Author Topic: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display  (Read 3694 times)

BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« on: April 02, 2020, 01:40:04 PM »
I have a Terastation TS-RXL/R5. It has worked well for a long time but I needed to move it to a different rack. I shut it down properly, unplugged the power and moved it. When I switched it on again I got a beeping tone, the error lamp came on and the display showed gibberish with a red background. In this state, the power button does not turn it off but just stops the beeping. The fans don't start when I press the power button but come on briefly when I plug in the power cable.

I hope all is not lost because I can see that there is LAN activity briefly and the display scrolls in the normal way.

I am not worried about any loss of data - I have it elsewhere.

It sounds to me as though the flash on the motherboard has been damaged. If so, is there a way to restore it?

Bill.

BibbieMok

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 1
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #1 on: April 03, 2020, 12:45:48 PM »
Hi...when I first build and tested my NAS, I was watching and checking the LEDS and then referring to the Manual "which was out of date" and then checking the Tech Websites to make sure that all was OK.
It would be nice to have a Wiki page, to inform us of the order of the alarms beeps, LEDS for each model and firmware so that if we do get a error or a unknown Beep then we have a point of reference to go and check, and hopefully have a solution on how to resolve it

1000001101000

  • Debian Wizard
  • Big Bull
  • *****
  • Posts: 1128
  • There's no problem so bad you cannot make it worse
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #2 on: April 03, 2020, 12:47:52 PM »
Does the device show up in Nas Navigator?

It sounds like it could have gone into EM mode and maybe the gibberish is it displaying another language?

BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #3 on: April 04, 2020, 11:38:42 AM »
Thanks for the suggestions. It doesn't show up in NAS Navigator nor does it get an IP address from the router.

I don't think it's another language; some of the characters are representations of control characters.

I'll see what it's doing on the network with Wireshark.

Bill.

BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #4 on: April 05, 2020, 05:43:20 AM »
I set my PC to 192.168.11.1 (I read somewhere that was a good bet) and connected it to the NAS. Ethernet activity (eth1 light flashing) starts when it's switched on and stops when the red error light comes on. Wireshark shows a burst of frames but they're all from my PC. Nothing from the Terastation. I think my PC detects a port and starts ARPing etc. but gets no response.

I wonder if it might be a power supply problem?

Bill.

1000001101000

  • Debian Wizard
  • Big Bull
  • *****
  • Posts: 1128
  • There's no problem so bad you cannot make it worse
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #5 on: April 05, 2020, 05:26:10 PM »
I've never seen gibberish on the screen before. The screen is controlled by a microcontroller which communicates with the firmware/boot loader over a serial connection. This microcontroller also serves other function during the startup process, the exact extent varies form model to model and I don't have specifics. It's possible if the microcontroller got messed up somehow (I've never heard of this happening) the device might not boot properly.

I think before moving forward you should try unplugging the device for a few minutes to ensure the microcontroller is powered off, then try booting again.




BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #6 on: April 06, 2020, 10:36:21 AM »
I have tried switching it off for long periods and trying again. Same every time. I have also checked the power - this NAS has an unusual power system in that it has a 24V 4A commercial supply (Cosel LEP100F). The 24V is then passed to a separate board which produces +5V and +12V. This feeds the controller board which then connects to the two display boards, the fans and the disc drives. I have checked all the voltages and they seem OK.

Here is the detailed sequence of events; I hope there is a clue there somewhere:

1. Plug in the power - fans run for a few seconds.

2. Press the power button - LAN1 and LAN2 lights come on for a few seconds. The error light then comes on and a two-tone beep sounds continuously. At the same time the LAN lights go off. (My testing shows that both ports are recognised by the PC as ethernet ports - the PC says no connection as soon as the error light comes on). The display is blank until the error lamp comes on, at which point the backlight changes to red (it was white while the LAN lights were on). Gibberish appears on the screen and is always the same. The display scrolls in the usual way. It stays in this state indefinitely.

3. Press the power button and the beeping stops immediately (no three second wait). The error light goes dim and so does the red backlight. The same gibberish is still visible on the display. The system does not power down no matter how long the power button is pressed.

At no point can I hear the rotation noise from the disc (I only have one in for tests).

It is difficult to describe what is on the screen but I'll try. It shows a message which seems to be twice the length of the screen - it shows the first screen's worth and then scrolls to display the rest. Many of the characters do not display; most of the others are accented characters. The display button has no effect and does not cause a beep when pressed.

I hope this triggers some thought somewhere.

Bill.

1000001101000

  • Debian Wizard
  • Big Bull
  • *****
  • Posts: 1128
  • There's no problem so bad you cannot make it worse
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #7 on: April 06, 2020, 11:05:18 AM »
well... changing the color of the lcd and setting LEDs is a function of the microcontroller, sounds like that is more or less working.

I would expect all those actions to be triggered by the bootloader though I don't know what the microcontroller does if it doesn't hear from the bootloader. Hopefully not flash red and spew out gibberish.

Normally recovering form an error for this model should be relatively easy since they are able to boot from their on-board NAND into emergency mode. Try removing all the drives, power it on then wait like 15 minutes and check NasNavigator to see if it appears in emergency mode or not.

Probably the best way to get more information about what is happening would be to look at the console output when it is trying to boot. There is a headphone jack on the front that is connected to the serial console for this device. I believe you can hook up a usb-uart converter to this and view the output.

Kane88

  • Buffalo
  • ***
  • Posts: 161
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #8 on: April 06, 2020, 10:00:59 PM »
Is it possible for you to put a separate set of wiped disks in it, and reload the firmware?

Hopefully the unit was moved carefully, and that the disks didn't get bumped around.  I suspect for some 'unknown reason': one of the disks now has some corruption or bad sectors.  That is just a guess.

Besides reseating all the drives with the power off:  I would start over with a different set of disks simply as a test, just to eliminate the flash issue you're suspecting.

1000001101000

  • Debian Wizard
  • Big Bull
  • *****
  • Posts: 1128
  • There's no problem so bad you cannot make it worse
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #9 on: April 07, 2020, 06:56:43 AM »
I think that would be the perfect thing to try.

BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #10 on: April 08, 2020, 06:53:38 AM »
I tried a different disc but eveything is exactly the same. I also tried with no disc - still the same.

I will try 1000001101000's suggestion of looking at the console output. The socket appears to be a 2.5 mm type. I don't think I have a suitable plug, may have to order one. Does the socket have three connections or just two? It's hard to tell by looking at it. A serial port would normally have three but I can understand that if it was just for monitoring, it might have just the output line.

Thanks for your continuing help.

Bill.


Kane88

  • Buffalo
  • ***
  • Posts: 161
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #11 on: April 08, 2020, 07:05:27 AM »
After you do your console output and other tests:

what about a settings reset?
That should force the IP back to defaults anyway...

http://en.faq.buffalo-global.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/14115

1000001101000

  • Debian Wizard
  • Big Bull
  • *****
  • Posts: 1128
  • There's no problem so bad you cannot make it worse
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #12 on: April 08, 2020, 08:28:07 AM »
All the settings doing a reset effects are stored on the drives. If you start with blank drives the reset wouldn't accomplish anything, though it would be something to try on the original drives if the blank drives end up working.

It will have GND, TX and RX but the RX is most likely disabled making it "read only".

BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #13 on: April 08, 2020, 08:50:43 AM »
I couldn't resist trying the reset but I'm afraid it had no effect. I tried it before the error light comes on and afterwards.

Still hunting for a 2.5mm jack...

Bill.

BillP

  • Calf
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: TS-RXL Beeps, Error light on, gibberish on display
« Reply #14 on: April 22, 2020, 10:33:16 AM »
I eventually found a 2.1 mm jack and some time. I had a look with an oscilloscope. The inner contact of the jack has no volts and is probably the input. The middle contact goes up by a volt or so on switch-on and then goes back to 0v quite quickly before the beeper goes off. There is no sign of any data being sent.

I'm not sure what to do next. Is there a circuit diagram somewhere? I could do some more tests if I knew where to probe.

Thanks for everyones help so far.

Bill.