First ASRock Rack / EPYC Milan build! but... no POST?

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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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I'm super excited about this build!
I'm using an ASRock Rack 2U2E-F/ROME2 server (ROME2D32LM3 motherboard) with 2x EPYC 7773X and 32x64GB Crucial DDR4-3200 RDIMM memory.
It's a beast!

But... are there folks here who are familiar with ASRock's rack servers? The system just won't power on. No fans spinning up, no POST, no Dr. Debug. But the BMC (AST2500) is up and running.

I assumed it was probably just that the BIOS version needed to be updated for Milan support, but the BIOS version is showing as blank in the firmware information panel via the IPMI web interface. (On the motherboard, the BIOS version sticker says 3.00 -- which is pre-Milan support).

So, I updated the BMC firmware from 1.06 to 1.19 1.32 (newest), and then attempted to update the BIOS version as well.
The BIOS update process seemed like it succeeded... I uploaded the newest BIOS image, the system verified it, and then it took a few minutes to flash the new image, and reported a success.
However, on power cycle, the main system is still not powering on, and the firmware information panel in the web interface is still displaying the BIOS version as blank.

I've reduced components and peripherals down to a minimum: 1x CPU and 1x memory dimm (installed in the correct spots according to the motherboard manual). I've also rotated CPUs and memory dimms out, to account for a possible bad component. No luck -- every combination results in the same scenario. No fans, no POST, no Dr. Debug -- only BMC running.

I've reached out to ASRock Rack support, but haven't received a response yet. Does anyone know these ASRock Rack systems well? Does this sound like a familiar issue, and I'm doing something dumb? I'm incredibly frustrated to be this close to having an amazing server in my home lab, but not knowing what next step to take to get it running.
 
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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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Oh, additionally, I'm seeing a couple PSU voltage alerts -- but I think those are just from physically unplugging the machine in order to power cycle it.
But you can also see how the BIOS firmware version is still showing as blank.

1692378068348.png

Thanks for any insights you might have!
 
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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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This thread primarily concerns figuring out the ROME2D32LM3 motherboard, as opposed to showing off a new full build, so I think I put it in the right spot, but I'm new here, so I may have gotten the location wrong for my post. Let me know :)
 
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bardlam

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Also here's a photo of how I have the motherboard populated.

You can see the BMC heartbeat LED lit up, next to the Dr. Debug 7-segment display, and an SB_PWR LED lit up, next to the left riser slot.

Sometimes when the system attempts to power on, some other LEDs near the fans will flash on for a very brief moment, but otherwise it's inert.

IMG_0834.jpeg
 
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Auggie

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Nov 26, 2022
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While I can't help with your problem, I would like to say that is a heck of a lot of machine for a home lab and I'm a bit jealous.
 
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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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Auggie said:
While I can't help with your problem, I would like to say that is a heck of a lot of machine for a home lab and I'm a bit jealous.
Click to expand...
I know, right? :D It's replacing my old 2x E5-2699 v4 system with 256GB DDR4-2400, that I have running on an ASUS Z10PE D16 WS (where I've done some BIOS editing for PCIE bifurcation support). I'm working on a project that's using a *huge* amount of memory, and AWS EC2 time is expensive, so here we are lol

But right now it's a huge paperweight until I can figure this out :(
 
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RolloZ170

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Apr 24, 2016
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bardlam said:
However, on power cycle, the main system is still not powering on, and the firmware information panel in the web interface is still displaying the BIOS version as blank.
Click to expand...
to update and see the actual BIOS version in BMCWebGUI, you need successfull POST, you can't so you see nothing new.
 
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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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RolloZ170 said:
to update the actual BIOS version you need successfull POST, you can't so you see nothing new.
Click to expand...
Hm, okay. Do you know if lack of Milan support would cause it not to POST? (If that's the case, then I might need ASRock to mail me a BIOS chip with the newest BIOS version.)
 
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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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RolloZ170 said:
but you need indeed a BIOS update because you have two EPYC X's
Click to expand...
Hrm, Milan-X are still part of the 7003 line, so my understanding was that the improvements were purely internal, and that Milan and Milan-X motherboard compatibility are the same.
But you bring up a good point. I don't actually see 7773X in that CPU support list.
 
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bardlam

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Aug 18, 2023
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RolloZ170 said:
* BIOS update is required to support ....7003 series with AMD 3D V-Cache ....
X = 3D v-cache
Click to expand...
Riiiight right right, that's how the 7773X is able to have 768MB L3 cache. I knew that, and forgot. Thanks!

I guess that brings me back to my previous conclusion, that I might need ASRock to mail me a BIOS chip.
 
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bardlam

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If this server doesn't support 7773X at all, even with the latest BIOS version, then it sounds like I'll be sending it back to get something else that will support Milan-X.
 
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