hello,
i decided to try virtualhere for my EX2 Ultra NAS in order to be able to interact with a UPS connected to it.
when the UPS is connected via USB to my mac directly, I can go to it's dashboard (Powerpanel Business Edition) and configure it.
i'd like to do something similar when it is connected to my NAS, but the Powerpanel Business Edition software is setup on my computer, not on the NAS.
i have the virtualhere client installed on my mac, and i can see the UPS, but have no idea how to lookup it's IP address or whether I have to forward ports on my NAS or my router as well ?
when connected to my computer, I would use this url in my browser to take me to the UPS dashboard:
http://10.10.xx.xx:3052/local/dashboard
where 10.10.xx.xx is the IP address of my mac. i have tried doing this with the IP address of my NAS, but it does not work.
any thoughts/ideas, or is this even possible ? my UPS does NOT have a Network expansion card (no RJ45 jacks), it connects to my NAS via USB.
thank you
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VirtualHere is like a USB extension cable.
So if you plug the UPS into the NAS and use virtualhere to pass it through to your Mac is should just be configurable directly in MacOs like it would if it was directly plugged into the Mac.
So therefore you just use the same IP address as if it was directly plugged into your mac.
Like this:
1. Plug the UPS into your NAS
2. Use virtualhere to pass it through to your Mac
3. Use the 10.10... ip address in your browser to access the UPS
the dashboard cannot
the dashboard cannot establish communication with the UPS .... this is the message that appears in the UPS dashboard when i revisit it using the same full IP address I use as when it is physically connected to the computer.
when i plug the UPS physically into my mac again via USB, the dashboard registers it again and all settings/statistics come back online.
this is related to how the NAS and Virtualhere are providing the 'bridge' over IP/wifi back to my computer, which is running the host software for the UPS.
that is why i thought Virtualhere assigns a new IP to the USB device.
if this did work, it would have been pretty neat to manage the CP600LCD UPS remotely using Powerpanel Business Edition without having to go the route of buying a network-enabled UPS.
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What MacOS version are you using?
11.6.2
11.6.2
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ok well its pretty clear on my website Big Sur is not supported
pretty clear ? the client
pretty clear ? the client software page : https://virtualhere.com/usb_client_software ....
i don't own an Apple Silicone mac, don't plan to upgrade to Monterey either. any plans to make a client that works with Big Sur ?
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No
if i install the ups
if i install the ups management software in my vmware win11 vm, and install virtualhere client for windows, would it work ?
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Yes it should work, give it a try
windows client works to see
windows client works to see the usb device connected to the nas, but the ups agent for windows will not communicate with the ups, unless the ups is physically plugged into the computer and not the nas.
just a reminder, the usb comm from the ups is a serial connection, it’s relying on the localhost that is on the other end that is running network ups tools to communicate. i dont think virtualhere can manage to implement something like that for this type of usb device.
worth a try out and it’s an interesting tool …. just too bad its not working out for me.
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When you use the UPS via virtualhere, Open Windows Device Manager , View -> By Connection ->VirtualHere USB 3 eXtensible Host Controller and see the UPS device listed under there. Right click on the UPS device and select Properties then see if it has a Power Management Tab. If so, UNcheck "Allow Windows to turn off this device to save power".
(OR they might be blocking it to force you to buy a network enabled UPS. Wouldnt surprise me...)