SG-2220 Boot Issue (No Console)
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I contacted support and got told to use the console to recover. :P
After explaining the situation a second time, I got a "well your warranty's up, so sucks to be you" sort of response. (I'm paraphrasing, of course.)
I'm concerned about committing more money to the 300 or so already spent, just to be told it's dead.
Is there no way for an end user to try to re-write the flash storage, without the console? (Is there, perhaps, a JTAG header inside the device, or something like that?)
Well I can understand the warranty part, it's just how it works. However, accessing console is a valid suggestion. You don't need a JTAG header, there's USB console port in the front of the device. It's the easiest and quickest way to figure out what's happening.
Can you please confirm you attempted to connect to console like described here: https://www.netgate.com/docs/sg-2220/connect-to-console.html
Very important, make sure you have console drivers installed https://www.netgate.com/docs/sg-2220/connect-to-console.html#advanced-configuration
If you followed those instructions correctly, you should have access to the console.
Try that and please report back. Most likely you will have to reinstall pfSense, which is pretty simple.
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OK. I've spent a few hours now going through every procedure you've suggested in detail.
I've confirmed that:
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I have the correct CP210x USB to UART Bridge VCP driver installed correctly.
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I have used the correct settings in PuTTY, including trying 115,200, 34,800 and 9,600 baud.
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I have the cables plugged in correctly.
There is absolutely no output in PuTTY when I power up the SG-2220. Nothing.
As for the LEDs on the front of the device, the STATUS LED goes on solid orange and all four of the Ethernet port LEDs go solid green. Nothing blinks. There is no visible activity… Which is a clue. I don't think the clock is running. More on that in a moment.
I have also created a pfSense image on a USB drive (using the install image for the Netgate ADI platform) and tried powering up the device with the USB drive plugged in. The result is exactly the same. Absolutely no output in PuTTY and all LEDs stuck on solidly. (I tried this same procedure with an old PC using the AMD64 platform and it worked correctly on the old PC, so I know I'm getting this procedure right.)
I did a really deep dive on this problem and I can now see that this is almost certainly a hardware fault, and its symptoms exactly match the Intel Atom C2xxx LPC problem described in a few places:
https://www.netgate.com/blog/clock-signal-component-issue.html
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/02/06/cisco_intel_decline_to_link_product_warning_to_faulty_chip/
https://forum.pfsense.org/index.php?topic=125105.msg691024#msg691024
https://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/specification-updates/atom-c2000-family-spec-update.pdf (AVR54)Per the Netgate commitment in the first link, I assume I can get this device repaired or replaced. I'll report back on Netgate's response.
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I was just informed that the RMA was approved. I'm glad we confirmed the issue. Please coordinate with our support the rest of RMA process.
Thank you!
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I'm very happy to say that Netgate replaced the motherboard in my device and it's working like new! :D
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Thanks for the follow up! :)
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My SG-2220 just failed with the same symptoms. Reaching out to support.
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My SG-2220 just died with the same symptoms. One minute everything was fine, then it just stopped and everything was lit up like a Christmas tree. I cannot communicate with the box using the console cable. I will be contacting Netgate to see what my options are.
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Sorry, forgot to do a follow up post earlier…
As with the original poster, Netgate resolved my issue by replacing the board.
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i have the same box. did you perform the firmware update to fix the processor bug?
if i remember right because of the bug didn't they extended the warranty of this device as well?
i do NOT look forward to the day i have to replace this box. it has been 100% reliable until i did the 2.4 beta upgrades and it disabled the network ports…
the 2 port minnowboard will probably be my next replacement device from Netgate when that day comes
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My 2220 just died the exact same way. I'm really hopeful that support can replace it and do so asap. Now I need to scramble to find something I can put pfSense on so I have internet until they do…
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My SG-2220 just died today too, around 12:00 PM EDT. Solid green network LEDS and solid orange LED. No console output or anything. I wonder if the date had anything to do with it? I'm going to contact support as well.
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Mine just died in exactly the same manner as well….argh! Hopefully support can help out here
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Count one more SG-2220 that just died in exactly the same way. They appear to have a serious issue that is not just an isolated occurrence or two.
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Contact our support. C2000 series has a known issue and we offer an extended warranty because of it. Please contact our support so they can diagnose. https://customercare.netgate.com/
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just curious for those that have failed. before they failed obviously. did you apply the netgate coreboot upgrades?
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I have the same problem. My SG-2220 served well since 2015 and I am sorry to see it bricked in this state. I have ordered a new SG-1000 to replace it. I am curious if I can use my saved XML configuration for my various VPN setups or if I will need to manually reconfigure from scratch? No biggie either way as I know what needs to get done, but the saved XML from the SG-2220 would be a time saver.
Thank you for developing such a cool product!
–Christopher
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Yes, you will be able to restore the XML from 2220. My only concern is about your requirements, SG-1000 has lower specs than SG-2220 so you might not be happy with the performance. What kind of internet speeds do you have?
Also, please contact our support so they can see what's going on with 2220. https://go.netgate.com/support/login
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My internet speed is nothing to write home about: 47.9Mbps download, 5.52Mbps upload via AT&T service and test results.
So to confirm: I will be able to use my SG-2220 XML for the SG-1000?
Thanks!
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SG-1000 will handle that without issues. Yes for XML, but do let us know if you encounter any issues.
Thanks!
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@bcruze Yes, I previously applied the coreboot upgrade via pfSense GUI, then power cycled all pfSense firewalls. Unfortunately one of the upgraded SG-2220 failed to boot with the same behavior as OP. Netgate support took back the failed hardware and replaced the entire board under extended warranty.
