Bay of Isles Computers Support and Technical Tips

Bay of Isles Computers

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Which UPS should I choose for my Computer system

What is a UPS and why do I need one?
First, why you need one. Power surges and spikes, blackouts and brownouts happen in most electricity supply systems. You know what your electricity supply is like.

Blackouts crash your system and this can corrupt data files instantly. Brownouts insidiously wear your system down. Spikes and Surges can fry your computer's components. Is this what you want to happen?

It comes down to the question of How valuable is your hardware and data to you?

What is a UPS then? UPS stands for uninterruptible power supply. So it is a battery backup that takes over supplying electricity to your systems in the event of a power loss. There is surge protection built in to deal with the spikes and surges too. UPS also deal with 'line noise', the small variations in voltage level that can be caused by nearby machinery on the same circuit.

A UPS is usually attached to your computer between the PC and the Power point. That way the power keeps the UPS battery topped up so that when the power fails it has plenty of reserves to keep the computer going till you can shut it down safely.

Selecting a UPS
The choice depends on several factors:

the type of equipment you have
the number and size of pieces to be protected
the features you need (eg phone port)
how long you want it to keep the equipment working in an outage

If that seems like a big hassle and too hard to work out for the average home user, there is a simpler solution.

Many of the UPS manufacturers have provided quides for the bewildered. Simply visit one of their websites below and fill in your requirements. Their automated systems will deliver the answer back to you.

Guides for choosing the UPS for your system