mrcharles
6c58671d15
Each component README now links to its corresponding Redmine tickets (closed for completed work, open for pending items) for bidirectional traceability between code and system of record.
Powerman PDU Management
Redmine: #359 (deployment, closed) · #374 (outlet renaming, open)
Centralized power management for the Cyclades AlterPath PM10i PDU via Powerman, running on pfv-tsys1.
Hardware
| Component | Details |
|---|---|
| PDU | Cyclades AlterPath PM10i (10 controllable AC outlets) |
| Firmware | v1.9.0 (Aug 4, 2006) |
| Connection | USB-to-DB9 adapter (Prolific pl2303, serial BJAAb144J07) |
| Host | pfv-tsys1 (OptiPlex 9020, Proxmox) |
| Serial | 9600 baud, 8N1, raw mode |
| Credentials | Factory defaults: admin / pm8 (in cyclades-pm10.dev) |
| Network access | powermand listens on 127.0.0.1:10101 (local) + 100.121.189.98:10101 (Tailscale) |
Device mapping
USB adapter (067b:23a3, serial BJAAb144J07)
└─ pl2303 driver → /dev/ttyUSB1
└─ udev symlink → /dev/cyclades-pm10 (stable across reboots)
└─ powermand reads/writes serial → Cyclades PM10i
└─ 10 outlets (factory default names: 1-10)
The udev rule (/etc/udev/rules.d/99-cyclades-pdu.rules) pins the adapter
by its USB serial number, so the symlink survives replugs and reboots.
Scripts
All scripts run on the target host (pfv-tsys1) via tests/remote.sh:
# Setup (idempotent — safe to re-run):
PROX_HOST=pfv-tsys1 bash tests/remote.sh prox-file powerman/setup.sh
# Validate PDU control (cycles outlet 10 off → on):
PROX_HOST=pfv-tsys1 bash tests/remote.sh prox-file powerman/test-pdu.sh
# Status check:
PROX_HOST=pfv-tsys1 bash tests/remote.sh prox-file powerman/status.sh
Customizing for other hosts/PDUs
The setup script accepts environment overrides:
PDU_SERIAL=XXXX PDU_VENDOR=067b PDU_OUTLETS=20 PDU_TYPE=pm20 \
PROX_HOST=other-host bash tests/remote.sh prox-file powerman/setup.sh
Usage (daily operations)
From pfv-tsys1 (or any host with network access to port 10101):
# List all outlets
powerman -l
# Query status (all outlets)
powerman -q
# Turn outlet off
powerman -0 outlet-10
# Turn outlet on
powerman -1 outlet-10
# Cycle outlet (off → 4s delay → on)
powerman -c outlet-10
# Query a specific outlet
powerman -q outlet-10
Remote access from other hosts
powermand listens on 0.0.0.0:10101. From another tailnet host:
powerman --server-host pfv-tsys1 --server-port 10101 -q
Or set POWERMAN_SERVER=pfv-tsys1:10101 in the environment.
Configuration files on pfv-tsys1
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
/etc/udev/rules.d/99-cyclades-pdu.rules |
Stable symlink for USB-DB9 adapter |
/etc/powerman/powerman.conf |
Device definition + 10 outlet nodes |
/etc/powerman/cyclades-pm10.dev |
Cyclades PM10 protocol spec (shipped with powerman) |
Validation results
2026-07-28: All 8 checks passed. Outlet 10 turned OFF (confirmed), turned ON (confirmed), then cycled.
TODO (Friday onsite)
- Rename outlets in
/etc/powerman/powerman.confto match the physical devices plugged into each outlet (e.g.,node "tsys4-psu" "cyclades-pm10" "3"). Currently all outlets are generically namedoutlet-1throughoutlet-10. - Change PDU admin password from factory default (
pm8) if security-sensitive. Update/etc/powerman/cyclades-pm10.devlogin script to match. - Verify all 10 outlets individually once device mapping is known.