadNormal NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS 1 sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2BoardIndex,
sentry2BoardPageName,
sentry2BoardInputLoad

j
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent when the value from the input
load
sensor of a Sentry board returns to the normal
range
within the pre-configured high and low threshold
levels, after having been above or below the
threshold levels."
n= { sentry2Events 13 }
—- Port Specific Traps
sentry2PortControlStatusChange NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS [1 sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2PortIndex,
sentry2PortDeviceName,
sentry2PortControlStatus

STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
“This event is sent if the control status of a
Sentry
port has changed one-or-more times since the
last
notification period. For example, a Sentry port
has
been turned on, off, shutdown, or rebooted. The
current control status at the time of the
notification
is included.”
n= { sentry2Events 5 }
sentry2PortModuleStatusError NOTIFICATION-TYPE
OBJECTS [| sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2PortIndex,
sentry2PortDeviceName,

US 7,099,934 Bl

TABLE X-continued
sentry2PortModuleStatus
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION

“This event is sent when the module status of a
Sentry port indicates an error condition.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists.”
n= { sentry2Events 6 }
sentry2PortModuleStatusNormal NOTIFICATION-TYPE

OBJECTS [| sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2PortIndex,
sentry2PortDeviceName,
sentry2PortModuleStatus

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“This event is sent when the module status of a
Sentry port returns to normal after being in an
error condition.”
n= { sentry2Events 7 }
sentry2PortDeviceLoadHighError NOTIFICATION-TYPE

OBJECTS í( sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2PortIndex,
sentry2PortDeviceName,
sentry2PortDeviceLoad

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“This event is sent when the value from the load
sensor of a Sentry port is above a pre-
configured
high threshold level.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists.”
n= { sentry2Events 8 }
sentry2PortDeviceLoadLowError NOTIFICATION-TYPE

OBJECTS { sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2PortIndex,
sentry2PortDeviceName,
sentry2PortDeviceLoad

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“This event is sent when the value from the load
sensor of a Sentry port is below a pre-
configured
low threshold level.
This trap is repeated periodically while the
error
condition exists.”
n= { sentry2Events 9 }
sentry2PortDeviceLoadNormal NOTIFICATION-TYPE

OBJECTS [( sentry2ChainLocation,
sentry2PortIndex,
sentry2PortDeviceName,
sentry2PortDeviceLoad

STATUS current

DESCRIPTION

“This event is sent when the value from the load
sensor of a Sentry port returns to the normal

range
within the pre-configured high and low threshold
levels, after having been above or below the
threshold levels.”
n= { sentry2Events 10 }
END

Under the DESCRIPTION section above, the second revi-
sion is described as adding high, low, and normal traps in the
SNMP repertoire. The “Sentry2BoardEntry::=SEQUENCE”
paragraph has added to it the *sentry2BoardInputLoad Dis-
playString" entry. À current value representing the sum of all

currents in a power module is enabled with a paragraph,
“sentry2BoardInputLoad OBJECT-TYPE”. Under the
“Notifications” section, e.g., traps, the paragraph that imple-
ment the high-error, low-error, and return-to-normal are,
"sentry2BoardInputLoadHighError NOTIFICATION-

US 7,099,934 Bl

53
TYPE”, “sentry2BoardInputLoadLowError NOTIFICA-
TION-TYPE”, and “sentry2BoardInputLoadNormal NOTI-
FICATION-TYPE”.

Although the present invention has been described in
terms of the present embodiment, it is to be understood that
the disclosure is not to be interpreted as limiting. Various
alterations and modifications will no doubt become apparent
to those skilled in the art after having read the above
disclosure. Accordingly, it is intended that the appended
claims be interpreted as covering all alterations and modi-
fications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the
invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A power management method comprising:

providing power to a power input of a local power

distribution apparatus comprising (i) a vertical housing
vertically mounted to a vertical electrical equipment
rack, (ii) a power input penetrating the vertical housing,
and (iii) a plurality of power outlets penetrating the
vertical housing and connected to an associated plural-
ity of electrical appliances mounted in the vertical
electrical equipment rack or another vertical electrical
equipment rack;

with a sensor system mounted in the local power distri-

bution apparatus, (A) sensing whether at least one
power outlet mounted in the local power distribution
apparatus and in communication with the sensor is
configured either (i) in the “off” state or (ii) in the “on”
state, and also (B) sensing whether current is flowing
through said at least one power outlet;

generating at least one power status signal with the local

power distribution apparatus based on said sensing by
the sensor system;

communicating the power status signal from the sensor

system to a power manager system associated with the
local power distribution apparatus;

based on the power status signal received by the power

manager system from the sensor system, transmitting
power outlet status information in TCP/IP format from
the local power distribution apparatus over a TCP/IP
compatible network to a remote network management
system;

transmitting an outlet on/off state signal in TCP/IP format

from the remote network management system through
the TCP/IP compatible network to the local power
distribution apparatus; and

based an a selected power outlet in the local power
distribution apparatus indicated by the outlet on/off
state signal, transmitting an off-on cycle signal from the
power manager system and, in response to said trans-
mitting, cycling off and on the selected power outlet in
the local power distribution apparatus.

2. The power management method of claim 1 wherein the
sensing system in the local power distribution apparatus also
senses ambient temperature measurements and the power
manager system also transmits temperature measurement
information through said TCP/IP compatible network to said
remote network management system.

3. The power management method of claim 1 wherein the
local power distribution apparatus includes a modem com-
munications port, a serial communications port, and an
Ethernet communications port, with each of said ports
supporting said transmitting through said TCP/IP compat-
ible network.

4. The power management method of claim 2 wherein the
local power distribution apparatus includes a modem com-
munications port, a serial communications port, and an
Ethernet communications port, with each of said ports
supporting said transmitting through said TCP/IP compat-
ible network.

5. The power management method of claim 1 wherein the
local power manager system includes a web interface appli-
cation and the power management method further comprises
accessing the web interface application through said TCP/IP
compatible network.

6. The power management method of claim 2 wherein the
local power manager system includes a web interface appli-
cation and the power management method further comprises
accessing the web interface application through said TCP/IP
compatible network.

7. The power management method of claim 4 wherein the
local power manager system includes a web interface power
management application and the power management
method further comprises accessing the web interface power
management application through said TCPHP compatible
network.

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION

PATENT NO. : 7,099,934 B1 Page 1 of 1
APPLICATION NO. : 09/732557

DATED : August 29, 2006

INVENTOR(S) : Ewing et al.

It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent is
hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, line 60, *IL" should read -- II --
Column 11, line 53, “IPMS” should read -- IPMs --
Column 36, line 20, *800" should read -- 80? --

Column 36, line 26, “1000” should read -- 100° --

In the Claims:

Column 54, line 42, “TCPHP” should read -- TCP/IP --

Signed and Sealed this

Third Day of April, 2007

am WE ae

JON W. DUDAS
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office

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