Ok, I upgraded the bios and even the DMI area. So I cannot restore the server with the HP Software.. I did not create a backup. What are my options at this point? I would love to just restore the server and start over using HP's software. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks Guys

Dave

Is your server functional at all or did you brick the server during the BIOS upgrade?

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Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

It's working but wanted to go back to hp mediasmart interface. I cannot restore the server to its factory state. I have the restore discs. When I updated the BIOS I flashed it complete.

If you shut the server down and back out all the hard drives then turn it see if it will still boot into its recovery mode. You can verify this by the health light blinking Purple/Red and by logging onto your router and checking the DHCP Listing for a device starting with then name MININT. If you see this then your in good shape and all you need to do is seat the hard drive into the bottom bay and run the Server Recovery Software.

If you modified the BIOS using a donor BIOS as described in the forums you should be ok. If you installed a totally different BIOS then you may have an issue with the recovery because as I understand it the OEM COA Key is stored in the BIOS along with the server serial number so I am hoping you just modified the BIOS using the donor BIOS.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

I did what you suggested, I see minint-dripr1t in the DHCP Client table. The health light is blinking Purple/Red. When I updated the BIOS im afraid that it wiped my serial number and key. Is there a way to rebuild this? I have my key on my server should't the serial number be on there as well?

Dave

What I suggest is you give the recovery a try and see what happens. The good news is that your server appears to be operating as it should. So perform the recovery and see what happens.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

Tried that already and says cannot find server.

The server when it boots into its recovery mode identifies itself as a device with the name starting with MININT followed by other things. Those other thing change everytime you put the server into recovery mode. You can approach this in 3 ways, the first being the HP Method which I have not used in years. The second is to turn the server on without any drives connected then the moment you see the Health light blink Purple/Red slide the drive in. The other way is to delete the partion(s) off the drive your going to use for the System Drive and install it in the bottom bay and then turn the server on.

With the drive in the server and the health light blinking purple/red your server should be good to go for the Server Recovery. You can use either the original HP Supplied Disks or the HP 3.0 disks which were written for your server model. The server recovery disks are hardware specific so make certain you have the correct disks for the server or it will not work. I only mention this because the EX47x has been around now for a long time and there have been other HP servers similar to it sold and its not unusual for some to have the wrong disks mostly because they bought the wrong upgrade disks from others.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

Used HP 3.0 Discs. Server is found and the recovery is a complete! I get an error on WHS Connector saying it cannot find server. I do not see it on my network via DHCP.

The server may still be processing something. I firmly believe the recovery software when it tells you to wait while your server reboots several times sits there for a specific period of time then tells you something like the recovery was successful and then proceeds to install the client software so you can configure the server. I would allow the server to run its course and keep an eye on the routers DHCP listing. When the server enters its recovery mode its name starts with the device name starting with MININT then depending on the recoverying software the device name changes to HPSERVER or HPSTORAGE and when that name is seen the recovery process can resume. If the client software installed properly on your client it will tell you that your server needs to be setup and if not you can then install the client software and set the server up.

I am not quite sure why the recovery process takes so long but when I performed my last 3.0 recovery it took more time than I cared but paying attention to the device name is a key to helping you know when your server is ready for configuration.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

I let the server run for about 3 hours and no progress. DHCP shows nothing and I checked it frequently. The thing is before I did the BIOS update, this process ran smooth, never had an issue before I messed with the BIOS. The one thing that I noticed is that when I push the power button on the back of the server, its shuts down immediately.

I gots to know:
1) Why did you flash the bios?
2) Was the server working properly before you flashed the bios?
3) Did ya use the same bios that everybody else did here to upgrade so the cpu would show up correctly?

I have a 470 and when I upgraded the CPU / Memory I flashed the Bios and the DMI area (didn't know I didn't have to) and I didn't make a backup and all went well after a reboot or two.

Now, " You say before the flash you never had any problems with server recovery " Wow, I think you are 1 of the few that can say that.... I had all kinds of problems before and after the bios update. until I did it just right.

That (just right) being directly Cat5 (no router) connected to it with a win xp 32 bit laptop and running the factory reset and every time it wanted me to do something in the reset, I would wait till the harddrive quieted down, before clicking next or rebooting. I found during the reset it will say it's ready to move on when it's still writing stuff and ya just need to wait and go slow. And I always have a non pooled drive with all my shares backed up because I could never get a recovery to work, only a reset, remember if you do a reset, have your data backed up because it will format everything.

I retired my old 470 after getting the x510, you can still find 470's on ebay sometimes for parts if worse comes to it.
Goodluck

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1) Why did you flash the bios? - I was under the understanding that WHS 2011 could activate via SLIC 2.1, which I know NOW that is not the case.

2) Was the server working properly before you flashed the bios? - Yes 100%

3) Did ya use the same bios that everybody else did here to upgrade so the cpu would show up correctly? - I do not know of this BIOS that everyone else here upgraded. All I did was install 2 gigs of ram, cause it was slow as hell.

I did not try the no router, straight cat5 trick yet, Im trying that right now! It just seems to me, that its hanging during the reboot. I say that because if the server was "working" I would have to hold down the power button to shut it off. Thanks again for your help guys.

I believe but am not quite certain that you server will power down as you mention during the very early boot stages or if its hung up as I recall. The BIOS is abit troubling because it appears you were running WHS2011 so it appears functional but its not clear where you got the BIOS or how you modified it if you modified it. The only way I see to actually troubleshooting this would be to install a DEBUG cable with will allow you to see exactly what your server is doing and it would also allow you to examine the BIOS Settings.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

What BIOS should I be using? Could you provide me with a link?