Chapter  5.  Solving  problems 
This  chapter  provides  basic  troubleshooting  information  to  help  you  solve  some 
common  problems  that  might  occur  while  you  are  setting  up  the  server. 
If  you  cannot  locate  and  correct  the  problem  using  the  information  in  this  chapter, 
see  Appendix  A,  “Getting  help  and  technical  assistance,”  on  page  79,  the  Problem 
Determination  and  Service  Guide  on  the  IBM  System  x  Documentation  CD,  and  the 
“Server  Support”  flowchart  in  the  front  of  this  document. 
Diagnostic  tools  overview 
The  following  tools  are  available  to  help  you  diagnose  and  solve  hardware-related 
problems: 
v  POST  beep  codes 
The  power-on  self-test  beep  codes  indicate  the  detection  of  a  problem. 
–  One  beep  indicates  successful  completion  of  POST,  with  no  errors. 
–  More  than  one  beep  indicates  that  POST  detected  a  problem.  Error  messages 
also  appear  during  startup  if  POST  detects  a  hardware-configuration  problem. 
See  “POST  beep  codes”  and  the  Problem  Determination  and  Service  Guide 
on  the  IBM  System  x  Documentation  CD  for  more  information.
v
  Troubleshooting  tables 
These  tables  list  problem  symptoms  and  steps  to  correct  the  problems.  See 
“Troubleshooting  tables”  on  page  62  for  more  information. 
v  Diagnostic  programs  and  error  messages 
The  system  diagnostic  programs  are  provided  in  ROM.  These  programs  test  the 
major  components  of  the  server.  See  the  Problem  Determination  and  Service 
Guide  on  the  IBM  System  x  Documentation  CD  for  more  information. 
v  Light  path  diagnostics 
Use  light  path  diagnostics  to  diagnose  system  errors  quickly.  See  “Light  path 
diagnostics”  on  page  74  for  more  information.
POST  beep  codes 
POST  emits  one  beep  to  signal  successful  completion.  If  POST  detects  a  problem 
during  startup,  other  beep  codes  might  occur.  Use  the  following  beep  code 
descriptions  to  help  diagnose  and  solve  problems  that  are  detected  during  startup. 
Note:  See  the  Problem  Determination  and  Service  Guide  on  the  IBM  System  x 
Documentation  CD  for  more  information  about  the  POST  beep  codes.
One
  beep 
POST  was  completed  successfully  without  finding  any  errors. 
One  long  beep  and  two  short  beeps 
A  video  error  has  occurred,  and  the  BIOS  cannot  initialize  the  monitor 
screen  to  display  additional  information. 
Other  beep  codes 
See  the  Problem  Determination  and  Service  Guide  on  the  IBM  System  x 
Documentation  CD  for  information  about  other  beep  codes.
 
 
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