Failed mobo upgrade guidance


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Hi there,

 

My unraid tower (built 5 years ago and unaltered since) turned off and won't boot up again. When I power it on, all fans (including ones connected to MB) start turning, drives start spinning, but no graphics, or POST beeps, network card has yellow light on.

I suspect that mobo (ASRock 880GM-LE) may have been shorted as I just realized the computer does not have a surge protector.

 

At this point, I am going to try swapping for a newer mobo (ASRock 970A-G/3.1, one of few mobos that still support sempron CPUs).

 

Anyway, given that I have no way to boot up and take a screenshot of drive order, how do I safely proceed with upgrade?

 

Thanks, JDW

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If you have access to another power supply, might be worth trying that first.

 

Also, probably unrelated, but thought I'd mention that a few weeks ago with my asRock board, I had similar symptoms. Turns out the usb cable I added to one of my usb headers was bad and for whatever reason, completely blocked my server from starting (other than spinning fans and drives). In my case, I have a green trouble light on my board that is usually a solid green, and was flashing quickly....

 

If you've added any usb peripherals (or internal cables/slot plate adapters), perhaps unplug them first before replacing the board...

 

Finally, are you buying a new ASRock 970A-G/3.1? If the board *is* bad, and you're currently running a Sempron, might be a good opportunity for an upgrade. That board looks to retail for $140 + tax and shipping.

 

[EDIT] Wow. So that looks to be a special cdn only price. Seems like amazon has it for under US$80... Definitely more reasonable :)

Edited by DoeBoye
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