Newbie here. I’m looking to set up a rack for better networking gear, my PC’s, some Raspberry Pi’s, and eventually a NAS. One thing I see everywhere are UPS battery backups.
I’ve never used a UPS in my entire PC life, and I’ve experienced a handful of power outages when I’m using my computer. I do use a (probably cheap) surge protector, though. Nothing bad has ever happened. Am I just lucky? Is an unexpected power-outage event for a NAS or Network gear any worse than for a PC? Or if I’m merely lucky, are the dice rolls for damage basically the same? Are there “smart” (ugh) UPS that detect power outages and automatically begin shutting everything down safely?
Also, I don’t (think) I want or need my gear to be on all the time. I don’t see why I’d need a NAS filled with recreational media to be on when I’m asleep. So what’s all this hub-bub about continuous uptime on home networks? Do NAS drives prefer to be on 24/7? Do folks power down their servers every night?
A proper UPS protects against bad power, surges, brownouts and reclosure events. So it’s not just about shutting down gracefully (but that too), but also protecting your expensive equipment.
Nothing wrecks your equipment and data faster than the power going off and on three times in 10 seconds.