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I have a HP ProLiant DL360 G6 with a Xeon X5570 and 32GB (2x16GB) 4R RAM, which works just as expected, but whenever I try to add another X5570 to the other socket (making it a dual CPU machine) it gets stuck in an endless boot loop.

I have tried the following setups:

  • CPU 1 in socket 1 with 32GB RAM for socket 1= OK
  • CPU 2 in socket 1 with 32GB RAM for socket 1= OK
  • CPU 1 in socket 2 with 16GB RAM for socket 2= Boots, POST says "wrong socket for CPU"
  • CPU 1 in socket 1 and CPU 2 in socket 2 with 32GB RAM for socket 1 = Not OK
  • CPU 1 in socket 1 and CPU 2 in socket 2 with 32GB RAM for socket 1 and 32GB RAM for socket 2 = Not OK
  • CPU 2 in socket 1 and CPU 1 in socket 2 with 32GB RAM for socket 1 = Not OK
  • CPU 2 in socket 1 and CPU 1 in socket 2 with 32GB RAM for socket 1 and 32GB RAM for socket 2 = Not OK
  • CPU 1 in socket 1 and CPU 2 in socket 2 with 16GB RAM for socket 1 and 16GB RAM for socket 2 = Not OK

I have checked the pins on the board for CPU socket 2 and they all look good / the same as for socket 1.

The endless boot loop works as following:'

  • Power on the server
  • Fans starts up at max
  • Fans slows down after a couple of seconds
  • I hear a ticking sound about one tick per second and the fans start to gradually speed up
  • After a while at max speed, the fans suddenly goes very slow again and I can hear the ticking sound again while the fans gradually speeds up again

POST is blank/says nothing during this boot-process.

When I install the second CPU I also install another fan-kit (making it 4 of them installed) as instructed.

Versions and specs:

  • SPP 2017.04.0 (last service pack to support G6)
  • iLO2 v 2.32 (2018-02-06)
  • System ROM P64 2015-08-16
  • 2x 750W PSU's

Questions:

  • Does the ProLiant support a single CPU in socket 2 and none in socket 1? (testing purpose)
  • Is there something else I can do to error search this issue?

Thanks in advance.

Odecif
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  • There's no harm in trying to put a CPU in socket 2 and see what happens, though I won't be surprised if that doesn't work. Did you also try eliminating all of the RAM except for one-stick per CPU? Double-check that the RAM is installed as expected in each slot. Also, remove any HDD's to see if you can at least get to the BIOS screen. – Andrew Mar 01 '18 at 16:04
  • @Andrew I tried now with 1 RAM per CPU in the (double-checked) correct slots in the correct banks, but it did not work. Also, only a CPU in socket 2 didn't work either. Thanks for the tips though (updating question with combination). – Odecif Mar 01 '18 at 16:25
  • How large is your PSU? Is it capable of handling the power draw of the additional CPU? – Andrew Mar 01 '18 at 17:40
  • @Andrew Good point. I currently have 2x 750W PSU's which may be enough? And also, one CPU in socket 2 only actually worked, but POST said that the CPU was in the wrong socket/misplaced. – Odecif Mar 02 '18 at 09:00

2 Answers2

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AFAIK both sockets are primary sockets. So just try to use CPU 1 in socket 2 and no other CPU.

If it doesn't POST, it means socket 2 is borked.

You can also boot it with only one cpu and check diagnostics in iLO.

Also the question from Andrew is valid, you might need more juice.

Gothrek
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  • Tested with one CPU in socket 2 only with 16GB RAM which actually worked, although POST said that the CPU is in the wrong socket/misplaced. Will test with iLO2 next. – Odecif Mar 02 '18 at 09:01
  • Try to also update your firmware via iLO, might some firmware issue that stops it from using both cpu's of that model. Might be also worth a try, if you have a different model for that same socket, to test it in socket 2 with the original cpu in socket 1. – Gothrek Mar 02 '18 at 09:07
  • iLO version is now the newest one and I cannot seem to find a system ROM newer than the last SPP to support G6 300-series (2015). When checking wattage in iLO I'm currently peaking at ~200W (1 CPU, 32GB RAM, 6 slots with hdds. – Odecif Mar 02 '18 at 13:55
  • IIRC iLO is available regardless of the state of the host. So plug both of those CPUs and check it in iLO during boot. There should also be diagnostics available there to run. – Gothrek Mar 02 '18 at 17:03
  • It seems like the issue was that Fan 2 was not working correctly (shown as "N/A" in iLO. When I changed it with another fan, it booted normally. Thanks for all the help and good advices! – Odecif Mar 03 '18 at 23:32
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The issue seems to have been a faulty fan. When installing a second CPU, all 4 fan-sockets need to be populated, and I noticed that one of the fan-sockets (no. 2) was populated but not recognized in iLO2. I switched that fan for a new one and all of a sudden the server booted with 2 CPU's and all 64GB of RAM.

Thanks for all guidance and tips, I wouldn't have solved this issue without it.

Odecif
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