APC Power Backup Advice for Small Office

I wasn't sure where to post this but I was hoping someone would not my pointing me to the right forum or offering some advice.
I am trying to put the finishing touches on a conversion to mac and have been looking at buying a Power Backup in part for the power part (no crashes and safe shutdown) but also for surge protection.
I have a MacPro (and a monitor), a Time Machine (for the MBP), 2 - 1TB WD externals, a 500 GB Iomega External (for the MBP), a 3DConnection spaceball device and 2 printers on the "desktop". And then I have a 1 TB Seagate External that I keep plugged in on another table for backing up the MacBookPro now and then.
A. Is there anything else (other than temporary power and surge protection) I should be looking for when purchasing such a piece of hardware?
B. Should I be getting everything on the "desktop" plugged in to a backup device such as this and if so how do I calculate which device to buy?
C. Is it a crime to leave the 1 TB Seagate that is not conveniently located off this backup/surge protection system? I suppose it would be wise to unplug it and only plug it in when I am running a backup?
TIA for any advice. It's been a long haul and I'd love to make sure I am finishing this with some pro level advice/approval.
- Jon

JoeJoe2009 wrote:
Hi Jon,
...C. Is it a crime to leave the 1 TB Seagate that is not conveniently located off this backup/surge protection system? I suppose it would be wise to unplug it and only plug it in when I am running a backup?- external hard drives use very little power, you can keep it plugged in to the power back up or not. Since you're not using it often, the odds of it suffering a surge power problem are rare...
A couple of things to consider in that scenario: first, while it's not necessarily true of all external drives, some, such as LaCie, are noted for the early failure of their power bricks. Since I've been using a LaCie power brick for over ten years without a problem, I suspect that's because it's not connected to a power source except when it's in actually in use. Even when an external drive is not actually spinning, the power source is still live and perpetual cooking is probably not good for its health. I follow that rule with all devices that use power bricks, including Seagate and WD external backup drives and no brick has ever quit.
Second, the Seagate external drives I've used tend to run very hot because of poor or nonexistent ventilation. Indeed, the SMART record of one of them showed a heat failure with a 155 degree F. reading "in the past." Especially if leaving the drive plugged in means the drive is actually on, keeping it unplugged except when it's in use is a good idea.

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Please remember to rate useful posts!

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Message was edited by: John Danek

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Dieter@be wrote:
Cosmin wrote:No restrictions Tell just what you think it's the best option for somebody in an office just writing documents and with a network with some widows machines and some shared printers.
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Greetings,
I have a series of manuals about building houses, water tanks, bio-fiber composites and etc. The water tank manual is in several languages, all are plain black and white with zero hype or flash.
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Dr. Smoke
Author: Troubleshooting Mac® OS X

APC Power Backup Advice for Small Office

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