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    Can't reset or usb connect to console of SG-5100

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    • stephenw10S
      stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
      last edited by

      That looks like a failing eMMC module. If it's in warranty you should open a ticket with us. Otherwise I'd advise you fit an m.2 SATA SSD as soon as possible to avoid any further ware on the eMMC.
      https://docs.netgate.com/pfsense/en/latest/solutions/sg-5100/m-2-sata-installation.html

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        Patian @stephenw10
        last edited by

        @stephenw10 Ohhh. thank you for the advise. What is typical warranty on the unit? 1yr?
        I ordered the 5100 with the SSD installed.

        any specific brand of m.2 SATA SSD read/write spec. I should get?

        I have not opened the unit yet, I do not know how it is look alike and I do not want to order a wrong type. (i know not to use NVMe)

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          rcoleman-netgate Netgate @Patian
          last edited by

          @patian No specific brands - just not NVMe.

          Ryan
          Repeat, after me: MESH IS THE DEVIL! MESH IS THE DEVIL!
          Requesting firmware for your Netgate device? https://go.netgate.com
          Switching: Mikrotik, Netgear, Extreme
          Wireless: Aruba, Ubiquiti

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          • stephenw10S
            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator @Patian
            last edited by

            @patian said in Can't reset or usb connect to console of SG-5100:

            I ordered the 5100 with the SSD installed.

            From us directly? AFAIK we never supplied them with an SSD fitted.

            The boot log doesn't go far enough to show if another driver is detected. If it is present you may only need to reinstall to it. Perhaps it was still booting from the eMMC incorrectly.

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              Patian @rcoleman-netgate
              last edited by

              @rcoleman-netgate hi, I ordered this 5100 directly from netgate with an add-ons option to it. I am still looking for the copy of the order from my file.
              I cannot remember what it is. It increased its memory or something... There was only 1 add-ons option to it to select.

              The boot log stopped as shown in the file and it did not go any further.

              It might work if I simply reinstall the pfsences plus?
              or eMMC simply death?

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              • stephenw10S
                stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                last edited by

                If you run the installer from USB it will show you the available install targets. But I don't expect you will find one. The expansion option was almost certainly RAM.

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                  Patian @stephenw10
                  last edited by

                  @stephenw10 I have requested a support ticket for a copy of pfsense software. I will do a USB reinstall.

                  I just wonder why it failed. or if it is the hardware about to fail?

                  If the re-install fails to make it work again, does it mean the hardware is finished?

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                  • stephenw10S
                    stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                    last edited by

                    There's no way to recover the eMMC if it fails but you can boot from SSD without issue.
                    However if the eMMC fails entirely it causes a long delay at boot which can be inconvenient. There is currently no workaround for that.

                    Steve

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                      Patian @stephenw10
                      last edited by

                      @stephenw10 Thank you for the advise.
                      If it is a eMMC failure, I can simply install a M. 2 SATA drive and re-install the pfsence onto the M.2 SATA drive.
                      5100 will boot from the new SATA drive, but it will take a longer time.
                      What size of M.2 SATA drive should be installed for the pfsense.
                      Is there a min spec. on the M.2 SATA drive to be installed onto the 5100?
                      Is there a setting to bypass the eMMC during boot?
                      Is it possible simply replace the eMMC module?

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                      • stephenw10S
                        stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                        last edited by

                        The eMMC drive as it is has not failed entirely, it's still trying to boot from it. So you should be able fit an m.2 SSD and set that as the boot device in the BIOS.
                        If the eMMC fails entirely the BIOS still tries to boot from it but it no longer appears at all and the timeout is very long.

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                          SteveITS Galactic Empire @Patian
                          last edited by

                          @patian https://docs.netgate.com/pfsense/en/latest/solutions/sg-5100/m-2-sata-installation.html

                          Pre-2.7.2/23.09: Only install packages for your version, or risk breaking it. Select your branch in System/Update/Update Settings.
                          When upgrading, allow 10-15 minutes to restart, or more depending on packages and device speed.
                          Upvote šŸ‘ helpful posts!

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                          • stephenw10S
                            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                            last edited by

                            Yeah, I'm not aware of any limitation on the m.2 SSD you can use other than it must be SATA and not NVMe. You probably want to smallest capacity drive you can find. 32GB is more than sufficient for pfSense.

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                              Patian @stephenw10
                              last edited by

                              @stephenw10 Thank you for the advise. I installed a new M2. SSD drive, re-installed the pfsense plus onto the SSD drive. I changed the BIOS to boot from the M2 Drive first.

                              Now it seems everything is back to normal. Thank you for all the inputs. I did not expect the hardware to fail after 2 years, simply bad luck....

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                                gumbyOne @rcoleman-netgate
                                last edited by

                                @rcoleman-netgate i got a new usb cable and i can see the port now. however, when i connect to the device, it looks like it runs the bios(?) but continues to reboot itself over and over again. i can see the initial screen where i can select to:
                                Boot multi user
                                Boot single user
                                Escape to loader prompt
                                etc...

                                after it defaults to boot multi user. there's a lot of output and finally ends with:
                                ``
                                Tracing command kernel pid 0 tid 100098 td 0xfffff8000e49c740
                                sched_switch() at sched_switch+0x630/frame 0xfffffe002ce6e9a0
                                mi_switch() at mi_switch+0xd4/frame 0xfffffe002ce6e9d0
                                sleepq_wait() at sleepq_wait+0x2c/frame 0xfffffe002ce6ea00
                                _sleep() at _sleep+0x253/frame 0xfffffe002ce6ea80
                                taskqueue_thread_loop() at taskqueue_thread_loop+0xe9/frame 0xfffffe002ce6eab0
                                fork_exit() at fork_exit+0x7e/frame 0xfffffe002ce6eaf0
                                fork_trampoline() at fork_trampoline+0xe/frame 0xfffffe002ce6eaf0
                                --- trap 0, rip = 0, rsp = 0, rbp = 0 ---
                                db:0:kdb.enter.default> capture off
                                db:0:kdb.enter.default> textdump dump
                                Textdump complete.
                                db:0:kdb.enter.default> reset
                                cpu_reset: Restarting BSP
                                cpu_reset_proxy: Stopped CPU 1

                                
                                this happens over and over. any advice?
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                                  rcoleman-netgate Netgate @gumbyOne
                                  last edited by

                                  @gumbyone Need to see the whole thing... but reinstallation is a good first step. Especially if it is running on a UFS partition.

                                  Ryan
                                  Repeat, after me: MESH IS THE DEVIL! MESH IS THE DEVIL!
                                  Requesting firmware for your Netgate device? https://go.netgate.com
                                  Switching: Mikrotik, Netgear, Extreme
                                  Wireless: Aruba, Ubiquiti

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                                  • stephenw10S
                                    stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                                    last edited by

                                    Yes, we'd need to see the panic string to know for sure but if it;s booting UFS it's probably a filesystem issue. And that can usually be resolved by:
                                    https://docs.netgate.com/pfsense/en/latest/troubleshooting/filesystem-check.html#manual-filesystem-check

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                                      tkronic @stephenw10
                                      last edited by

                                      @stephenw10 said in Can't reset or usb connect to console of SG-5100:

                                      There's no way to recover the eMMC if it fails but you can boot from SSD without issue.
                                      However if the eMMC fails entirely it causes a long delay at boot which can be inconvenient. There is currently no workaround for that.

                                      Steve

                                      Hi,

                                      I believe my eMMC has also failed on my SG-5100. Last night, I was able to connect to consol and got similar errors I have seen which indicate a failed eMMC. Today, I attempted to install a M.2 card, however, I can not get consol access again. Putty opens a window when I try to connect, but no output. Am I not waiting long enough for this boot delay you are describing? Should there be a boot delay when attempting to reinstall pfSense with a USB drive connected? I have tried accessing the consol with and without the new M.2 and with and without the USB reinstall drive. No consol output.

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                                        rcoleman-netgate Netgate @tkronic
                                        last edited by

                                        @tkronic said in Can't reset or usb connect to console of SG-5100:

                                        Am I not waiting long enough for this boot delay you are describing?

                                        It will boot eventually. As noted by Stephen there is no workaround in software or adding hardware -- the only one I have found so far is removing the eMMC which requires a hot air re-working station. See here: https://forum.netgate.com/topic/181199/var-is-low-on-disk-space/18?_=1689707002968

                                        Ryan
                                        Repeat, after me: MESH IS THE DEVIL! MESH IS THE DEVIL!
                                        Requesting firmware for your Netgate device? https://go.netgate.com
                                        Switching: Mikrotik, Netgear, Extreme
                                        Wireless: Aruba, Ubiquiti

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