Octane does not boot, blank screen, Sync-On-Green problem?
Yves Laboureur
the way:
I recently acquired my first SGI on ebay: an Octane, single R12000 300Mhz,
256MB RAM, SE Gfx, Cherokee PSU and 1 HD. It came with a 13W3 to HD15 cable
(unmarked so cannot look up the exact type or brand).
I used this cable to connect the Octane to my Samsung 172X TFT. The
monitor's manual states that it is Sync-On-Green capable (option). Now this
is the tricky part, let's continue...
After pressing the power button on the Octane, the fans and the harddrive
spin up and the lightbar shines white. After a couple of seconds, it turns
solid red. The screen stays blank (but the monitor does not indicate "no
video signal"). A quick look at the manual shows that the gfx-card is not
seated well in the XIO-slot, or the monitor is not connected.
Here's what I did: first I tried re-seating the gfx-card (several times), no
luck.
I summoned a friend of mine with his sync converter he got from www.si87.com
for his Octane, and plugged it on the cable to my monitor. Same story
here...
Is the gfx-card defective? Or maybe the cable? Or is it possible the cable
is a SUN-type and not for SGI-machines (heard that also can be a problem).
Can anybody point me in the right direction?
Emmanuel Florac
> Is the gfx-card defective? Or maybe the cable? Or is it possible the cable
> is a SUN-type and not for SGI-machines (heard that also can be a problem).
> Can anybody point me in the right direction?
Red light means big trouble... It simply tells the Octane can't boot,
but the mainboard, the CPU and the RAM can also be defective. Try
reseating everything : RAM, CPU daughterboard... The Octane should be able
to boot without GFX.
Get sure the RAM is OK : you can't plug the DIMMs anywhere, there is an
order to fill the slots, and you must have 2 DIMMs per bank and at least
one bank filled (an odd number of DIMMs can't work).
Double check that the compression connectors that connect mainboard and
GFX to the backplane are OK : these are EXTREMELY DELICATE and won't work
if there is dirt or even fingerprints on them.
Connect a terminal on serial port one, unplug keyboard
and mouse, try to boot. If it doesn't work, unplug the GFX board and try
again.
--
entia non sont multiplicanda praeter necessitatem.
Guillaume d'Ockham.
Tom Kranz
> After pressing the power button on the Octane, the fans and the harddrive
> spin up and the lightbar shines white. After a couple of seconds, it turns
> solid red. The screen stays blank (but the monitor does not indicate "no
> video signal"). A quick look at the manual shows that the gfx-card is not
> seated well in the XIO-slot, or the monitor is not connected.
If the light bar goes red, and stays red, you have a hardware fault.
Take the front cover off the Octane, and look at the bottom right
corner of the front - there should be a group of LEDs there, which
will give you details about what the Octane thinks is plugged in. This
will let you know if the Octane can see everything.
Gerhard's page has more info -
http://sgistuff.g-lenerz.de/hardware/machines/octane.html
I would try removing the system board, check and reseat all your ram,
and then check the CPU board is re-inserted correctly.
Get something plugged into serial port A on the Octane (PC, laptop,
terminal, whatever) and see what the Octane says as it comes up - you
should get some useful information from there.
Cheers,
TOM
Yves Laboureur
port, using a NULL-modem cable, and see what it does... I assume my terminal
software must be set at the standard 8n1/19200 settings.
About the group of LEDs in the front, there are none. There is an opening in
the case, which reveals a PCB, but there are no components on it, let alone
LEDs... /joke mode/ I guess some lame PC-owner removed them to mod his case
so his PEECEE looks as cool as an SGI :) /serious mode/
Again, thanks for the quick response, after al those viri, spam and banners,
this is a welcome reminder of what internet is (should be) all about...
"Tom Kranz" <t...@siliconbunny.com> wrote in message
news:858768d8.04051...@posting.google.com...
Gerhard Lenerz
> Thank you both for you information. I'll connect my PC to the Octane's COM1
> port, using a NULL-modem cable, and see what it does... I assume my terminal
> software must be set at the standard 8n1/19200 settings.
8N1 9600
> About the group of LEDs in the front, there are none. There is an opening in
> the case, which reveals a PCB, but there are no components on it, let alone
> LEDs... /joke mode/ I guess some lame PC-owner removed them to mod his case
> so his PEECEE looks as cool as an SGI :) /serious mode/
If you've removed the front skin there should be five little holse in
the lower right corner of the sheetmetal (next to the connector).
>> Gerhard's page has more info -
>> http://sgistuff.g-lenerz.de/hardware/machines/octane.html
Ah... I was just about to dig for the URL of the ASCII art. :-)
Gerhard
--
My webpages will soon move to another host. Until that move is complete
the pages at www.g-lenerz.de will not be updated. The current sgistuff
pages are temporarily available at http://sgistuff.tastensuppe.de/
Gerhard Lenerz
> port, using a NULL-modem cable, and see what it does... I assume my terminal
> software must be set at the standard 8n1/19200 settings.
8N1 9600
> About the group of LEDs in the front, there are none. There is an opening in
> the case, which reveals a PCB, but there are no components on it, let alone
> LEDs... /joke mode/ I guess some lame PC-owner removed them to mod his case
> so his PEECEE looks as cool as an SGI :) /serious mode/
If you've removed the front skin there should be seven little holes in
the lower right corner of the sheetmetal (next to the connector).
>> Gerhard's page has more info -
>> http://sgistuff.g-lenerz.de/hardware/machines/octane.html
Ah... I was just about to dig for the URL of the ASCII art. :-)
Tom Kranz
> About the group of LEDs in the front, there are none. There is an opening in
> the case, which reveals a PCB, but there are no components on it, let alone
> LEDs... /joke mode/ I guess some lame PC-owner removed them to mod his case
> so his PEECEE looks as cool as an SGI :) /serious mode/
Odd. I've seen a few Octanes missing those - including mine. Shame,
because they can come in handy - either way I think the serial console
is going to give you the best insight into what is dead.
>
> Again, thanks for the quick response, after al those viri, spam and banners,
> this is a welcome reminder of what internet is (should be) all about...
See, if you're not asking how to run Linux on an SGI or preaching the
imminent doom of Silicon Graphics, we're a helpful bunch :-)
Cheers,
TOM
Yves Laboureur
empty PCB I was talking about), and all the necessary LEDs are lit:
"BaseIO", "QA" (my gfx card) and "Heart". I have no other XIO options so
only these three should be lit, and they are (green).
I already tried re-seating the memory modules on the mainboard and
re-seating the graphics card several times, but still, when powered up, the
lightbar produces a continuous red light.
Next step: connect my Octane to my PC via serial null-modem cable.
/Walks to basement to fetch soldering iron to transform a modem cable to
null-modem/
"Tom Kranz" <t...@siliconbunny.com> wrote in message
news:858768d8.04051...@posting.google.com...
Yves Laboureur
After struggling with my soldering iron for about an hour, I was able to
conjur up a null-modem cable, which I used to connect my PC to my seweet
Octane...
I started a terminal session on COM1 and fired up the Octane. The lightbar
went red alert, and after a few seconds I raised in cheers as an error
message came up on my terminal screen!!! Now I knew my system wasn't dead...
I pressed return and up came a menu, and the lightbar returned to a normal
condition (white light)...
From this menu, I performed a complete system diagnostic, and after about 20
minutes, it seemed that my system was fully operational. No errors. Another
option was to start-up the system, which I did, but I don't have any
login/passwords for it.
Conclusion: I need a new 13W3 to HD15 cable. Mine is probably defective, or
just the wrong type (a SUN cable perhaps)!
*** Thank you very much for all the helpful tips, people! You really got me
started on my first SGI adventure!
"Yves Laboureur" <yve...@biz.tiscali.be> wrote in message
news:409ee758$0$41754$5fc...@dreader2.news.tiscali.nl...
Ivan Jager
> Today, I made significant progress...
>
> After struggling with my soldering iron for about an hour, I was able to
> conjur up a null-modem cable, which I used to connect my PC to my seweet
> Octane...
>
> I started a terminal session on COM1 and fired up the Octane. The lightbar
> went red alert, and after a few seconds I raised in cheers as an error
> message came up on my terminal screen!!! Now I knew my system wasn't dead...
> I pressed return and up came a menu, and the lightbar returned to a normal
> condition (white light)...
>
> From this menu, I performed a complete system diagnostic, and after about 20
> minutes, it seemed that my system was fully operational. No errors. Another
> option was to start-up the system, which I did, but I don't have any
> login/passwords for it.
What was the error message you got when you turned it on?
> Conclusion: I need a new 13W3 to HD15 cable. Mine is probably defective, or
> just the wrong type (a SUN cable perhaps)!
If that is the problem, and your monitor does support sync-on-green, it
should work after you rip out the extra pins with a pair of plyers. All
you need are the 3 big coax connectors. (I did this with an IBM 13W3
cable, and it works fine.)
Ivan
Yves Laboureur
(from www.si87.com)...
I plugged them in like this: Octane 13W3 monitor output -> 13W3 adapter ->
Sync converter -> VGA cable -> TFT monitor. I also used a 6V mains adapter
to feed the Sync converter (first checked correct polarity and voltage with
my fluke).
AARGH.... Still no picture, and a red lightbar. My monitor is currently
connected to my PC via DVI. The Octane is connected to analog VGA, and the
input is switched to analog VGA. This input works, as I tested it on a PC.
This monitor (Samsung 172X TFT) is capable of 1280x1024 resolution...
I'm still capable of accessing the Octane with the terminal (and starting up
the system). But still no image on my monitor.
Is it possible that my Octane's GFX-board is somehow damaged, maybe on the
analog side, and that the system diagnostics (I ran yesterday via terminal
software) can't see it's broken???
I'm tripping here people :) (reaches for the sixpack in the fridge)... Any
suggestions?
"Yves Laboureur" <yve...@biz.tiscali.be> wrote in message
news:40a14b21$0$41762$5fc...@dreader2.news.tiscali.nl...
Emmanuel Florac
>
> I'm tripping here people :) (reaches for the sixpack in the fridge)... Any
> suggestions?
Your best bet is to start trying with a good ol' 17' monitor... However,
il the problem came entirely from the monitor, it wouldn't explain the red
lightbar!
--
Le commissaire : Comment vous appelez-vous?
Garance : Moi je ne m'appelle jamais, je suis toujours là. J'ai pas
besoin de m'appeler. Mais les autres m'appellent Garance, si ça peut
vous intéresser.
Prévert,"les enfants du Paradis".
Yves Laboureur
Octane. With Sync converter, I get no picture at all. If I use just the
13W3 -> HD15 adapter, I get a garbled screen (typical out of sync stuff)...
It seems (as I exptected) that the VGA monitor can't handle 1280x1024 (it's
low end peecee stuff). But I still get the RED lightbar.
Well, nothing some good weed can't cure later this evening :)...
I know I'm new to SGI, but logic dictates there has to be a problem with the
gfx-card (altough system diagnostics tells me everything is working
allright). Maybe the analog side of the circuitry.
I'm waiting for the new graphics card I ordered on ebay. I shall get back
when I got the chance to test it.
This friday, I'm taking my Samsung TFT monitor and Sync converters to my
friends new Octane. His Octane's lightbar does NOT turn red, even without a
monitor attached.
Again, thank all of you guys that have helped me with this problem...
"Emmanuel Florac" <efl...@imaginet.fr> wrote in message
news:pan.2004.05.12....@imaginet.fr...
Tom Kranz
> I know I'm new to SGI, but logic dictates there has to be a problem with the
> gfx-card (altough system diagnostics tells me everything is working
> allright). Maybe the analog side of the circuitry.
Logic is right. Red lightbar = hardware failure somewhere.
Bad monitor cable or missing monitor doesn't enter into it - those are
beyond the scope of the POST tests.
Pull the graphics card (make sure you blank that empty XIO slot!) and
then turn on the machine. Still get the red lightbar?
Alternatively, plug nothing in the machine except power and your
serial connection, then turn it on. Still get the red lightbar?
Cheers,
TOM