Motherboard Beeping?

Hello all,

I've recently re-configured my UnRaid with a 1.5 TB Parity Drive (exchanging a 1 TB now used for data) and removing 2 older 160GB drives.  Exchange w/Pre-clear new parity, replacement & re-checks (done several times) w/o errors.

System has been stable for ~ 3 weeks but, I'm still hearing periodic "beeping" from the Un-Raid (via onboard speaker).  I've tried to look for this problem or solution w/everything from faulty power, to fan failure, to memory problems noted, but nothing with any Linux based monitoring.  Does anyone know of such a program or WHY this might be happening. 

This system has been operational & reliable w/moderate changes to HD's for ~ 4 years.  If its time to replace the MB/Power Supply etc. I would appreciate recommendations.  The only fault to sytem (board GigE failed) so external unit (PCI) installed w/o a problem.  Current config - 6 PATA Drives (3 x 500, 1 x 300 & 2 x 250 GB) and 2 SATA (1.5 TB (Parity) & 1 TB Data).  MB Asus P5PE-VM w/Celeron D (more than adequate for multiple video streams) & 512 MB Ram - integrated video (headless) in Cooler Master Centurion Case.

I realize that we are all migrating to SATA Drives (board only has capability of two - but my PATA's are full of Movies and I've yet to find a "quick" ( ) way to transfer the data from one to another.

I also have a limited use ECS Workstation that is running an Athlon 64 which I might substitute (need the GigE PCI Card) but might work in a pinch.  Interestingly, it boots to UnRaid and was used as a separate box to PreClear the 1.5 TB drive (at >20+ hours).

Thanks for any recommendations, if I can keep the Asus it eliminates a change in configurations etc & possible other errors, but I'm really worried that my "system" may be in jeopardy given the BEEPING! 

Dave

I'm wondering about this board and it's reliability.

If you already have a faulty built in ethernet port, have not installed any addons and the motherboard is beeping, I would think there is a hardware issue and failure is imminent.

Run a memtest overnight an make sure memory issues do not crop up.

If any do, then you cannot rely on this board or memory.

Just to clarify, your server is beeping during normal uptime, right?  Not during boot up or power down?

WeeboTech/Rajahal,

Sorry for the delay in response, went or rather tried to go a meeting, but got caught in the weather over Vail Pass (Colorado Springtime in the Rockies )!

WeeboTech, is it possible to run memtest via linux (command line) w/o taking the Server Down?  If so, what is the command?  Do I need to download a Linux Tool?

Rajahal, yes it is beeping during normal operations, not just at boot-up.  Seems to have started (I think) with my upgrade to a different Parity Drive 1.5GB Seagate, though may have existed prior to that time with the 1GB Seagate.  Both of the new drives are SATA's whereas my previous Parity (500GB) and rest of the drives are PATA.  Server has had no problems in general operation, but   I am certainly willing to upgrade this unit as its been ~ 4 years with only the MB GigE failure.

I agree with WeeboTech, that's a bit suspicious, though as stated it has not been a problem.  I tried to exchange the board but Asus had totally discontinued this particular model.  In my research online, the onboard GigE Lan had been reported as failing fairly often even though mine lasted ~ 2+ years. 

Any suggestions would be appreciated as I'm a bit away from the latest motherboards/chips/memory being used.  As a general ?, would that require my system to be completely re-done or is it just a "swap" as long as the MB will boot from the Key?

My other ? is whether or not the Power Supply is adequate, I do have 8 drives operating, though prior to upgrading I had 9 or 10.  I don't believe the Sata's draw as much power as the Pata's, but since they are larger, I dunno.

Thanks for the responses.

Dave

Is there a remote possibility that the beeping could be coming from your UPS and not the motherboard?

(My UPS beeps when I first turn on the server)

Joe L.

Hi Joe,

Didn't think of that  , I suppose its possible, the battery in the UPS could be going bad. 

I'm not sure, but when I had the Server in my other room to install the new Parity drive & replace the others, I heard the beeping.  That was the first time that I was aware of the problem and it was not attached to the UPS.  I thought at the time it was related to adding a 10th drive to the system, though as subsequently reported, I've removed 2 others (small 160GB's) and it seemed to mostly occur on start-up, though towards the end seemed to continue.  When I removed the 2 little drives and Restored the system, I thought it had gone away and it was not until I had placed it back in the "headless" location, that I noticed it continuing.

I'll try to check it out, but that will probably require stopping the UnRaid and disconnecting the UPS.  If I do that, I probably should run the MemTest suggested by WeeboTech.  Any suggestions as to the best MemTest and/or board level testing system?  I have an external floppy or cd drive to use if necessary.

Dave

The memtest has to be run native on the machine. I.E. the machine is booted with the unRAID boot flash. Select the menu item memtest and let it run a few passes (or overnight).

If it beeps once or twice on bootup that is normal.

if it beeps a few times, then it is trying to tell you something.

It should not beep while the unRAID OS is running. Once loaded it should be quiet. (unless you are on the machine doing something with vi and making errors).

WeeboTech,

Thank you, I'll try that tonight and report back!

Dave

Hi guys,

Well the MemTest has run for 33+ hours & 171 passes w/no errors.  So my thinking is that the memory is not the problem.  I did disconnect the Server from the UPS for the MemTest and have not heard any "beeping" so Joe might be right, but I'm not sure if the drives, etc are really spinning, as the MemTest precedes the OS (I would think they're up but dunno)?

One last bit of info re: the board - in the last month, whenever I turned off the Server (halt/power down), I have had to change the USB port/plug for the Key.  Forgot to mention that earlier, sorry.  This could also indicate a possible/imminent failure of the MotherBoard.  Specifically the Bios upon Boot fails to "see" the USB Key if its located in the same USB port.  As soon as I move it, it will recognize the Key and begin the UnRaid boot sequence.

I'm beginning to think its time to replace the board-so basic recommendations are in order.  I have a CeleronD that's worked well and the memory 512K DDR2 that passing the MemTest, so nothing fancy is required.  I still have 6 PATA Drives (4 running on mb) + 2 (previously 4) running on Promise Cards.  This board only has the 2 SATA ports now being used for Parity (1.5TB) & larger storage (1TB).  It is in the realm of possibility to eliminate the PATA's by combining my data to several newer SATA's but as noted on the forum its a rea PITA! :'(

Dave

It is in the realm of possibility to eliminate the PATA's by combining my data to several newer SATA's but as noted on the forum its a rea PITA!

It should not be that hard, you can do one at a time and use a tool like rsync to do it.

rsync from drive to drive works well for this.

Now regards to your mobo.

When was the last time the bios battery was changed?

Do you have an old motherboard to swap with?

Re: PATA drives.

Do you have 2 drives sharing the same IDE cable?

If so, then I would suggest the project to move the data to newer drives or plan to move each pata drive to it's own cable.

This is a problem waiting to happen. If one drive on a shared ide cable dies, it has the chance to cause the other one to be unusable until the failed drive is removed from the cable.

Then you have to think about the whole master/slave relationship unless you've set the drives for Cable Select.

If you do decide to buy a new motherboard, you may find the Recommended Builds section of the wiki helpful.

Unraid beeps when the NIC connects/re-connects, can you post up a syslog from a period when it is beeping? This and the UPS are the most likely sources for your mysterious beeps IMO.

If you are using DHCP, try using manual setting. If your router is doing DHCP you need to chose an IP address outside its DHCP scope.

Typical scopes:

Netgear is typically 192.168.1.2-50

Linksys is typically  192.168.1.100-149

DLINK is typically  192.168.1.100-199

Hello all,

Just checked the System again at 41+ hours and 214 passes 0 Errors.  I started the Server (currently running Parity Check) w/o problems changing the USB port as mentioned this morning. 

WeeboTech - yes the PATA Drives have run for 4 years on Master/Slave and/or Cable Select.  Without dismantling the Server, I can't remember which, though I do think I used Cable Select where possible.  At the time I built my Server, we were all still searching for replacements to the original Intel Board (discontinued) and I may have been the first or second to use the ASUS P5PE-VM.  Tom was reasonably confident that the Linux Kernel would support other boards, but did not have the resources to check other MB's, so quite a few of us were essentially "guinea pigs".  If we got it to run, yea - so reported for others  !  Lots more choices today and since PATA has about run the course and drives are much larger; the options are numerous. 

I have over 200 Videos 'ripped' to ISO/VOB format on my multiple PATA Drives (3 x 500; 1 x 300; & 2 x 250) most of which might be stored on my single TB Drive, but I would not have any room for other information.  I've not used rsync, so am not aware of that process (program) but would certainly consider that as an option.

I do have several older boards if I can get a battery out of one of those, I will try to see if that corrects the beeping  I also have an ECS AM64 that runs almost continuously as an additional data computer (XP only) which I might be able to use to replace the ASUS if appropriate.  It was the board I used to PreClear the 1.5 TB drive for the Server, so I do know that it will boot off the key.

Kaygee - I was not aware of the NIC connect/re-connect matter, so that conceiveably could be the problem.  I have set my UnRaid Server to a "static" IP - 10.0.0.50 so doubt the DHCP issue matters.  If I still need to post the Syslog, I will try to do that if I can figure out how to get one to a document file.

As of the "re-boot" Parity Check I've only heard a few beeps, so not sure if the problem is the Board, NIC or as Joe suggested the UPS.  When I re-booted, I did not reconnect the UPS (ie Server is plugged directly to power).  It still is beeping (sing/song w/~3-5 sec delay) but not quite as often, perhaps not as much of a "load" at this point.

At this point I certainly leaning towards replacing the Board for various reasons stated above and before.  My one other matter would be to make this my primary Server, not just the Video/Music/Storage device.  What might be the recommendations along that line since it is in effect a very large NAS (at 3TB's & counting)?  If I want my data to reside on the Server (ie My Documents, email, Programs (copies), etc), how would you configure it.  I've noticed that Vista/Win7 doesn't like the concept of "network" data very well (especially Intuit/Quicken Premier (10)/TurboTax/QuickBooks (09)) and the delay vs a Domain type Server is significant (albeit workable).  I think that most of the delay is d/t spinning up the particular Hard Disk in order to read the data.  After previous discussion, I didn't set up a "Cache Drive" but that might be one option.  Another might be an independent "back-up" program that essentially copies local computer data (EG Quickbooks) over to the Server (similar to the Cache Drive) on a nightly basis.  Finally as we are all moving towards a "Greener" environment, it would be nice to have the least power use from UnRaid that is possible, but still meeting my above criteria.  My final alternative would be a separate NAS for Data to replace my aging, limited and power-hungry Domain Server (its just gotta GO )!

Sorry for the long post, but if I should change the MB in the UnRaid, it would be nice to plan for it all in one, vs having multiple different products.

Regards,

Dave

Unplug the NIC when the server isnt be used, beeping stops then it is the issue...

Hello all:

Well it seems to get "stranger" , I've checked the "beeping" and essentially now that Parity has been restored (0-errors), I'm not hearing the beeping sound.  Kaygee, I haven't tried your trick of disconnecting the NIC Cable yet, need to have it beep some.  I tried spinning up all the drives and nada.  I can only think that maybe Joe was correct re: UPS and/or the current USB Hub port is making better contact (?) and maybe being loose, or possibly weak/bad was causing the system to think or respond to attach/dettach/reattach the Key.  Pretty wild guess, but maybe in the realm of possibility.  It didn't seem to affect operations, perhaps the system once loaded resides in Ram unless some function is called for on the Key.  Anybody have a thought?

Regardless, I'm still leaning towards replacing the board and have reviewed several suggestions from the Wiki.  I have a couple of other unused processors a Q9450 (quad core) Yorkfield and E6600 (dual core) that I could use or keep my Celeron D (3.06 Ghz), though I need to find a board for any or all of these (all LGA775).  The Quad is a bit overkill , but what a processor, however I'm not sure it will really be doing anything in an UnRaid Server.  Same for the E6600.  I also have that ECS Board w/Athlon 64 sitting and providing me a basic XP box, so might switch out that board for a LGA775 and put the quad core there, though again that poses a problem since I want a simple XP box for older programs.

Looking forward to some feedback!

Dave

I run an E6600 and a E6700 for my unRAID servers.

There was no measurable power benefit in going with the Conroe-L 440 2Ghz, even though it is documented as 1/2 the TDP of the others.

Recently I was glad to have chosen a processor with a larger cache and multicore when I was doing a very long md5 and par2 test on one of the drives. The job itself took over 12 hours for each.

When I used a multithreaded version of par2, it took much less time.

I would not use the quadcore unless you were going to do some massive multi processing on the unRAID server.  Perhaps vmware with encoding/decoding.

If I were going to buy something new, I might consider one of the supermicro ATOM boards with IPMI, or i3/i5.

Well 'hear' we go again !

I moved the Server back to my other room (no longer really "headless") and disposed of my Domain Server (really, really faithful for 10+ years, albeit very BIG Bulky & probably Expensive to Operate ! - 2xPII 550's, 4 SCA SCCI's (totalling 9GB @ but in Striped/Mirrored Array - ie total 9GB available)).  Sorry to see it go, but go it must!

Obviously from the headline, its Beeping again.  So with kudos to WeeboTech, et. al. am convinced that I need to replace the motherboard.  Problem now is actually finding one, since my  E6600 or Q9450 are no longer being produced, and available boards are somewhat limited.  I'd like to if possible find a Board w/2 IDE ports for my old PATA's and at least 6 or more SATA ports.  It would also be nice if it had an internal USB in order to protect the KEY.  Other than that, GigE & Video onboard would be nice and at least 3 PCI slots.  If you get my "drift" I ain't finding much! 

Anybody know of a board that might fit most of the above!  I've thought of trying to get a "refurbed" computer with proper specs, then upgrade the chip, but haven't found anything that matches.  I could break down and purchase all new, but that seems a waste given good chips & memory.  My Computer Box is the old Centurion II.

Help, if anyone has a tip/thought!

Warmly,

Dave

There are plenty of boards you could get to support the 775 chip.

The issue you may have is two IDE ports (4 IDE drives?).

You might have to get another PCI controller for the IDE ports.

Other then that you can grab a used board at a cost effective price.

What is your budget?

Hi WeeboTech,

Budget is probably > $ 100 and I have 2 Promise Cards at the moment (albeit working older ones).  What I've seen as available either doesn't have 2 IDE's or only 2, then 10/100 Lan, so I lose speed.  The newer boards also tend towards DDR3 (nice but another expense).  As reported on this thread, up until ~ a month/6 weeks ago, this board has been fantastic, so I'm a bit spoiled.

I looked at your suggested Atom based replacement, but none have any IDE's that I've found and most had only 2 pci slots and a maximum of 4 SATA's.  For a small Server that's very energy efficient, that would suffice, but I'm trying not to have to replace everything at once.

Regardless, thanks for the suggestions.  If you have a specific board(s) in mind, I'd appreciate a lead.  The used market poses problems as well, since it could also be bad, but still may be the best option for the $.

Dave

How large are those IDE drives?

Have you thought about merging them onto a larger SATA drive?

WeeboTech,

Yes, I've actually merged a couple (got rid of the 160GB's) for another 500GB, then added the 1TB.  My drives include 3 x 500 GB; 1 x 300 GB ; 2 x 250 GB (all PATA's) w/1 500 pretty empty & 1 ~ 1/2 empty. My former Parity Drive is a 1TB Sata (now for Data).  The remainder have my movies/music/tv/data-which I've moved from the Domain Server over the weekend.

I know that I could purchase another couple of SATA's - 1 to 1.5 TB and reduce the number/load/possible problems, but the PATA's are still pretty useful/functional and full of data.

Hope that helps refine the problem.

Dave

Hi Gang !

Thought for a quick minute, I'd update my old thread.  Gol darn #@*% Beeping started up again, so enuf! :'(  I have just replaced my Asus P5PE MB w/a Foxconn P41A-G 775 G41 using at WeeboTech's suggestion an E6600 w/2 GB of Ram.  Install was simply a MB exchange - Foxconn was purchased (Newegg ~ $50) for the 5 PCI slots (to give me room for my PATA Promise cards) & 4 SATA's.

At the moment it is performing a Parity Check after a required Reset of the Array configuration as the Foxconn only has 1 IDE channel (hence no hdc or hdd).  It goes from hda & hdb to hde... a bit interesting since all drives are in the same order, but not per normal sequence.  Also upgraded to 4.5.4 per notes on site.

Pending any problems, I'm happy to recommend this board, very easy to install, lots of backward & forward compatability, lots of slots, on board video + and board can (though not necessary for UnRaid) be tweaked a lot.  I even considered using a Q9450 (quad core) but its a bit of an overkill !

Out of curiosity, has anyone tried an SSD w/UnRaid?  I just built a Win7 I5 box that smokes everything I've ever used.  No major problems and its not even tweaked yet for speed. 

The reason is not for storage per se, rather for quick access (no drive spin-up) to my data files which only total ~ 1.5 GB.  As an alternative, is it possible to use another USB stick and/or a PCI adapter Compact flash card?  If its's possible, how would we format the media?

Dave

Out of curiosity, has anyone tried an SSD w/UnRaid?  I just built a Win7 I5 box that smokes everything I've ever used.  No major problems and its not even tweaked yet for speed. 

 

The reason is not for storage per se, rather for quick access (no drive spin-up) to my data files which only total ~ 1.5 GB.  As an alternative, is it possible to use another USB stick and/or a PCI adapter Compact flash card?  If its's possible, how would we format the media?

It's possible to use a compact flash to ide converter. I did for a while, but you need a good CF card that supports UDMA or it will be slow to write.

I had considered this for a while.

http://www.addonics.com/products/flash_memory_reader/ad4cfprj.asp

After I thought about it SSD's are in the affordable range for the size and speed of what I would need.

Which is enough to share home directories among a few machines.

An SSD could be used on unRAID and mounted outside the array.

A daily rsync job could copy it from ssd to unRAID so you always have a backup.

However, I would only use it for small files that I accessedd/updated.  I.E. Mydocuments (but not music/video files).

I'll probably use one as a hybrid cache/login/home drive for my network.

I've given up on the CF idea in favor of the SSD's with some form of trayless removable interface.

There are a few SSDs that have both a SATA interface along with a mini USB interface.

If you are still looking for an older board with multiple IDE cconnectors - try to find an Asus P5LD2 - you will get 6 IDE ports, 4 SATA II ports , one PCIex16 and 3 x PCIex1, 3 x PCI slots, Gigabit LAN (Marvel - may not be supported)

Ebay may have some used ones on the cheap right now.

Good luck

Thanks bcbgboy13, I tried to find another Asus, but frankly was a bit "gunshy" given my experience.  Board still sort of works and I may try to use it for a DVR, though I have others I can also put into service.  If it seems stable in XP (ie no beeping, then maybe.  Appreciate the recommendation, the Foxconn is essentially the same - onboard video, PCI x 16 & PCIe x 2, 5 PCI x1 slots, 1 IDE, 4 SATA II's, Floppy, Parallel, Com (), USB's, and SPDIF if I want (not).  Pretty nice compatable board and didn't require any special Linux/UnRaid drivers.  Would recommend at ~ $ 50-55 from Newegg w/3 yr warranty! 

Hi WeeboTech, thanks for the tip, I've toyed w/an SSD for My Documents file, though hadn't considered placing it outside of the Array.  A couple of choices come to mind, I have a netbook w/only an 8GB SSD so replacing it w/anything larger might actually be a boon!   Last week when we were working on the Win7 machine, Newegg had a special (seems weekly), here's a current 32GB - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227510 for $ 70 w/rebate which would be more than enough for me.

If you keep the SSD outside of the Array, does it then need to be formatted for Reiserserf's or would a standard Fat/Fat32/NTFS format do?  How would you do the outside/inside "backup".  I've done lots of networking but not much Linux so am not clear on the steps or the process.  I really appreciate your responses, you are such a help to those of us who don't really program in Linux or do many of the things that can be done w/UnRaid!  Kudos and Cheers! :)

Warmly,

Dave