My ReadyNAS NV+ does power up anymore. After reading previous online posts on the same subject, there was a suggestion that certain such devices have a defective power supply. My NV+'s serial number lies outside the range of those that are allegedly affected. What can I do to troubleshoot the issue? I am moderately technical, so don't mind digging inside the box as long as I know what symptoms I am looking for.
When did you purchase your ReadyNAS and was it purchased brand new? If so and if it was purchased on/after Aug 21, 2007 your ReadyNAS would still be covered by warranty and you should contact technical support (http://www.readynas.com/support) for assistance.
Even if your serial number is not in the defective range, it's still possible your PSU may have failed. Did you notice a burning smell coming from the PSU area?
When you say your unit does not power up, you don't get any lights at all from the unit and the fan doesn't start up at all?
Have you tried disconnecting the power from the ReadyNAS, waiting a few minutes or so, then reconnecting the power and attempting to turn the NAS on?
Yes, I bought it brand new from Amazon, which shipped it to me on December 29, 2007. How do you figure it is still covered under the warranty - 3 years have already passed?
There are no lights and the fan does not start up.
Yes, I tried disconnecting and reconnecting the power cable after a few minutes - there are absolutely no signs of life.
The warranty was 5 years at the time you purchased. It has since changed to 3 years (back in 2009 or 2010, I'm not sure which). NetGear will honour the 5 year warranty that was in effect when you purchased your NV+.
I called Netgear on July 31 and explained the situation. An agent processed an RMA and sent me a replacement unit. When I received it, I could not log in using all the well-known default passwords and so I called the support center back to ask for the password. Another agent told me that they made a mistake and that my original dead unit is actually out of warranty (determined by Serial Number lookup, according to him) and that I have to send them back the replacement unit. Subsequently, the manager on duty, Clifford Gomez, refused to offer any kind of help, considering that, at the very least, they were wrong in sending me the replacement unit and giving me false hope. Mr. Gomez refused to consider offering any kind of discount to help address the original problem. The original agent that processed the RMA is going to have a very unpleasant day the next time she's in the office - Mr. Gomez was annoyed and he did not hide it. There's "customer is always wrong" for you.
Any thought what I can do?
Are the drives readable via a USB docking stations, such as this one?
With the replacement unit off, inserting your drives in and then booting, your unit should come right up with all of your configuration, password, etc. intact.
You may also want to bump the case over mre Gomez's head. As far as I know, it is still Netgear's policy to replace the PSU in those units that fall within the service action serial number range. On top of that, mdgm is usually on top of those warranty coverages and dates. That being the case, you unit should in fact still be under warranty, and even if it were not if your serial number falls in that range, it would still have the PSU covered in the informal extension of coverage. They have been covering the PSU as recently as the last few weeks.
In some cases they have sent out a replacement PSU, and asked for the return of the failed unit. In some cases, they have shipped out refurbished NV+ units and asked for the old NV+.
If you can not get reasonable response from Mr. Gomez's supervisor to cover at least the PSU, consider contacting one of the Jedi's by PM. Their screen id's are in red.
The default password for newly set up or factory defaulted units was infrant1 up until RAIDiator 4.00 at which time it became netgear1. The userid has always been and continues to be admin (cannot be changed). However, the configuration is on the drives, so when booting from your drives, your password should be used.
The drives are formatted with Ext and use a modified form for 4K blocks (different from the new 4K sectors on some drives) and can be read, but it is not an easy process. Unfortunately, the best way to read a set of NV+ drives is on another NV+.
