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ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

drsox
Aspirant

ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

I have two ReadyNAS 424 units - 2018 purchase - running 6.10.8.  Both have started to show the same anomaly.  One I fixed by reinstalling the firmware - the other doesn't respond to the same action.

 

Here's the anomaly :

 

NAS boots up from cold.

Starts to go through the cycle - halts before drives spin up - shuts down (with a sigh - fans stopping) - boot restarts - take longer than expected - but completes OK.  

 

No other sign of a change but to me it's a sign of possible worse to come.  It's important to me as I'm selling the two units.  Not going to sell the "bad" one without fixing this anomaly.

 

A memory test shows no issues.  The anomaly also happens with no drives installed (drives now sold).

 

Any ideas ?  Thanks

 

Message 1 of 21

Accepted Solutions
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Well I solved it.  Three USB drives later I had a good USB install that I used.  I waited 'till the second boot started - pressed one of the panel bars (light came on), waited 'till the centre light went off and pressed the button for 30+ secs.  Unit acknowledged that USB boot was selected (the first time of happening) - from then on it went according to plan.

 

Much faster to boot up.

 

Thanks to all.

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Message 14 of 21

All Replies
StephenB
Guru

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies


@drsox wrote:

 

NAS boots up from cold.

Starts to go through the cycle - halts before drives spin up - shuts down (with a sigh - fans stopping) - boot restarts - take longer than expected - but completes OK.  

 

 


Have you looked at the log zip file?

 

It's possible it is disk related, so you might also try swapping the disks, and see if the problem moves with them (or not).

Message 2 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Thanks.  No I haven't done that (factory default) but it also happens with no drives present.  Just tried it again (diskless) and it occurred.  I factory defaulted it again via the boot menu, installed a spare drive (1TB SSD) and it seems to have completed a boot w/o issues.  I had this with this NAS unit before (week or so ago).  Anomaly seems to have cleared but then reoccured.  Firmware getting corrupted repeatedly ?

 

I'll leave the SSD installed and check the log zip file if it occurs again.

 

Can I download a new copy of the current firmware via the USB route using my Mac ?

 

Cheers.

Message 3 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

PS. Just logged into the new SSD instal and some of the screen was missing !  Specifically, there was no ShutDown dialogue box in the top right corner nor was there the box to add a new user.  Rebooted manually and the missing boxes appeared.  Must be some errors in the install somewhere.

Message 4 of 21
StephenB
Guru

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies


@drsox wrote:

 

Can I download a new copy of the current firmware via the USB route using my Mac ?

 


The USB recovery tool only works on a Windows PC.

 


@drsox wrote:

Firmware getting corrupted repeatedly ?

 


I haven't seen this particular symptom posted here before, and at this point really have no idea on the cause.

 

The system normally boots from the disks, so I was thinking that an intermittment crash from the OS on the disks could result in a second boot.

 

It could also be power-related, as all disks spinning up during startup can use more power than normal operation.  Though it seems unlikely that two NAS would suddenly fail in this way.

 

 

Message 5 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

What does the system do when there are no drives ?  Seems that the anomaly happens before the drives start up.

 

If I do a firmware upgrade (when next available), will it reinstall the firmware from new or only the increment ?  If from new then that might clear the corrupted installed version ?

Message 6 of 21
StephenB
Guru

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies


@drsox wrote:

 

If I do a firmware upgrade (when next available), will it reinstall the firmware from new or only the increment ?  If from new then that might clear the corrupted installed version ?


You could try over-installing the firmware you have now (as an alternative to an OS reinstall).

Message 7 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

I'm going to buy a real cheap Windows PC just for this and see if I can restore this unit for sale.

Message 8 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

OK.  I have a WIn10 PC.  I followed the steps in the USB recovery Tool How Do I page.

I have a 16GB USB drive with the firmware image for 6.10.8.  However, the 424 NAS does not respond as per expected during the boot up sequence.

 

For ease of explanation I list the steps seen for a boot sequence (no USB drive attached)

 

1.  Power ON. Fans ON. Lights ON

2.  Wait 10+ secs.  Display : Netgear Storage Welcome.

3. 0.5 secs later.  Lights go OUT.

4. 15 secs later - Shutdown.

5.  3 secs later.  Restart. Power ON. Fans ON.  No lights.

6. 20+ secs later.  Display : Booting.

7. Display : Starting Network.

8. DIsplay : Check Root FS

9. Display : Booting 0>>99

10. Display : ReadyNAS - Name - IP Address

11. Display OFF

 

The instructions say to press the centre panel light after the lights go off and keep it pressed for 30 secs until there is some indication that the NAS is booting from the USB drive.  So I press the button after 3.  Then the unit shuts down and restarts as before with the rest of the sequence unchanged. There is no USB related message at all.

 

It's as if the restart wipes out the actions of the first start.

 

Then I try pressing the centre button after the restart - makes no change.

Then I try with the paperclip in the back to see if there is a new option in the Boot menu (USB Boot).  None seen.

 

So what now ?

 

Cheers

 

 

Message 9 of 21
Sandshark
Sensei

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

That first shut-down is not normal.  Try using the button for the second start-up.  But if the USB recovery still doesn't work or doesn't stop it from doing that first abbreviated start-up, you'll need to fix that separately.

Message 10 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Thanks.  Tried that.  Pressed the button as soon as the fans started up.  No effect.  

 

Just for info - the first time I booted it after a Factory Reset, the admin screen was missing some of the dialogue boxes, so the firmware is corrupted.  From then on the admin screen became normal !  Still doing the first restart.

 

Cheers

Message 11 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

PS. The lights don't come on after the restart so there's no visual cue when to press the centre button.

Message 12 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

PPS. I just bought three more USB drives of varying types - maybe it's the USB.

Message 13 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Well I solved it.  Three USB drives later I had a good USB install that I used.  I waited 'till the second boot started - pressed one of the panel bars (light came on), waited 'till the centre light went off and pressed the button for 30+ secs.  Unit acknowledged that USB boot was selected (the first time of happening) - from then on it went according to plan.

 

Much faster to boot up.

 

Thanks to all.

Message 14 of 21
Sandshark
Sensei

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

My best guess is that the unit was somehow struck doing an OS update every time you booted, though I'm unsure what can cause that.  Then the USB recovery finally successfully completed all the steps.  But whatever it was, good to know you finally got past it.

Message 15 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Unfortunately I didn't fix it.  As before the firmware reinstall I achieved didn't stick.  Rebooted it again today and it was as slow as before, then it shut down, then it restarted etc etc.

 

So must be a memory issue and is not worth fixing (by me) as I have replaced this already.  So I'll sell it as faulty.

 

Thanks anyway to all.  I learned something.

Message 16 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

UPDATE :  If I did decide to have a go at troubleshooting it further - should I just try to replace the RAM ?  It's DDR4 memory - what's the spec of this ?  Is is a stick or a laptop style memory unit ?

Message 17 of 21
StephenB
Guru

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Have you considered warranty replacement?  The warranty is 5 years, so if you purchased in 2018 that should still be an option.

 


@drsox wrote:

should I just try to replace the RAM ?


Unfortunately it's soldered onto the system board for the RN422 and RN424.

Message 18 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

So I discovered.  

 

Unfortunately the invoice for this seems to have been lost and it's not in my listed Netgear products.  So sell for spares, use as doorstop or keep in the cupboard.

 

Cheers

Message 19 of 21
StephenB
Guru

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies


@drsox wrote:

 

Unfortunately the invoice for this seems to have been lost


The seller might still have it.  If you purchased on line, the order history could be used to provide proof of purchase.

Message 20 of 21
drsox
Aspirant

Re: ReadyNAS 424 booting anomalies

Indeed.  But who did I buy it from ?  Amazon - no trace.  Box UK - no trace.  Ebay - more probable but no files are in my storage.  So dead end it seems.

 

Cheers 

Message 21 of 21
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