[Hidden-tech] Seeking advice on protecting a Linux box from failures

Daniel Belmont dbelmont2 at gmail.com
Thu Aug 25 15:11:54 EDT 2011


Robert --

  Thanks for the advice ... the computer is a musical instrument (known as
Muse Receptor) -- there are not set up to do RAID arrays and the like ... I
am
just looking to protect in concert settings with bad power ... and to find
out what else
I need to do to take care of it ... I don't think I can have dual disk
drives setup
where one takes over if the other one fails -- but I can look into that ...
I think if
people want to have a backup they just have a second Linux box -- but for
me that is too expensive ..

All that said I did order a Cyberpower
CP1500PFCLCD UPS 1500VA 900W PFC Compatible Pure Sine Wave

does anyone have experience with this particular UPS ?
thx,
Dan

On Thu, Aug 25, 2011 at 3:01 PM, Robert Heller <heller at deepsoft.com> wrote:

> At Thu, 25 Aug 2011 14:05:32 -0400 Daniel Belmont <dbelmont2 at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> >
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> >
> > I have a special purpose Linux machine that is used to run musical
> > instruments and is
> > used frequently in concert settings ... so preventing failure is of
> > importance ... I am
> > looking for advice on two things :
> >
> > 1) I need a UPS that produces pure sine waves, has reliable battery
> backup
> > that will
> > instantly kick in during voltage dips, isn't too heavy (or wildly
> > expensive), rack
> > mountable would be nice (but I can deal with something that is around 25
> > pounds
> > even if it is not rack mountable), and does voltage regulation ...
> someone
> > suggested
> > that there are UPS's that always provide power from the constantly
> > recharging
> > battery -- that could be interesting ...
> >
> > The reason I am asking for something with these specific qualities is
> that I
> > had a
> > power outage at a concert this past weekend -- the LInux box was plugged
> > into a
> > UPS that puts out simulated sine waves (and the power supply on the Linux
> > machine
> > does active power factor correction which needs pure sine waves), there
> was
> > a voltage
> > dip, the UPS battery kicked in and the Linux box shut down as if it lost
> > power due to the
> > sine wave mismatch ... apparently this kind of thing can destroy the hard
> > drive (which
> > would be a big problem) as well as causing problems for Linux startup
> (this
> > did happen
> > but that problem seemed to correct itself within a few minutes) ...
> >
> > 2) what kind of care do I need to provide to the Linux box so that it
> works
> > like
> > a mission critical computer ? the right kind of UPS seems important,
> backing
> >
> > up the hard drive is a given (I am doing this now) ... are there other
> > things I need
> > to do to treat this computer well ? again, since it is a musical
> instrument
> > I am
> > very desirous of eliminating all of the possible causes of failure (to
> the
> > extent that
> > I can) ...
>
> Does the machine have a RAID array set up?  Linux's kernel includes a
> quite good software RAID implementation.  All you need are two same size
> disk drives...  A RAID1 (mirroring) array will let you keep going if one
> drive fails. And if you have a spare on hand, you can swap it in during
> a break and it can rebuild the array as the concert continues...
>
> Some server systems have hot-swap power supplies, but that might be
> overkill...
>
> Reasonably good shock mounting in your carry case and/or hard drives is
> another thing to look at.
>
> It is possible to get something called a ruggedized 'lunchbox' system.
> This is something between a laptop and a desktop.  It would have a
> desktop motherboard with the usual PCI bus, etc. and mounting for usual
> desktop drives (multiple hard drives, *-ROM drive, etc.), but would
> have a smaller keyboard and a stowable *small* flat-panel display the
> whole thing packs up to about lunchbox sized with a ruggedized case,
> that might include shock mounting for the hard drives.  These machines
> are meant for use in tough / harsh environments and meant to withstand
> a certain amount of abuse ('tossed' into a plane or boat cargo hold,
> bounced in the back of a truck bouncing down a rough dirt road, etc.).
> I guess you already have a machine, but someday you might want/need to
> replace or upgrade it...
>
> >
> > Thanks !
> >
> > Dan Belmont
> > The Soul Sensations
> > www.TheSoulSensations.com
> >
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> --
> Robert Heller             -- 978-544-6933 / heller at deepsoft.com
> Deepwoods Software        -- http://www.deepsoft.com/
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