I've been having a tough time with my Dell T630 server. It started with a dead firewall that I managed to restore, but when I attempted to update the server, it began showing multiple memory errors. Windows would start to load, but then it would revert to the POST screen and freeze there. After contacting Dell, they sent me a new DIMM, but the issue persists. Now, they're sending another DIMM along with a motherboard. My setup includes a PERC H730P with RAID 1. I'm looking for a way to boot from a USB drive or the Server 2016 DVD so I can access the drives and copy my VHDX files, which would be crucial at this point. I've been awake since early morning, and I'm feeling overwhelmed. Any guidance would be much appreciated!
1 Answer
Honestly, if you're not already taking regular backups, you're in a tough spot. A hardware fault could prevent your OS from booting, and that means any recovery tools would struggle too. I'd recommend reducing the DIMMs to just the minimum needed according to your server's manual. That might get you back up and running to grab a backup. If that doesn't work, you’ll need to fix the hardware issue or transfer the drives to a functioning system. It's tricky to recover without addressing the fault first.
That's a good point. I do have VM backups, but I haven't backed up the host boot drive since it's RAID 1. I just received the new DIMM and am trying to boot it now. Fingers crossed! If not, I’ll have to wait for the tech to replace the motherboard.