Ode to the Dell C2100/FS12-TY

[Jason Hamilton]

Ok tried one last go for the day and then I'm calling it quits till I get the new mobo. I reset J24 which as the previous user experienced got it to to go full throttle on the fans and the drive lights came on but that was about the extent of it. I can pull the power from it and apply it again and it just sits there at full blast doing nothing. So really starting to suspect that something didn't like getting the power pulled on it in the middle of the night. Silly blizzards.

 

[Jason Hamilton]

So got my new to me mobo in on Friday for the 2100. Finally got it put in today. I apparently also lost 2 sticks of RAM as well. Of course I wasn't able to determine that until the new mobo went in. Once the new mobo was installed I was so happy that I was able to finally push the buttons on the front of the server and actually have them respond to me.

 

[crazyjpeters]

So got my new to me mobo in on Friday for the 2100. Finally got it put in today. I apparently also lost 2 sticks of RAM as well. Of course I wasn't able to determine that until the new mobo went in. Once the new mobo was installed I was so happy that I was able to finally push the buttons on the front of the server and actually have them respond to me.

So I'm apparently in the same boat. Symptoms all match, and I've been messing with reseating this and that, and either just idle noise from a power supply, or full on jets, with no front panel responsiveness at all.

I've got a ton of time invested in this dumb thing and am loath to move on. Does anyone have similar experiences? Any idea how to wake it up?

There was mention in this thread or another, some similar circumstances, and the guy ended up replacing power supplies and the backplane for them. I assumed it worked, but no idea. Maybe I'll try disconnecting all of the power cabling, and see if that helps.

 

[crazyjpeters]

Update, I can fool the PSUs into going online by jumpering the ATX connector. Goes full throttle fans, and the mobo green light is on, but no life. No VGA output. So, I'm really skeptical that the motherboard just up and died, but anythings possible. To note, the electrolytic caps on it look plumper than they should . It could just have been its time I guess.

 

[Ericloewe]

To note, the electrolytic caps on it look plumper than they should

You mean bulging out? I'm not saying that's the problem, but it's a problem.

 

[BBank0]

Hi everyone

Apologies for digging up the old thread, but I was offered Dell C2100 for dirt cheap. Is it worth using as Truenas plex server in 2023 considering the age of the hardware?

Should the IPMI (BMC) still be valid? it wouldn't load up and I couldn't boot to USB.

 

[Ericloewe]

It's pretty old. Not completely in the "worthless junk" territory anything with FBDIMMs currently belongs in, but this generation of stuff is getting increasingly challenging to use.

 

[BBank0]

It's pretty old. Not completely in the "worthless junk" territory anything with FBDIMMs currently belongs in, but this generation of stuff is getting increasingly challenging to use.

Thanks for the quick response,
I figured that was the case.

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Certain things on used computers cycle in price, especially memory. Memory upgrades alone cost more than some of the respective systems I own. Then again I can upgrade other systems dirt cheap: I bought a new old-stock server Mainboard for $36 and all it needed was a new button cell, I was totally geeked.

Power usage is definitely another concern, a server idling at 220W is going to cost $36/month where I live to run, in Germany the equivalent cost might be $100. A newer server might be faster and idle at 36W, thereby paying for itself quickly (and its faster so is relevant longer).

Initial hardware quality is another concern, stuff doesn't last forever. Replacing a system you're invested in "isn't great."