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Sun Ultra 27 Workstation Service Manual

Chapter 2 Troubleshooting

This chapter describes troubleshooting procedures, provides contact information for obtaining technical assistance, and contains the following sections:

Performing an External Visual Inspection of the Workstation

Improperly set controls and loose or improperly connected cables are common causes of problems with hardware components. When investigating a system problem, first perform an external visual inspection of the workstation. Check all external switches, controls, and cable connections.

ProcedureTo Perform an External Visual Inspection

  1. Power off the workstation using the power-off procedures described in the section, To Power Off the Workstation.

  2. Power off any attached peripherals.

  3. Verify that all power cables are properly connected to the workstation, the monitor, and the workstation peripherals.

  4. Inspect connections from the workstation to any attached devices, including network cables, keyboard, monitor, and mouse.

  5. Reset and tighten any loose connectors.

  6. Power on the workstation.

Assessing the Issue

Troubleshooting begins with assessing the issue and attempting to discover the factors that might contribute to the current situation. Assess the issue by collecting some basic information. Answer the following questions to determine contributing factors:

Troubleshooting the Issue

After you assess the issue, use the information in combination with the following table to troubleshoot. Possible solutions are listed for each problem. If the solutions listed here do not fix the problem, run the appropriate diagnostic test (see Chapter 4, Running Diagnostics) and note your current configuration and environment.

Table 2–1 Troubleshooting Problem and Solution Table 

Problem 

Possible Solution 

Workstation does not power on when the front panel Power button is pressed. 

  • Is the Power LED illuminated on the front of the system? Ensure that the power cord is connected to the system and to a grounded power receptacle.

  • Does the wall outlet have power? Test by connecting another device.

  • Does the system beep when the system is powered on? The system beeps when no keyboard or a malfunctioning keyboard is plugged in.

  • Does the monitor sync within 5 minutes after the power-on? An amber or flashing LED on the monitor indicates that the monitor is not in sync.

  • Is the monitor connected to the onboard video connector or PCI Express video card? Connect the monitor to the active video connector.

Workstation halts during POST (power-on self test) without displaying error messages. 

Check the BIOS POST LED display on the motherboard. See Appendix B, BIOS POST Code Checkpoints for detailed information about the POST codes.

Workstation powers on, but the monitor does not. 

  • Is the Power button for the monitor turned on?

  • Is the monitor power cord connected to a wall outlet?

  • Does the wall outlet have power? Test by connecting another device.

  • Is the monitor connected to the onboard video connector or PCI Express video connector?

Workstation does not power off when the front panel Power button is pressed. 

  • Try all of the power-off options described in To Power Off the Workstation.

  • If the workstation still does not power off, disconnect the power cable from the back of the chassis.

Workstation appears to be in low-power mode, but the Power LED does not blink. 

The Power LED blinks only when all workstation peripherals are in low-power mode. A tape drive might be connected to your workstation. Because tape drives do not enter low-power mode, the power LED does not blink. 

Unable to access the network. 

  • Check the network cabling and equipment to make sure that all cables are correctly seated.

  • Reinstall the network drivers.

Newly installed memory is not detected. 

System cannot read the disk information. 

Use the hard drive remove and installation procedures to verify that the disk is properly seated. See, Removing and Installing a Hard Drive.

DVD does not eject from the drive when the Eject button is pressed. 

  • Move the mouse or press any key on the keyboard. The drive might be in the low-power mode.

  • Use the utility software installed on your workstation to eject the DVD.

System cannot read DVD information. 

Check the following: 

  • Are you using the correct type of DVD?

  • Do other DVDs work in this drive?

  • Is the DVD properly inserted in the drive?

  • Is the DVD clean and unscratched?

  • Are the cables connected to the DVD drive?

Keyboard or mouse does not respond to actions. 

  • Are the keyboard and mouse Type 7? Verify the model on the underside of the keyboard.

  • Verify that the mouse and keyboard cables are connected to the onboard USB 2.0 connectors on the workstation.

  • Verify that the workstation is powered on and that the front Power LED is illuminated.

Hung or frozen workstation: no response from mouse or keyboard or any application. 

Are the keyboard and mouse Type 7? Verify the model on the underside of the keyboard and replace if necessary. 

Try to access your system from a different workstation on the network. 

  1. From a terminal window, enter ping hostname

  2. If there is no response, remotely log in from another system, using telnet or rlogin, and ping the system again.

  3. Attempt to kill processes until the system responds.

If the above procedures do not work: 

  1. Press the Power button to power off the system.

  2. Wait 20 to 30 seconds and power on the system.

There is no video display on the monitor screen. 

Check the following: 

  • Is the monitor power cord connected to the power outlet?

  • Does the wall outlet have power? Test it by connecting another device.

  • Is the video card seated correctly in its connector?

  • Are the internal cables properly connected to the video card?

  • Does the monitor work when connected to another system?

  • If you have another monitor, does it work when connected to the original system?

  • Verify that the BIOS settings are correct.

  • Try to access your system from a different workstation on the network.

    1. From a terminal window, enter ping hostname

    2. If there is no response, remotely log in from another system, using telnet or rlogin, and ping the system again.

    3. Attempt to kill processes until the system responds.

    If these procedures do not work:

    1. Press the Power button to power off the system.

    2. Wait 20 to 30 seconds and power on the system.

An external device connected to a USB connector does not work. 

  • Reduce the number of external devices connected to a USB hub.

  • Connect the device to a USB hub, and connect the hub to the USB ports on the workstation.

  • Refer to the documentation that is packaged with the device.

External device is not working. 

  • Check the documentation packaged with the device to determine whether you must install device drivers.

  • Ensure that the cables for the external device are firmly connected, and that the pins in the cable and connector are not bent.

  • Power off the system, reattach the external device, and power on the system.

Performing an Internal Visual Inspection

Use this procedure to perform and internal visual inspection of the workstation.

ProcedureTo Perform an Internal Visual Inspection

  1. Power off the workstation using the procedure detailed in the section, To Power Off the Workstation.

  2. Remove the left-side access panel using the procedure detailed in the section, Opening the Workstation.

    Caution – Caution –

    Some components, such as the heatsink, can become extremely hot during system operations. Allow these components to cool before handling them.

  3. Turn off any attached peripherals, but do not disconnect the power cables.

  4. Verify that the internal workstation compartment is free of excessive dust and that the airflow through the interior of the workstation is not blocked by dust. foreign material or cables.

    Use forced air to carefully blow dust from the interior of the workstation.

    Caution – Caution –

    Liquid sprays can cause shorts and damage to the workstation and its components. Do not use liquid sprays to clean the interior of the workstation.

  5. Verify that the internal components such as hard drives, PCI cards and DIMMs are fully seated in the connectors and that the sockets are clean. If necessary disconnect and connect any connector that appears loose or poorly fitted.

  6. Verify that all cables inside the system are firmly attached to their appropriate connectors.

  7. Close the workstation using the procedure described in the section, Closing the Workstation and Preparing for Operation.

Obtaining Technical Assistance

If the troubleshooting procedures in this chapter fail to solve your problem, you can receive additional technical support at the Sun web sites and telephone numbers listed in Table 2–2.

Table 2–2 Sun Web Sites and Telephone Numbers

Workstation Documents and Support Resources 

URL or Telephone Number 

PDF and HTML files for all the current Sun Ultra 27 workstation documents. 

http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/prod/ultra.work?l=en

Solaris OS and other software documents. This web site has full search capabilities. 

http://docs.sun.com/documentation/

Discussion and troubleshooting forums. 

http://supportforum.sun.com/

Support, diagnostic tools, and alerts for all Sun products. 

http://www.sun.com/bigadmin/

Links to software patches. Lists some system specifications, troubleshooting and maintenance information, and other tools. 

http://www.sunsolve.sun.com/handbook_pub/

Sun service program phone numbers. 

1-800-872-4786 (1-800-USA-4Sun); Select Option 1 

International telephone numbers for Sun service support. 

http://www.sun.com/service/contacting/solution.html

Warranty and contract support contacts. Links to other service tools. 

http://www.sun.com/service/warrantiescontracts/index.html

Warranties for every Sun product. 

http://www.sun.com/service/support/warranty