Intel S3420GPRX RAM issues - system not booting

james73

james73

james73

Associate
Joined
14 Jul 2005
Posts
96
Hi all.

I'm trying to set up a Server system for a local charity. We recently bought an Intel SR1695GPRX2ACNA Barebone
System, which includes an Intel Server Board S3420GPRX motherboard.

To go with it, we bought an Intel Xeon X3470 SLBJH - 2.93ghz 8M Cache CPU.



We then bought the following RAM: 4 X Samsung M393B5170DZ1-CF8 4Gb RDIMM PC3-8500

(This RAM is listed as compatible with the motherboard according to an online PDF document I found.)



The system will not boot-up with this RAM in place. I get the 3 beeps errors, which according to the manual is a
RAM issue. The seller of the RAM sent us a different model of RAM (again, Samsung but a different model number,
I never noted which) but the outcome was exactly the same. 3 beeps per RAM module, regardless of which slot
the RAM is placed in.


The seller of the motherboard has just issued a replacement but guess what? The same issue again - 3 beeps on
booting the system and it doesn't go any further. I'm thinking now of maybe trying UDIMM RAM but I'm struggling
with this one. :confused:



Any help or advice on this greatly appreciated. :)



James H
 
For anyone interested...

Managed to get the system to boot using a Crucial 8GB (4GBx2) DDR3-1066 ECC UDIMM (CT1777425)
kit. Half as much RAM for almost double the price...

I'll give the Samsung M393B5170DZ1-CF8 4Gb RDIMM PC3-8500 RAM one final try before it goes back
to the seller, but we'll be needing 16Gb for the Server, one way or another.


Now, anyone any recommendations for a quiet 1U PSU?? This thing sounds like a damn hair dryer 3 inches
from my ear. :mad:


James H
 
nightmare99 said:
Generally they are pretty noisy, is it in a rack?
Click to expand...

No it isn't. My plan was to put it high on a shelf in the computer room (above my own seat), but I think it'll still be way too loud up there. I wouldn't be adverse to the suggestion of an external PSU. I'll be there looking after it every day.

We dont have enough space/money for 'separate cabinets'/'servers in different rooms' before anyone suggests such a thing.



James H
 
The only reason I ask is because surely you would be better off with a modern tower server? There is a thread on here about the Dell T20 it seems this would be much better suited for you.
 
The Intel unit is working now so that ship has sailed.

I managed to install Server 2008 on it but the built-in RAID function is greyed out in the accompanying software. :confused: Plan is to install the server on two 160Gb drives in RAID1 and have two 2Tb drives in RAID1 for all data. We haven't bought the 2Tb drives yet. As I said, I cant seem to access the RAID set-up.


James H
 
I don't use any Intel boards, but does it flash up with a RAID BIOS with press key so-and-so to enter setup during POST? That's one of the ways to do it on a Dell server.

The 1U servers I've come across sound like they're ready to take off. I guess it's one of the draw backs of compacting everything, e.g. fans.

Looks like the drivers (including RAID) can found via the links on here: http://ark.intel.com/products/48474/Intel-Server-Board-S3420GPRX
 
From what I've found online, it seems to be CTRL+E to enter the RAID BIOS, but I'm not sure I saw that message onscreen today. Could be an issue with using a flat screen monitor during set-up - sometimes they dont re-adjust in time to display brief onscreen messages. I'll try this tomorrow and report back if I can access it.

As for the PSU noise issue - I've been thinking about a decent standard PSU unit sitting on top of the unit with extension leads to connect to the motherboard inside. The plan was to put it on a shelf quite high up, so an external PSU wouldn't even be visible to anyone and we could secure it towards the back of the unit. Sound daft or not?


James H
 
Last edited:
I'd expect it to on the screen long enough to see it. It could be hidden away in the normal BIOS somewhere with it being the standard onboard RAID.

Normally hardware RAID should be set up before any OS install. I always beef up the storage side with a battery backed/cached RAID card though. I don't like it when I come across barebone RAID and desktop hard drives. Ugh.

Does it come with "2 x 400W High-efficiency Power Supply"? It's a very nice feature to have redundant PSU's. Separate PSU sounds like a bodge to me. The double sided sticky pads will be out next ;) I'd find a cupboard close-by and stick it in there. You should be doing day-to-day stuff by RDP anyway.
 
Toughnoodle said:
I'd expect it to on the screen long enough to see it. It could be hidden away in the normal BIOS somewhere with it being the standard onboard RAID.

Normally hardware RAID should be set up before any OS install. I always beef up the storage side with a battery backed/cached RAID card though. I don't like it when I come across barebone RAID and desktop hard drives. Ugh.

Does it come with "2 x 400W High-efficiency Power Supply"? It's a very nice feature to have redundant PSU's. Separate PSU sounds like a bodge to me. The double sided sticky pads will be out next ;) I'd find a cupboard close-by and stick it in there. You should be doing day-to-day stuff by RDP anyway.
Click to expand...

It's been a right rigmarole to get this thing to boot up with compatible RAM never mind talking about a separate RAID card. :p If I can get the onboard RAID working, it's getting used.

The two boot drives I've got for the O/S are WD Velociraptor 160GB 10,000rpm SATA drives. As I said, we dont have the two data drives yet but I was looking at the Seagate or WD NAS drives. Budget is a big issue here.

Yes, the PSU is a 2 x 400W one with redundancy. Actually, now that I think about it we have a storage room that has 4 network points that all work, and the room never has any heating on in it so that might be our solution right there. And yes of course, I'll be RDP-ing it on a daily basis - it was just the fact that having it on the desk next to me these last few days is giving me ****ing tinnitus... :D


James H
 
Last edited:
tinnitus - haha!

What's it going to run? Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, fileserver, print queues. It should be able to run those, but I wouldn't expect it to be so good with Exchange. My experience is a bit out-of-date though.
 
Toughnoodle said:
tinnitus - haha!

What's it going to run? Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, fileserver, print queues. It should be able to run those, but I wouldn't expect it to be so good with Exchange. My experience is a bit out-of-date though.
Click to expand...

AD, DNS, Fileserver and possibly some printers in future, though the big ugly Dell printer we have has it's own print server built in so we dont need to go mad. No email server needed - even if we did I wouldn't go down the Exchange road....


James H
 
Last edited:
How come you're putting 2008 on it? You know it's based on vista (if it's not 2008 R2). Do you have other licenses? It's not something I do, but I've seen licensing for charities where you only pay an admin fee. It looked like a legit channel with phone numbers, etc.
 
Toughnoodle said:
How come you're putting 2008 on it? You know it's based on vista (if it's not 2008 R2). Do you have other licenses? It's not something I do, but I've seen licensing for charities where you only pay an admin fee. It looked like a legit channel with phone numbers, etc.
Click to expand...

I've already got a legit copy of Server 2008 R2 (that's the version I test installed today) and, yes as we're a charity, we can actually get a full copy or Server 2012 for around £43 (plus £1 per CAL). We've registered and provided details to the place you're more than likely talking about.

We need a server as we're planning to hire out our computer room and I want to keep the amount of headaches to a minimum in terms of cleaning up our PCs and user accounts, etc. I can set up Group Policies and rattle off new user accounts in a matter of minutes.


James H
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom