In a network deploying a plurality of network devices with PSE capabilities, a UPS resource may be effectively shared among those network devices by selecting at least one network device to be "master" and transmitting information reflecting worst case power commitments from "slave" network devices to the at least one master network device so that the master network device may keep track of the worst case power commitments of the plural network devices as a group. This information is compared to the known capabilities of the UPS resource and, where a deficiency or near-deficiency exists, the situation is communicated to network management for responsive action.