Need advice for UPS that will be use only for bios updates

[brownieland]

Hi, I'm looking to get a ups but I don't wanna spend so much money atm so I want something that will give enough time to do a bios update and for that purpose alone.
Any recommendations on wattage ?

 

[Bill_Bright]

Any recommendations on wattage ?

Nope.

Why? Because you told us absolutely nothing about your computer. Do you have monster power hogs for a CPU and graphics, a bunch of drives, RAM sticks that draws 700+ watts?

Or do you have a budget office machine that maybe draws 150W when pushed?

Please fill out your TPU System Specs so we know what we are dealing with.

 

[brownieland]

Nope.

Why? Because you told us absolutely nothing about your computer. Do you have monster power hogs for a CPU and graphics, a bunch of drives, RAM sticks that draws 700+ watts?

Or do you have a budget office machine that maybe draws 150W when pushed?

Please fill out your TPU System Specs so we know what we are dealing with.

alright
ryzen 7800x3d
rtx 4070
2x16gb 6000mhz expo ram
1 hdd, 2 m.2
750w psu
but as i said the purpose of this UPS its gonna be used only for bios updating and nothing more, no regular usage.

 

[Bill_Bright]

but as i said the purpose of this UPS its gonna be used only for bios updating and nothing more, no regular usage.

I understand that. But note that fact does not change anything in terms of the capacity needed for the UPS. It still needs to support the connected equipment.

Note that UPS are typically rated in volt/amps (VA).

In theory, you should get an UPS that will support the power supply (supplies) connected to it. But it is highly unlikely your components will ever max out the demand on your supply as you most likely could easily get away with a 500W PSU (according to this calculation). Therefore, I recommend a 750 to 800VA UPS.

For the record, in the nearly 40 years I've been updating BIOS firmware, I have only had it fail catastrophically twice and each was over 35 years ago. The first was when I foolishly did this during a thunderstorm and we lost power. The second was when a coworker tripped over the power cord and yanked it out of the wall.

Since then, I ALWAYS make sure I have the computer supported by a good UPS with AVR when updating the BIOS. So kudos to you for doing the same!

That said, not sure why you insist this will only be for BIOS updating. I always recommend all computers be supported by a quality UPS with AVR 24/7/365. Understand it is the AVR (automatic voltage regulation) feature that makes a good UPS with AVR so important. Backup power during an outage is just a minor bonus feature. Note a surge and spike protector is little more than a fancy and expensive extension cord as they do nothing for low voltage events like dips (opposite of spikes), sags (opposite of surges) or brownouts (long duration sags). And for excessive surges and spikes, they simply cut power (“IF” working properly), crashing your computer - never good.

 

[cvaldes]

Saving the UPS for BIOS updates only makes zero sense.

The most valuable thing on your PC is your data, not the BIOS. Your data is ultimately what the UPS is there to protect.

How long does a BIOS update take? Five minutes? The UPS is better off running as well the other 364 days 23 hours 55 minutes in the year.

 

[Magician]

I recently picked up an Eaton 3S 850 for similar purposes (BIOS only). It was about £120 GBP if memory serves correctly, and it's functioned fairly well so far. Has higher capacity than other UPS's in its price range, and hasn't put a foot wrong in the 6 weeks of ownership.

A product worth looking into rather than a straight-up recommendation (due to my short time with it).

 

[brownieland]

I understand that. But note that fact does not change anything in terms of the capacity needed for the UPS. It still needs to support the connected equipment.

Note that UPS are typically rated in volt/amps (VA).

In theory, you should get an UPS that will support the power supply (supplies) connected to it. But it is highly unlikely your components will ever max out the demand on your supply as you most likely could easily get away with a 500W PSU (according to this calculation). Therefore, I recommend a 750 to 800VA UPS.

For the record, in the nearly 40 years I've been updating BIOS firmware, I have only had it fail catastrophically twice and each was over 35 years ago. The first was when I foolishly did this during a thunderstorm and we lost power. The second was when a coworker tripped over the power cord and yanked it out of the wall.

Since then, I ALWAYS make sure I have the computer supported by a good UPS with AVR when updating the BIOS. So kudos to you for doing the same!

That said, not sure why you insist this will only be for BIOS updating. I always recommend all computers be supported by a quality UPS with AVR 24/7/365. Understand it is the AVR (automatic voltage regulation) feature that makes a good UPS with AVR so important. Backup power during an outage is just a minor bonus feature. Note a surge and spike protector is little more than a fancy and expensive extension cord as they do nothing for low voltage events like dips (opposite of spikes), sags (opposite of surges) or brownouts (long duration sags). And for excessive surges and spikes, they simply cut power (“IF” working properly), crashing your computer - never good.

i understand what you saying same as the rest, but i literally will be using this for bios only.
i use voltage regulator device for general usage which has AVR and surge protection, but since you gave a "range" 750/800 VA and lets throw 1000VA, should be more than enough for that sole purpose.

 

[tabascosauz]

alright
ryzen 7800x3d
rtx 4070
2x16gb 6000mhz expo ram
1 hdd, 2 m.2
750w psu
but as i said the purpose of this UPS its gonna be used only for bios updating and nothing more, no regular usage.

At idle (which BIOS and BIOS flashing basically is), you're probably looking at somewhere between 60-90W from the wall. I have a similar setup and my idle draw from the UPS has been pretty constant from 3700X to 5900X to 5800X3D to 7800X3D.

Mine is a 1500VA and I get somewhere north of an hour of runtime if just idling with the power out - and that's including 1 1440p165Hz monitor also connected on UPS battery side (I mean, what good is a PC if you can't see at all what it's doing). You should be fine with a lower capacity unit.

Unless that other "voltage regulator device" is another UPS, this whole endeavour is really pointless. Just run the PC on the UPS on a day-to-day, it'll give you enough time to save and shut down.

 

[QckSilver]

What is exactly your motherboard model?

Some motherboards have a feature you don't even need a CPU installed to update the BIOS, and even if it fails updating and you can no longer boot, you can still flash the bios with a flashdrive - with the PC Powered OFF! So no fear of corruption or anything, if that's your sole fear

 

[cvaldes]

i understand what you saying same as the rest, but i literally will be using this for bios only.
i use voltage regulator device for general usage which has AVR and surge protection, but since you gave a "range" 750/800 VA and lets throw 1000VA, should be more than enough for that sole purpose.

Again this makes zero sense. Why would you just leave an UPS sitting around doing nothing when it could be at least protecting some of your valuable data? That's essentially what you're proposing by saving the UPS for "BIOS updates only" [sic].

This whole discussion is completely bizarre just like so many recent discussions.

At this point, I'm starting to wonder if we're just being played in some sort of bizarre learning exercise for some ultra ghetto AI model.

 

[Bill_Bright]

At idle (which BIOS and BIOS flashing basically is), you're probably looking at somewhere between 60-90W from the wall.

I totally agree. Operations in the BIOS Setup Menu is probably one of, if not "thee" least demanding task we can ask of our computers. Such operations can easily be handled by the lowliest of CPUs and most basic of integrated graphics with the minimum amount of RAM and even without any drive attached consuming power.

BUT, to access the BIOS Setup Menu, you have to reboot. And in the OP's case, since he will be swapping in the UPS, he will be starting from an "Off" state and not a "Standby" state. So in fact, a complete "boot" rather than a "reboot". And he will most likely be doing that with his existing hardware, not that lowliest, power sipping HW.

A characteristic of almost all electronic devices is they demand significantly more power with first powered up compared to their power demands after they have started, stabilized, and settled into their idle state. This would include the power hungry graphics solutions which otherwise, would be consuming next to nothing when displaying the BIOS Setup Menu.

For this reason, my suggestion of ~750VA is based on the estimated size of the OP's PSU requirements (500W), and its initial power demands when that PSU first fires up. So I stand by that ~750VA suggestion.

 

[Zach_01]

I understand the fear of loosing power during bios updates. That was mine too all the years and the dozens of updates I performed to my boards. Never bought a UPS tho just for that.

But that fear has vanished and made ups pointless for BIOS updates the day that good function was introduce…

BIOS FlashBack

edit: typo

 

[Bill_Bright]

But that fear has vanished and made ups pointless for BIOS updates the day that good function was introduce…

"Pointless"? Umm, I don't agree.

I do agree that the process of updating the BIOS has become significantly more robust and safe in recent years to where if corruption is detected, the system will typically [hopefully] back out of the update and roll back to the previous version. And most systems allow the user to create a backup of the BIOS before flashing so they can manually roll back, if something goes wrong.

And in some extreme cases, you can boot to a bootable thumb drive and re-flash the BIOS you download from the maker's site.

But the system is not fool proof. Everything I just mentioned requires some level system programming to be intact and not corrupt, or else the system could not "see" or recognize the thumb drive, or the backup BIOS file at all. Nor would it know how to use those devices and the coding on them to reflash the BIOS. This level of damage/corruption could still happen, even if a remote possibility, if power was lost right in the middle of a firmware update.

The result would be a useless brick or paperweight formally known as a motherboard.

So yes, odds are, no permanent damage will occur if you lose power during a BIOS update. But putting the system on a decent UPS during BIOS updates adds a nice level of "insurance" - just in case.

Never bought a UPS tho just for that.

I am with you on that one.

 

[Shrek]

If you are hardly ever going to use it, a 12V inverter might be an option, run off the car battery.

 

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

Hi, I'm looking to get a ups but I don't wanna spend so much money atm so I want something that will give enough time to do a bios update and for that purpose alone.
Any recommendations on wattage ?

Why do you only need a UPS for BIOS updates? You should have your computer plugged into a UPS regardless. It's dumb to invest in a UPS for the sole purpose of updating your bios.

"lemme just spend $200 on a UPS for 2 min worth of updates"