A method includes creating an opening in a dielectric layer that is disposed over a bottom electrode layer. Specific test patterns for use in automated alignment of ink-jet printheads are suited to providing a variety of printhead alignment information in a compact format. One such subsystem includes a battery having a grounded terminal and an ungrounded terminal. The method comprises powering-up the PDSS based on a host-scheduled backup operation; receiving data from the host system for storing in the peripheral data storage device; and powering-down the PDSS based on the host-scheduled backup operation.