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Does a terminator on SCSI LVD2 cable between backplane and motherboard matter?
Hello,
I have problems with booting up the Windows 2000 server system. Installation works fine, system hangs on the Windows family logo page (after finishing text based installation).
The PowerEdge 2300 is not RAID equipped, just 1x6 U2W LVD scsi board controller. Since I do not have a short 68-pin cable (just with two ends - one for the backplane, second for the motherboard), i plugged in a normal SCSI 68-pin cable from PE1300, that can host 5 devices and has a terminator on one end. Using this cable I can see all drives in CTRL-A utility, I can format drive and I can perform text based installation of windows 2000 without any complications.
The PowerEdge 2300 is not RAID equipped, just 1x6 U2W LVD scsi board controller. Since I do not have a short 68-pin cable (just with two ends - one for the backplane, second for the motherboard), i plugged in a normal SCSI 68-pin cable from PE1300, that can host 5 devices and has a terminator on one end. Using this cable I can see all drives in CTRL-A utility, I can format drive and I can perform text based installation of windows 2000 without any complications.
However, when it starts graphic based part of the installation, it always hangs on the white screen with blue Windows Family logo and "starting up" progress in zero.
My question is: could this be a problem of the scsi cable between motherboard and backplane? Is it the terminator that causes this problem?
Thanks Paul
Dev Mgr
9.3K Posts
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October 8th, 2005 10:00
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 14th, 2005 16:00
kulicek
24 Posts
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October 14th, 2005 17:00
thanks paul
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 14th, 2005 20:00
Hi Kulicek,
Already called in, then post your svc tag and I can look at what's been done as far as T/S goes.
How many hard drives do you have and how much system RAM.
Some ideas...
#1, if system ram is 64 M/B (P/N 19095) adding more memory should help. (system is using page file space on the hard drive for kernal memory, 1000 times slower than main memory) There are 4 memory slots, and there is no memory interleve on the PE2300, so a single larger DIMM could be bought (PC100). Look at the minimum and recommended system specs for W2k3.
#2, You could have a device on the SCSI bus that is mis behaving, BP or drive. get a 68 pin drive from that PE1300 and connect it using the power drop for the TBU, use the cable from the PE1300 and see if it will run fast.
Well I've got to go, I'll check the forums a couple of times over the weekend but will not be able to review logs till monday.
warwizard
kulicek
24 Posts
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October 14th, 2005 22:00
I already tried several combinations: including completely disconnected backplane (both cables from the motherboard), disconnected tape device, turned off com and lpt ports in bios (A14 and also A15, tested both), ESM firmware A40. Nothing
HDD from PE1300 was tried connected to both SCSI controllers onboard, when that didnt help, I turned off integrated SCSI controllers and plugged in PCI Adaptec 29160 SCSI card. Nothing, the same result.
at all times system was equipped with 2 x 128 MB ECC PC100 SDRAM that came from PE 1300. Seated in A and B slots.
:smileysad:
paul
kulicek
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October 16th, 2005 19:00
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 16th, 2005 19:00
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 17th, 2005 19:00
Hi Kulicek,
This server was sold in the EU and I cannot pull up the history. The P/N 19097 memory (128 M/B) from the PE1300 should work fine, however the original system board was a "BX", and I cannot tell if the system board replacement the system had in '01 sent a "BX" or a "GX" system board. See if you can find the system board part number, as well as the p/n for the proc module.
warwizard
kulicek
24 Posts
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October 17th, 2005 20:00
Immense thanks for your unnerving patience to help me out.
paul
kulicek
24 Posts
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October 18th, 2005 21:00
alright, I will be sure to do this. Thats one of the things that I havent done yet. I just simply thought that if server boots up with some CPU and displays this CPU frequency, that its OK. But I will check the jumpers.
Thanks, I will let you know if this solved my mysterious problems.
Paul
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 18th, 2005 21:00
Kulicek,
The original BX motherboard initially supported only up to the 400 MHz, and I *think* with BIOS update would support 450 MHz, try puting the 400 MHz Pentium II in the system (be sure to set the jumpers for this speed proc) and see it that solves the speed problem.
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/scham/html/en/ug/techspec.htm
"single or dual Intel Pentium II microprocessor with an internal operating frequency of 333, 350, or 400 MHz and an external operating frequency of 66 MHz (333 MHz) or 100 MHz (350 or 400 MHz)."
warwizard
kulicek
24 Posts
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October 21st, 2005 19:00
I know that you had lots of ideas, but if you had another one, I might use it as well
Thanks you, and have a nice weekend.
paul
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 23rd, 2005 02:00
Paul,
It's time to use the performance monitor (admistrative tools in control panel) to see what is happening (proc, memory , hard drives, find out which one is causing the really slow performance).
warwizard
kulicek
24 Posts
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October 23rd, 2005 14:00
warwizard55
720 Posts
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October 24th, 2005 14:00
Are you using the embedded video? Try throwing a PCI based video card into it.
We've ruled out the proc and the hard drives, and you're using compatable memory. If a video card does not resolve it, then it will likely be something on the M/B. (Assuming you're specifying the video driver in the install).
warwizard