Category: Technology

More Server Trouble

2012-01-08 23:29:58

For some time now, I have been attempting to explain the seemingly random reboots of my email server [this doesn’t include or affect the web server]. I’ve narrowed it down to a few remaining hardware devices and their related drivers. It’s not the CPU, nor RAM, and maybe not the Motherboard, although I’m not quite sold on that one. What is left after you remove all of those [and HDDs and power supplies don’t cause these kinds of crashes] is the video adapter and the RAID card, not the on-board RAID.

So: in order to eliminate another factor, I moved the system drive from the on-board SATA controller to the RAID card last night. I had one glitch – it rebooted 30 minutes after I set it up, but that may be other factors. I flashed the motherboard BIOS, and updated the RAID drivers to the most current version. After that last reboot, I’ve seen no change or reboot so far. I was concerned that I’d come down this morning to a blue screen, but that didn’t happen. If it did, I would know that the RAID card has been the problem the whole time. However, all is sill up in the air.

Again, I wait. I wait and see if the server crashes. I wait and see if I have to either replace the motherboard or RAID card. If it works like it did before, rebooting on occasion, moving the drives tells me nothing. If it stops rebooting all together, moving the drives tells me the motheboard is bad. Perhaps if nothing changes, the problem is the RAID card. I don’t know.

I’m going to check the warranty and see what the time limit is. Maybe I can send it back for replacement…

Home Network Fiddling: Complete?

2012-01-08 23:29:55

For a while anyway. Today, I spent quite a bit of time learning about how ISA server works and configuring it to provide people with the various web sites that come out of my house. It took some doing, but I think everything is working. I had to re-install it because my multi-segmented home network plans didn’t work out – I couldn’t get the routing quite right. I’ll have to do that on a different box – one that’s not the firewall.

Now that is complete as well a an upgrade to a second UPS battery backup. Now that I have two, I can have my systems and home network [as well as phone since I do VoIP] up for about 20 minutes during a power outage. I had everything on one and that would have given me less than 10. I eventually want one UPS per computer, but I like what I have now and it will last me for a while.

So – I’m not going to fool with it anymore this week. All I’ll be doing is working with what I have on some virtual machine projects for work and hoping that I’ve found the problem with my main server – the old CPU. If it’s bad, I hope there’s a warranty!

Fun With Networks

Today, I have been having a blast configuing my new ISA Server 2006. I have to say it has been quite a learning experience. It can do some really cool things, but sometimes I think it’s too smart for itself. It goes off and does “stuff” in the background. Now, that “stuff” has sometimes been helpful, like earlier this evening it repaired itself. Slinky! But, then sometimes the “stuff” made the whole network unusable. I don’t know if I like that, but I do think that if the server stays as it is right now, I’ll leave it alone for a bit. Everything is working… I think. I’ll find out more when I go outside and try to get in to see if the configurations I set up work as I thought they should.

Server Better?

So far, so good. I’ve seen that the server has been up continuously even longer than before. We are up and running without reboot for over 5 days, close to 6 and tomorrow is the critical point. At that point, I call and get a warranty replacement for my other stick of RAM. Once I get a new one of those, I’ll put everything back in the server and be done with upgrades for a while – until I fill up that 1.2TB drive array!

Once it’s all done, I may move the web site over to that box. I bet it would be zippier!

[UPDATE:] It’s now been over 7 days and no server reboot. I think it was the RAM. Now, I must call for a replacement…

Server Un-fix?

I thought it was fixed… Until it rebooted itself 3 times in one day. It lasted longer than it has before, but that may be because of the fact that I did a clean shutdown before flashing and upgrading the drivers.

So – my new hardware pieces have arrived: the AMD Operton 270 and 2GB more memory. Since the server is still acting strange, I’m going to do a process of elimination on the parts I have double of: RAM and CPU. So, Friday I replaced the RAM. If the server reboots itself, it is not the RAM. If it does not reboot for 7 days, I will get replacement RAM for that 2GB stick, and put the second CPU in. If it’s not the RAM, it may be the CPU. I will then put the additional RAM back in [increasing it to 4GB] and swap the old CPU with the new one. If this fails to crash, I will get a warranty replacement CPU. If it still crashes… I will have to figure something else out.

Server Fix!

Finally.

I have been at a loss for quite some time to explain the frequent, daily reboots of my nice, new server. I bought the best equipment I could and still the machine seemed flaky. It was even more unstable with the beta version of Exchange 2007, but I think that was caused by much more frequent usage.

On a whim, I decided to look for new drivers and BIOS for my system. I found them. I found a BIOS update for the motherboard, a BIOS update for the RAID card and a new driver for the RAID card. I flahed them both and installed the new driver.

Voila! The server, which used to reboot daily [or more!] has been up and solid for over three days straight. The problem seems to be solved just in time for me to upgrade the equipment with a second processor and 2GB more of RAM… Fun!

Remotely Connected

2012-01-08 23:29:50

I’m presently working at a location [near Alexandria, VA] where I’m unable to plug in my laptop. Not that I’m not allowed, but I’m in the center of a room and finding cables and ports is kind of a chore. So – I turned on Bluetooth on my phone, established a pairing with my computer, and dialed up the Internet.

Yep. Internet from the phone. It’s better than the old CSD line speed of 9.6kbps – I’m connected at EDGE speeds of 184kbps. Not bad, but not all that zippy. Verizon & Sprint have a better data service. Of course, Cingular does too, but my phone can’t use it. They’re supposed to have a new model coming out soon that will support it.

Maybe I’ll get one of those…

Yet Another Upgrade

I’ve upgraded my Exchange server to the newest available build [as of a couple days ago… I think there was a new one tonight, but it would have taken too long to download] – 685. I have to say, it is faster than the old version. Let’s hope it’s more stable, too.

Speaking of upgrades: I think it’s time I finished the Server Upgrade plan. The plan was to add a second processor and more RAM, so I’ll set aside some money for the upgrades and hopefully, in a little while, I will have the parts I need to finish… for now, anyway. I bought enough system board to hold 24GB of RAM and that is a bit pricey.