I get this question several times a month, “My DECserver won’t boot, what’s wrong?” Short of the DECserver not working at all, the two most common problems are, 1) the user does not have a network cable plugged into the Ethernet port, or 2) the DECserver does not have a load host, which it must have.
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An Ethernet cable must be plugged into the DECserver. There is no way around this. Some users prefer to configure a DECserver at their desk and then ship the configured DECserver to a remote site that has a different subnet, concerned that this different subnet addressing will cause problems on the current network – BUT, the configuration cannot happen without a network connection. You may have to setup a simple network loopback or plug the DECserver into a “test” bridge (a spare switch or repeater), with an Ethernet cable between the two.
The DECserver needs the network connection in order to complete boot testing. The DECserver needs to be able to send a loopback packet as part of the self test, to determine if it is connected to a network.
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The next common problem related to a DECserver that won’t boot is a missing load host. The DECserver operating software, DNAS, does not reside in the hardware, therefore every time the DECserver is booted, DNAS must be loaded into the DECserver’s RAM in one of two ways:
- Load DNAS through its external flash. (Ok, ok, some of you have experienced problems with this – share your flash boot stories!)
- Down line load DNAS over the Ethernet – and for those of you who choose this option, read on.
In recent years there have been a lot of network and network protocol changes to customers’ networks. Customers have moved away from LAT/MOP protocols. Customers have replaced machines that were not completely understood by NOC (Network Operations Center) support. In doing so, DECservers, which have been up and running for months, even years, fail to receive a down line load image upon reboot and become unusable in the customers application.
MOP users: If you use down line load to boot your DECserver and only support MOP on the network, your choices are to ensure that there is always a load host available – or purchase flash cards for your flash capable DECserver 700’s or DECserver 900’s. If you have non-flash DECserver 90TL or DECserver 90M you might think about upgrading to newer DECserver 90M+ products. DECserver 90M+ ship with the software factory installed.
Migrating DECservers to IP: If you want to migrate the DECserver to an IP address, use the ASL (Access Server Loader) utility to provide the down line load image and IP address. ASL is based on the Microsoft platform and works on all platforms through Vista. This utility will service BootP requests from the DECserver.
Do you need configuration support? Leave your questions and comments on the blog, or send email to techsupport [@] vnetek.com