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  1. #1

    Unhappy Emergency: Colocation build problems

    So I made a post here about a month ago about building my first 1U server. I wound up scrapping pretty much everything I had picked out, and went with parts people suggested in the thread, mostly stuff that cwl@apaqdigital suggested.

    I have been trying to get it to work for 3 days now, and just not having any luck at all. When I plug it in, the PSU fan comes on, and the green light on the motherboard flashes on and off. I have made sure all the connections on it are correct (to the best of my knowledge anyways, the manuals are ****) and it will not boot up.

    This leads me to believe that either something is dead, or that the RAM is incorrect. All the parts I have were suggested by cwl@apaqdigital, so I assume they all will work together, but I need some help fast. Todays the last day I can RMA them to newegg.

    Heres the build -
    2x Nehalem E5520 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819117185
    Supermicro 1U Chassis - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811152085
    Supermicro Mobo - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813182190
    2x Kingston 6GBx3 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134854
    3x 320GB WD HDDs - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136074

    My worry is that this RAM isnt going to work. It was suggested, but after spending 3 days looking, thats all I can think of. It looks like this mobo only supports ECC Registered or ECC Unbuffered. Any help is most appreciated!

  2. #2
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    Why did you make the subject of this Emergency? Seems a bit overkill for a PC that's not working.

    If the RAM is incorrect, you'd normally get an error message (audio or visual) that it's wrong. Almost sounds like there's a problem with the PS or the board itself.

    Maybe contact New Egg and see what they suggest? We've had issues with stuff we've purchased and they've always been very helpful.
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  3. #3
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    The parts look fine to me in terms of them matching each other. I would take a look at the RAM and the processors if you think you have everything hooked up correctly.

    Do some troubleshooting: Run only one processor in there and put only 1 stick of RAM in there. Will it boot up now? If not, switch the processors, the stick of RAM, and see where you are at. This could help you find a bad piece of hardware.
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  4. #4
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    Howdy, the mainboard want's either registered or unbuffered ram and you purchased Desktop RAM. Could that be it?

  5. #5
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    Your motherboard doesn't appear to support non ECC RAM.

  6. #6
    I listed it as emergency because I have an hour and a half to send back the parts for Refund/RMA.

    Yeah, the fact it doesnt support this RAM is what had me concerned. As stated earlier it was suggested by a reliable source, but I guess we all make mistakes.

    Im going to go ahead and go send all this back. Anyone have any memory suggestions for this board? Im not much of a hardware guy so im terrible at picking this stuff out.

  7. #7
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    Don't send all of it back, just send the RAM back.

  8. #8
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    Here's some ram that will work with your server.

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820220408

  9. #9
    Have you tried with just 1 stick of RAM to rule out bad DIMM slot placements?
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  10. #10
    Yeah, I tried with just 1 stick per CPU and no go.

    Which of these two would I be better off with?
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820148259
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820226066

    First ones 1333 but the second ones rated better.

  11. #11
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    Disregard the ratings, the first one is better.

  12. #12
    Alright thank you guys!

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Adam_OC3 View Post
    Have you tried with just 1 stick of RAM to rule out bad DIMM slot placements?
    Server runs DDR3 memory. Requires at least 3 DIMMs.
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  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jay Suds View Post
    Server runs DDR3 memory. Requires at least 3 DIMMs.
    socket 1366 board will boot/POST just fine with just single piece (single-channel mode) or 2pcs (DDR2 dual-channel mode) of DDR3 modules installed.
    C.W. LEE, Apaq Digital Systems
    http://www.apaqdigital.com
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  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by CrimsonGT View Post
    So I made a post here about a month ago about building my first 1U server. I wound up scrapping pretty much everything I had picked out, and went with parts people suggested in the thread, mostly stuff that cwl@apaqdigital suggested.

    I have been trying to get it to work for 3 days now, and just not having any luck at all. When I plug it in, the PSU fan comes on, and the green light on the motherboard flashes on and off. I have made sure all the connections on it are correct (to the best of my knowledge anyways, the manuals are ****) and it will not boot up.

    This leads me to believe that either something is dead, or that the RAM is incorrect. All the parts I have were suggested by cwl@apaqdigital, so I assume they all will work together, but I need some help fast. Todays the last day I can RMA them to newegg.

    Heres the build -
    2x Nehalem E5520 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819117185
    Supermicro 1U Chassis - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811152085
    Supermicro Mobo - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813182190
    2x Kingston 6GBx3 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134854
    3x 320GB WD HDDs - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136074

    My worry is that this RAM isnt going to work. It was suggested, but after spending 3 days looking, thats all I can think of. It looks like this mobo only supports ECC Registered or ECC Unbuffered. Any help is most appreciated!
    there is really no reason why the X8DTL board won't POST with the Kingston non-ECC DDR3 modules you listed. we just did a few servers very similar with your setup today, and they all are running dandy with 3pcs Crucial 2G DDR3-1333 non-ECC per server.

    I will suggest to remove the server board from chassis again, and make absolute sure that all mounting holes on X8DTL-iF are aligned with the metal mounting posts on chassis. from factory, those mounting posts pre-installed on SC811TQ-520B chassis are not aligned with X8DTL board! you need to remove/relocate those posts that are not aligned, otherwise you are running the risk of short-circuit the board therefore the board would refuse to POST....

    also, do a bench test (components loosely connected on your bench) before you install everything onto chassis.

    also, X8DTL-iF board requires 2x 8-pin power feed from power supply. yet, there is only one 8-pin wire coming from PSU. you need a 4-pin to 8-pin converter for the 2nd 8-pin power connection.
    C.W. LEE, Apaq Digital Systems
    http://www.apaqdigital.com
    sales@apaqdigital.com

  16. #16
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    also, X8DTL-iF board requires 2x 8-pin power feed from power supply. yet, there is only one 8-pin wire coming from PSU. you need a 4-pin to 8-pin converter for the 2nd 8-pin power connection.
    That sounds like something that could be causing this behavior. Bad ram usually will make alot of noise in terms of audio signals.
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  17. #17
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    did not check out your list, but it sounds like you may have bought and then looked?

    I would get all the specs from the motherboard from the manufacturer and also look up any issues people have with it online.

    Since you bought the board and chasis separate, I would next concentrate on tracking down all components needed and within spec range, including a power unit that will work with it correctly based on other equipment you have in it.

    I would see if the ram and amounts are the correct kind for the board as well as the cpus.

    I would check out each ram and cpu that I bought, that works in that board, and find out if they have any issues I should know about.

    If after all that I cannot boot up the bios, something is wrong and I would just send it all back and start over....

    Is everything you have all supported on the board? Is the board set up right...yada yada yada.

    and listen to what these other posts say about testing and looking around.

  18. #18
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    Chong knows his stuff. Sounds like a power supply issue. Did someone suggest this power supply or dd you pick it out?

  19. #19
    Hmm, I called Kingston today and they said the RAM is not on the Supported RAM list for that motherboard, and gave me some other products to try, so I was under the assumption I had found the culprit.

    When you say the metal mounting post on the Chassis, are you referring to the raised holes on the bottom of the chassis where the motherboard screws in, or are there supposed to be risers? I was expecting risers, but according to the chassis manual it said just lay down the mylar sheet, then the motherboard on top of it and screw it in. I looked through the packaging and did not find any risers, so I am assuming the manual is correct although very bare and lacking a lot of detail.

    When you say do a bench test, you mean just sit the motherboard in there without locking it down?

    Since you have dealt with these same parts before, quick question for you that I dont think is a big deal, but would like to ask anyways. Theres a red/gray twist wire with "INT" written on the 2 pin female connector, coming out from under the HDD bays. I saw no mention of what this wire is anywhere so im trying to figure out what to plug it into.

    I purchased the 4pin to 8pin connector you listed in my other thread when building it, so both of those are connected.

    Quote Originally Posted by cwl@apaqdigital View Post
    there is really no reason why the X8DTL board won't POST with the Kingston non-ECC DDR3 modules you listed. we just did a few servers very similar with your setup today, and they all are running dandy with 3pcs Crucial 2G DDR3-1333 non-ECC per server.

    I will suggest to remove the server board from chassis again, and make absolute sure that all mounting holes on X8DTL-iF are aligned with the metal mounting posts on chassis. from factory, those mounting posts pre-installed on SC811TQ-520B chassis are not aligned with X8DTL board! you need to remove/relocate those posts that are not aligned, otherwise you are running the risk of short-circuit the board therefore the board would refuse to POST....

    also, do a bench test (components loosely connected on your bench) before you install everything onto chassis.

    also, X8DTL-iF board requires 2x 8-pin power feed from power supply. yet, there is only one 8-pin wire coming from PSU. you need a 4-pin to 8-pin converter for the 2nd 8-pin power connection.

  20. #20
    One other thing, would the fact that the PSU Fan is coming on as soon as I plug in the power cord, and the green light in the corner of the motherboard flashing on and off narrow it down at all?

  21. #21
    Well its not the power supply, I just swapped it out with another brand new one and it does the same thing. Powersupply fan turns on as soon as I plug it in and the green light on the motherboard flashes on and off. If it was the motherboard I would think it would make some beeps or something. I dont have the chassis speaker connected, but it has an onboard speaker so I think thats fine.

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by CrimsonGT View Post
    Well ...Powersupply fan turns on as soon as I plug it in and the green light on the motherboard flashes on and off....
    the green flashing light is IPMI at work. as soon as the power is plugged, the fan of 520-watt PSU is always on regardless server board is actually powered on or not. this may give you the false sense that server board has been turned on already which brings up this stupid question: did you hit the power-on button after power cord is plugged?

    "There's a red/gray twist wire with "INT" written on the 2 pin female connector, coming out from under the HDD bays"
    that's the "chassis intrusion" detection wire which goes to "JL1" connector on server board

    does the "bench test" (all parts out of chassis and laid on table) yield the same result? if yes, at least we can rule out grounding/mounting issue.
    C.W. LEE, Apaq Digital Systems
    http://www.apaqdigital.com
    sales@apaqdigital.com

  23. #23
    Yeah, I hit the power button after the cord was plugged in. Alright, so I connected the chassis intrusion wire, but that wouldnt have caused it not to boot at all correct? Its still not booting with it connected so im pretty sure that has nothing to do with it, im assuming it just alerts you if the top is removed.

    Im going to do the bench test in a little bit. Backs killing me from leaning over it for so long.

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