Last Updated on August 12, 2022 by Thiago Crepaldi
In previous posts we have seen how to factory reset an APC UPS Network Management Card (AP9631) and how to upgrade your APC UPS to the latest version. The next step is to enable SNMPv1 to allow remote devices to read and monitor status and, possibly, shutdown when appropriate. This steps was tested on a AP9631, but it should be compatible with other NMC versions too.
The ultimate goal here is to allow remote devices to monitor the APC UPS state and safely power them down before the battery is drained, protecting them from an abrupt outage!
The first step is to open your browser and visit the NMC portal. Some UPS only has https (e.g. https://<apc_ups_ip>) enabled by default (after factory reset) while others also enables http (e.g. https://<apc_ups_ip>). If you are accessing it for the first time, the default username is ‘apc’ and password is also ‘apc’
Once logged in, the dashboard will be displayed. Note the UPS will be listed as online, without alarms and with probably a default UPS name and Location. Although not the focus of this post, you can change this information by going to Configuration >> General >> Identification. Password can be changed by going to Configuration >> Security >> Local users >> Management.
To enable SNMPv1, go to Configuration >> Network >> SNMPv1 >> Access menu
Check the Enable checkbox to enable SNMPv1 Access and click Apply
Next go to Configuration >> Network >> SNMPv1 >> Access Control to create the appropriate SNMP communities
Once you do that, you should see a list of all SNMP communities. All of them have default names and are disabled. We will create two communities, one public and another private. The first has read access while the second has write access.
Click on the Community Name 1 to configure it. Set Community name to public, leave NMS IP/Host Name unchanged and set Access Type to Read as follow and finish by clicking Apply
Next, click on Community Name 2 and set Community name to private, also leave NMS IP/Host Name as 0.0.0.0 and set Access Type to Write before clicking on Apply.
After both communities are configured, your are good to go and should see a table listing both public and private communities enabled
At this point, you are ready to configure your pfSense or Synology DSM or whatever device with UPS support to monitor your APC UPS state and protect your devices!
Look for my posts on how to connect to the NMC, monitor its state and act on it!