UPS transition time is the time required for the UPS to change from providing AC power derived from the utility (or mains) supply to providing AC power derived from the battery backup. UPS transition time is sometimes called UPS transfer time.
UPS transition times vary between UPS models and implementations, but shorter transition times are preferred. For stacking products, a UPS transition time of 20 milliseconds or less ensures optimum performance and minimizes service interruptions.
For high-availability and fault-tolerant installations in which the switches use redundant power supply units (PSUs), ensure that each PSU in a switch is connected to a different UPS and that each UPS is powered by an independent AC supply. This will prevent service interruptions when a power source is lost, or when a UPS unit fails. (Note that a single, appropriately sized UPS can power PSUs in multiple switches. The recommendation is simply that for any given switch, the two PSUs should be connected to different UPS units.)