I love old computer hardware, and last week was Christmas for me because I got an old Compaq Proliant 3000, which is a huge boxy server that sports all sorts of goodies such as dual P2 or P3 CPU support (came with one P2 300Mhz), eight hot swappable SCSI drives (only came with 3x4.3GB), redundant hot swappable power supplies (came with one), and lots of other fun stuff that is just cool to play around with. (for complete info on the server, including specs and manuals:
I also tend to break perfectly good technology because I like to fiddle with it. Usually I can fix it again, but unfortunately this one is beyond me. I powered it on once when I got it home and it had a Win2k installation, wasn't too interested so I decided I'd "upgrade" it a bit as far as hardware, then wipe the drives and start with a clean OS.
Here are the only changes I did:
- Disabled the power interlock switch (which prevents the computer from powering on when the chassis is open)
- Attempted to add more memory to the memory expansion board (it has four slots on the mainboard, and then another memory card next to the CPU), but realized it didn't fit and the memory I had wasn't compatible (explained later). I restored the memory to the original positioning after this.
- Attempted to upgrade the CPU to a P3 500Mhz, which theoretically should have worked.
At this point I powered it on and it didn't work. It powered on but nothing happened - figured it wouldn't take the CPU, so I put back in the original. Power it up and it goes through the POST sequence (which is very long and detailed; System Init, PCI Autoconfig, Video, then Memory); it fails at the memory test with one long beep and one short. The error message is "207-Invalid Memory Configuration - Fast Page Mode DIMMs Detected. Check DIMM Installation - System Halted" - this error message is on the monitor and on the front LCD screen, so it powers up to some extent.
Looked up the error message and apparently this means that I installed memory which is faster than 66mhz. All the memory is EDO and has to be installed in pairs. Now this isn't right, since I'm using memory which it originally functioned with. I thought maybe I somehow ruined one of the sticks with static charge, but I singled out pairs and tried *every possible* memory combination. It has 6 sticks, so that's 3 pairs, with 6 possible combinations for just one pair. I tried singling out pairs and placing them in various locations, with the exact same error message. (this server has 4 slots on the mainboard, and a memory expansion card with 8 more slots. remember the memory has to be in pairs). I also tried powering on the computer without any memory, but then it won't boot at all. Could it be that I fried *all 6* of the memory modules?
I am slightly confused on how the computer can boot up even halfway if the memory is supposedly incorrect, but that is what it is saying.
Checked for jumpers to clear everything, but none exist. The battery is soldered onto the mainboard, so that can't be removed either. There are a few DIP switches, one to control the CPU settings and one for various other settings, nothing with the memory. I did not tamper with these at all prior to the machine breaking. There is no configuration accessible until after the POST sequence
Does anyone have ANY idea what could be wrong, or any further troubleshooting steps I could take? I am very frustrated.
I also tend to break perfectly good technology because I like to fiddle with it. Usually I can fix it again, but unfortunately this one is beyond me. I powered it on once when I got it home and it had a Win2k installation, wasn't too interested so I decided I'd "upgrade" it a bit as far as hardware, then wipe the drives and start with a clean OS.
Here are the only changes I did:
- Disabled the power interlock switch (which prevents the computer from powering on when the chassis is open)
- Attempted to add more memory to the memory expansion board (it has four slots on the mainboard, and then another memory card next to the CPU), but realized it didn't fit and the memory I had wasn't compatible (explained later). I restored the memory to the original positioning after this.
- Attempted to upgrade the CPU to a P3 500Mhz, which theoretically should have worked.
At this point I powered it on and it didn't work. It powered on but nothing happened - figured it wouldn't take the CPU, so I put back in the original. Power it up and it goes through the POST sequence (which is very long and detailed; System Init, PCI Autoconfig, Video, then Memory); it fails at the memory test with one long beep and one short. The error message is "207-Invalid Memory Configuration - Fast Page Mode DIMMs Detected. Check DIMM Installation - System Halted" - this error message is on the monitor and on the front LCD screen, so it powers up to some extent.
Looked up the error message and apparently this means that I installed memory which is faster than 66mhz. All the memory is EDO and has to be installed in pairs. Now this isn't right, since I'm using memory which it originally functioned with. I thought maybe I somehow ruined one of the sticks with static charge, but I singled out pairs and tried *every possible* memory combination. It has 6 sticks, so that's 3 pairs, with 6 possible combinations for just one pair. I tried singling out pairs and placing them in various locations, with the exact same error message. (this server has 4 slots on the mainboard, and a memory expansion card with 8 more slots. remember the memory has to be in pairs). I also tried powering on the computer without any memory, but then it won't boot at all. Could it be that I fried *all 6* of the memory modules?
I am slightly confused on how the computer can boot up even halfway if the memory is supposedly incorrect, but that is what it is saying.
Checked for jumpers to clear everything, but none exist. The battery is soldered onto the mainboard, so that can't be removed either. There are a few DIP switches, one to control the CPU settings and one for various other settings, nothing with the memory. I did not tamper with these at all prior to the machine breaking. There is no configuration accessible until after the POST sequence
Does anyone have ANY idea what could be wrong, or any further troubleshooting steps I could take? I am very frustrated.
