PowerVault MD3000i serial connection hangs

Question

I have a PowerVault MD3000i with an iSCSI controller which I have connected to using a CT109 cable purchased from Dell and a USB to serial adapter connected to my laptop. I know both cables work because I was previously able to use this configuration to reset the controller to its factory default settings. I am attempting to do the same process again. I have outlined the steps I have taken below.

Open Putty connection on COM5 with baud rate 115200, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, parity none, flow control none.
Turn PowerVault on
Normally the console shows the boot procedure and I can press followed by and start the reset procedure.
This time the console only shows the output below

Console output:

-=<###>=-
Attaching interface lo0... done

Adding 9767 symbols for standalone.

All the lights point to the PowerVault operating properly. The front LEDs are blue and green, both power supplies are all green, and the controllers are showing green. Both controllers have been operational in the past and I had reset then a few years back.

Troubleshooting steps so far and have achieved the same results in all cases:

Tried same reset procedure with second controller
Removed both controllers, let sit for 5 minutes, and reinsert both controllers
Remove both controllers, remove batteries, re-seat memory, let sit for 5 minutes, reattach batteries, reinsert both controllers

What is causing the problem that I am not able to see the output from the controller in the console? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

DELL-Sam L · Accepted Answer

Hello ivcubr, You need to have the first 4 slots filled with hard drives in order to have your MD3000i boot correctly. Please let us know if you have any other questions.

DELL-Sam L · Answer

Hello ivcubr,

Try changing your speed from 115200 to 9600 and see if that provides more of the output. If that doesn’t then remove all iSCSI cables from the controller and then try to connect again to the controller.

Are you getting the same error from both controllers or from just a single controller?

Please let us know if you have any other questions.

ivcubr · Answer

Hi Sam,

I am receiving the error on both controllers, although I am connecting one at a time. I also have all the iSCSI cables disconnected from the controller. The only things plugged in are the 2 power cords and the serial cable to the back of the controller. As of right now I have all the hard drives removed, does there need to be hard drives loaded in order for the controller to load up?

I will try changing the speed from 115200 to 9600 this weekend and report the results.

ivcubr · Answer

Hi Sam, After populating the first 4 hard drive slots I was able to correctly boot the MD3000i controller and configure it using the Modular Disk Storage Manager. Thank you for your assistance!

PowerVault

PowerVault MD3000i serial connection hangs

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