NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
desantj
Apr 20, 2021Aspirant
RN104 "Boot from USB Failed!" and Cannot Access Boot Menu
Hi, my RN104 was successfully updated to FW 6.10.4 when the FW became available. It's functioned fine until now. I normally have it powered off and I know it does power on by itself occasionally (a...
Sandshark
Apr 24, 2021Sensei - Experienced User
How does it behave when you power on without the drives?
- desantjApr 24, 2021Aspirant
Hi, it behaves the same way with or without the drives installed in it.
I also tried StephenB's suggestion to create the USB Recovery Stick in enhanced (Administrator) mode. I got the same results - the unit accesses the USB Recovery Stick and apparently runs the recovery program; unit powers off within a minute; restarting the unit provides the same failures.
I did some Google'ing and saw that the unit used a CR2032 battery, like a computer motherboard uses a coin battery to hold BIOS/CMOS settings. I disassembled the unit and installed a known good CR22032 battery, reassembled the unit, and tried the USB Recovery Stick again. Same results. I also tried holding in the RESET button to call up the Boot Menu - no luck there.
The unit that failed (Unit A) is about 8 years old. I have an identical unit (Unit B) that I have 4 1TB drives in. I plan to remove those drives from Unit B, install the 4 4TB drives from Unit A, and see how Unit B reacts. With luck, I haven't lost the data on the drives from Unit A and having those drives in Unit B will work fine.
The Google'ing also showed me the flash memory is soldered to the board. I was hoping it was installed in a socket, but it's not so I'm not going to try and replace it.
- mdgmApr 25, 2021VirtuosoYou could try having a look around using the serial console I guess; or booting off USB without the firmware image .img file and telnetting in and having a look. Though it does sound like it’s probably some hardware issue.
- SandsharkApr 25, 2021Sensei - Experienced User
It's a very long shot, but before you give up on it, try using the power brick for the other unit with it. Nothing in this souds like a power issue, but no harm in trying since you already have the other supply.
Related Content
NETGEAR Academy

Boost your skills with the Netgear Academy - Get trained, certified and stay ahead with the latest Netgear technology!
Join Us!