Readynas Pro 6 won't boot & cannot access boot menu / usb recovery

[didbox]

Hello,

When I power on my Pro 6 (4 disks; ReadyNAS OS 6.6.0) the LED panel shows "ReadyNAS" and nothing much was happening.

I tried to access the boot menu (http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/21107/~/how-do-i-access-the-boot-menu-on-my-readynas-u...) but it doesn't work.

I tried to do a USB recovery (http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/29952/~/how-do-i-use-the-usb-recovery-tool-on-my-ready...) but it doesn't work either. I tried with 3 different USB sticks...

Please, can you help me? I really would appreciate it !

[mdgm-ntgr]

If you power down and remove your disks (label order) are you still unable to access the boot menu?

[didbox]

Yes, already tried that...

[mdgm-ntgr]

Maybe try some more USB sticks or perhaps hook up e.g. VGA to the NAS

[didbox]

OK, thank you for your answer.

What type of VGA cable should I use? I suppose that I have also to connect a keyboard? How can I do that?

[mdgm-ntgr]

There's a header on the motherboard and a slot on the back of the NAS for a VGA port. There are some suggestions regarding this on the community. Yes a USB keyboard would also have to be connected.

[Sandshark]

This sounds very much like a power supply issue.  "ReadyNAS" will be displayed so long as you have 5V, but the NAS will not boot without good drive or CPU power.  I had one with bad CPU power which behaved exactly this way.  A standard ATX power supply can be used externally to check or to remove the data if you decide not to fix the unit.  Unlike some others, there is no re-wiring of the connector required on the Pro6. If it is the supply, there are instructons elsewhere in the forum on replacing the supply with a readilly available SFX supply. 

[mdgm-ntgr]

Probably best to replace the PSU as Sandshark suggests and if that fails to resolve it then move onto looking into things such as VGA.

[didbox]

Thank you for your answers!

Fortunately, I have a full backup on an external USB HDD.

I'll first buy a VGA cable in order to check if I can access the bios and force to boot on an USB key. If I cannot, I'll then buy a spare PSU in order to replace the stock one.

If the problem is due to a faulty PSU, it will be the second time that it fails. The first time, it was replaced as the NAS was under waranty. But, this time, no more waranty... It seems that Netgear as a quality issue with these PSU.

[Sandshark]

OK, your choice.  But I figured you might have an old computer lying around with an ATX supply you could use to see if the power supply is the issue.  Good that you have a backup -- it makes it easier to recover if it's not the supply.

BTW, the "Netgear" supply is nothing more than a standard Seasonic SFX supply with a custom cable.  Netgear buys it, not makes it.  The simultaneous drive spin-up undoubtedly puts a lot of stress on the supply in machines that are power cycled often.  I never have understood why they didn't stagger it.