C2750D4I Fails To POST

[rlcramer]

Up until yesterday, my FreeNAS 9.3 server had been running fine since about February. Had, prior to then, stopped and re-started for various minor physical configuration issues (replaced all the case fans with Noctua's for example), successfully each time.

Yesterday, we suffered an area power loss. The server, being on a UPS, never skipped a beat. However, with the rare power outage dragging on, I decided to down the server, which was not in use at the time.

Power returned shortly later, attempted to re-start, failed. Pushing the power button produced....nothing. I understand that POST takes a while, so re-tried. Nothing. Accessed IPMI, attempted power on through that interface (which has also worked in the past), and failure was reported on three attempts.

Not certain what to try next. There is an LED about mid-board that is blinking slowly, but I do not have a speaker to assess error codes.

Any/all suggestions for further testing/research are appreciated.

Configuration as follows:

RAM: Crucial 2x8GB unbuffered ECC CT2KIT102472BD160B
Power: SilverStone 450W SFX 80 PLUS GOLD Full Modular Power Supply with +12V single rail, Active PFC (ST45SF-G)
Case:: DS380B
Fans: 3 x Noctua NF-P12 PWM
Storage: 4 x 4TB Seagate NAS ST4000's
Boot: Dual 16GB USB flash drives, mirrored

[themaninblack]

Re: C2750D4I Fails To POST

Although I've only had my Freenas set up for a few days it was working perfecytly then I switched it off for a day and now have the exact same problem as you. It just will not POST and boot. If youu try to connect through IPMI it fails to connect.

Any suggestions would also be greatly appreciated as I've been banging my head against a wall for a few days with this problem

Thanks in advance

[rlcramer]

Re: C2750D4I Fails To POST

Although I've only had my Freenas set up for a few days it was working perfecytly then I switched it off for a day and now have the exact same problem as you. It just will not POST and boot. If youu try to connect through IPMI it fails to connect.

Any suggestions would also be greatly appreciated as I've been banging my head against a wall for a few days with this problem

Thanks in advance

Sorry for the delay in responding, but I have been focused elsewhere.

The issue for me was a problem with the power supply. I contacted ASRock Rack support through their somewhat dodgy contact page on their web site. Shockingly, William Lee responded back to me within a few hours. Not only that, but he suggested the diagnostic steps to follow, starting with the power supply. He stayed with me through the process (via email), and I have to say that I was impressed with the effort and focus he applied to my problem.

As it happens, I did have a spare, no-name brand of SFX power supply sitting around in a recently retired PC. I swapped it in and all the issues disappeared.

Now, diagnosing the exact issue with the PSU would be a little trickier. If I had more time, I would try to determine why the PSU I used in the build had a problem. To be specific, the PSU I used was the "SilverStone Technology 450W SFX Form Factor 80 PLUS GOLD Full Modular Power Supply with +12V single rail, Active PFC (ST45SF-G)." I purchased it with the rest of the components about 10 months ago, and it was new in the box.

Regarding accessing the IPMI: While I was having the power issues, I was able to connect to the board via the IPMI through sheer persistence. Initial attempts to connect were producing browser messages of 'connection rejected', or equivalent. I used the program NMap to verify that the board was at the assigned IP, and scanned it for open ports. I then pounded on the port via the browser, directly, and it loaded. Once loaded, I verified that using the IPMI power control failed.

I am not saying that your situation is the same. However, it bears a striking resemblance. If you could test with an alternate power supply, you might eliminate that as the source of the problem.

More importantly, I would try to contact ASRock Rack support directly, using their web site. As far as I was concerned, their response time and effort was excellent.