Factory Reset an AP96xx APC UPS Network Management Card⌗

As an new owner of an AP9631 APC UPS Network Management Card 2 (NMC), I recently discovered some hidden and undocumented reset procedure that can be useful in certain situations. I purchased the AP9631 NMC for my APC Smart-UPS 750 (SMT750I), but the manual did not provide clear instructions on how to factory reset the card without using a special stereo jack serial cable.

After some experimentation, I found out that there are actually two different reset modes for the AP9631 NMC that are not mentioned in the manual:

  • Resetting the Admin Password: To reset the admin password, I simply held the reset button for 5 seconds and then pressed it again when the status LED blinked. This allowed me to reset the admin password for the NMC, which comes in handy when you forget the password or need to change it for security reasons.

  • Restoring to Factory Defaults (DHCP Mode): For a complete factory reset of the NMC, I discovered that I could hold the reset button for 20 seconds and then press it again when the status LED started flashing rapidly. This restores the card to its original factory defaults and switches it to DHCP mode, erasing all previous settings.

It’s worth noting that these reset procedures may also work for other APC NMCs, such as AP95xx and AP96xx models, as they generally have similar reset methods.