Trying to get a Sun Sunblade 150 to work

I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
know if the ones I put in are. It had a PCI graphics card installed
which I can't use because I don't have anything with the 60 pin
video connector that card has.
I connected a monitor to the onboard VGA and a standard
keyboard and mouse to the USB connectors.
When I push the power button the fans spin up, and after a
few seconds I get a single beep, the power light flashes a few
times then stays on, but I get no video. The lights on the keyboard
don't flash and the optical mouse light does not come on. I wondered
if the video output was being sent to the PCI card so I tried it with
the card unplugged. I even tried a couple of PCI video cards with
a standard connector.
I haven't yet tried connecting a terminal to the serial port.

I'm open to suggestions as it seems a nice machine and it
cam with a SunPCi/3 card.

Barry
=====
Home page
http://members.iinet.net.au/~barry.og

Barry OGrady <> writes:
>I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
>installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
>know if the ones I put in are.

Its doubtful that the memory you put in is working. The Blade150
didn't take normal PC memory, didn't you have to force in the DIMMs
you had? The SunBlade150 doesn't take normal PC memory..


>It had a PCI graphics card installed
>which I can't use because I don't have anything with the 60 pin
>video connector that card has.

60 pin?? Eh?
The video cards that went into the SunBlade150 should either have
the normal HD15 VGA connector, or a 13W3 connector.

Maybe that was a SCSI card?

>I connected a monitor to the onboard VGA and a standard
>keyboard and mouse to the USB connectors.
>When I push the power button the fans spin up, and after a
>few seconds I get a single beep, the power light flashes a few
>times then stays on, but I get no video. The lights on the keyboard
>don't flash and the optical mouse light does not come on. I wondered
>if the video output was being sent to the PCI card so I tried it with
>the card unplugged. I even tried a couple of PCI video cards with
> a standard connector.
>I haven't yet tried connecting a terminal to the serial port.

>I'm open to suggestions as it seems a nice machine and it
>cam with a SunPCi/3 card.

I'd start with the right memory. I'd be very surprised if the memory
you had worked, and surprised it even fit in the slots..
MemoryX.net has 512M DIMMs for $60 each. You can take it up to 1GB of
RAM which should be fine for most things, or 2GB if you wish.

Next step would be a console connector with the keyboard unplugged.

On 15 Oct 2008 03:19:51 GMT, Doug McIntyre <> wrote:

>Barry OGrady <> writes:
>>I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
>>installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
>>know if the ones I put in are.
>
>Its doubtful that the memory you put in is working. The Blade150
>didn't take normal PC memory, didn't you have to force in the DIMMs
>you had? The SunBlade150 doesn't take normal PC memory..

From the Sunblade 150 promotional pdf;
Memory
2 GB maximum, error correction SDRAM, four DIMM slots,
PC133 168-pin DIMMs (256-MB, and 512-MB DIMMs)

I thought blades were single board server cards that plug into a rack,
but the Sunblade 150 is a desktop machine.

>>It had a PCI graphics card installed
>>which I can't use because I don't have anything with the 60 pin
>>video connector that card has.
>
>60 pin?? Eh?
>The video cards that went into the SunBlade150 should either have
>the normal HD15 VGA connector, or a 13W3 connector.

Its a
Matrox Millennium G200 Graphics Card - G2+/DUALP-PL
16MB

The connector looks rather like a DVI connector but with more pins
I also remembered I have another Matrox dual card and adapter
cables to VGA.
But alas, still no video.

>Maybe that was a SCSI card?
>
>>I connected a monitor to the onboard VGA and a standard
>>keyboard and mouse to the USB connectors.
>>When I push the power button the fans spin up, and after a
>>few seconds I get a single beep, the power light flashes a few
>>times then stays on, but I get no video. The lights on the keyboard
>>don't flash and the optical mouse light does not come on. I wondered
>>if the video output was being sent to the PCI card so I tried it with
>>the card unplugged. I even tried a couple of PCI video cards with
>> a standard connector.
>>I haven't yet tried connecting a terminal to the serial port.
>
>>I'm open to suggestions as it seems a nice machine and it
>>cam with a SunPCi/3 card.

Are you familiar with the SunPCi/3 card? Its a PCI card that allows
the Sunblade 150 to run Solaris and Windows at the same time.
It has an AMD Mobile Athlon 1600+ (1.4 Ghz) and 256 MB of
DDR RAM, so it should be quite good if I get it working.

>I'd start with the right memory. I'd be very surprised if the memory
>you had worked, and surprised it even fit in the slots..
>MemoryX.net has 512M DIMMs for $60 each. You can take it up to 1GB of
>RAM which should be fine for most things, or 2GB if you wish.
>
>Next step would be a console connector with the keyboard unplugged.

I have now tried that and I got the following endlessly repeated.

RED State Exception

TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0004 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0003 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.4680 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4684 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0002 TT=0000.0000.0000.0034
TPC=0000.0000.f000.0c78 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.0c7c TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0001 TT=0000.0000.0000.0063
TPC=0000.0000.f003.7094 TnPC=0000.0000.f003.7098 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1600


RED State Exception

TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0004 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0003 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0002 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.0208 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.020c TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
TL=0000.0000.0000.0001 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
TPC=0000.0000.f000.0064 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.0068 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.0400

I see its not the same each time.
Does that mean any thing and is it fatal?

Barry
=====
Home page
http://members.iinet.net.au/~barry.og

Barry OGrady <> writes:
>On 15 Oct 2008 03:19:51 GMT, Doug McIntyre <> wrote:

>>Barry OGrady <> writes:
>>>I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
>>>installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
>>>know if the ones I put in are.
>>
>>Its doubtful that the memory you put in is working. The Blade150
>>didn't take normal PC memory, didn't you have to force in the DIMMs
>>you had? The SunBlade150 doesn't take normal PC memory..

>From the Sunblade 150 promotional pdf;
>Memory
>2 GB maximum, error correction SDRAM, four DIMM slots,
>PC133 168-pin DIMMs (256-MB, and 512-MB DIMMs)


Yes, ECC SDRAM. Not very common in the PC world, you'd tend to know it
if you had ECC memory sitting around, coming out of your server grade
machines..


>I thought blades were single board server cards that plug into a rack,
>but the Sunblade 150 is a desktop machine.


SunBlades were in the market alot longer ago than blade servers have
existed. There is a Sun blade server, but long before then, SunBlades
were all SPARC workstations..


>>>It had a PCI graphics card installed

>Its a
>Matrox Millennium G200 Graphics Card - G2+/DUALP-PL
>16MB

>The connector looks rather like a DVI connector but with more pins
>I also remembered I have another Matrox dual card and adapter
>cables to VGA.
>But alas, still no video.


Yeah, I have a G200 around here too somewhere. I'm not sure there are
any Sun drivers for it, maybe the previous owner was running Linux or
something else with different drivers? Its not stock Sun as far as I know..
The stock FB in the Blade100/150 are pretty ****poor. If you really
want it running Solaris, I'd suggest having 1G of DRAM, and getting
a supported better frame-buffer.


>Are you familiar with the SunPCi/3 card? Its a PCI card that allows
>the Sunblade 150 to run Solaris and Windows at the same time.
>It has an AMD Mobile Athlon 1600+ (1.4 Ghz) and 256 MB of
>DDR RAM, so it should be quite good if I get it working.

I have a couple SunPCi first gen cards. They worked alright in my
SunBlade 100's.


>>I'd start with the right memory. I'd be very surprised if the memory
>>you had worked, and surprised it even fit in the slots..
>>MemoryX.net has 512M DIMMs for $60 each. You can take it up to 1GB of
>>RAM which should be fine for most things, or 2GB if you wish.
>>
>>Next step would be a console connector with the keyboard unplugged.

>I have now tried that and I got the following endlessly repeated.

>RED State Exception

>TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500

>Does that mean any thing and is it fatal?


Well, thats a pretty bad error, but generally indicitive of bad memory.

This guy here says he put in fresh memory and fixed the same error.

http://www.sunmanagers.org/pipermail...il/003539.html

On 2008-10-15, Barry OGrady <> wrote:
> On 15 Oct 2008 03:19:51 GMT, Doug McIntyre <> wrote:
>
>>Barry OGrady <> writes:
>>>I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
>>>installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
>>>know if the ones I put in are.

[ ... ]

> From the Sunblade 150 promotional pdf;
> Memory
> 2 GB maximum, error correction SDRAM, four DIMM slots,
> PC133 168-pin DIMMs (256-MB, and 512-MB DIMMs)
>
> I thought blades were single board server cards that plug into a rack,
> but the Sunblade 150 is a desktop machine.

So is the Sun Blade 100, and the Sun Blade 2000 and Sun Blade
2000, which is what I am currently using.

The SB-1000 and SB-2000 are dual CPU machines -- with up to 1200
MHz CPUs. THose can hold up to 8 GB of RAM in eight DIMMs.

>>>It had a PCI graphics card installed

[ ... ]

>>>I'm open to suggestions as it seems a nice machine and it
>>>cam with a SunPCi/3 card.
>
> Are you familiar with the SunPCi/3 card? Its a PCI card that allows
> the Sunblade 150 to run Solaris and Windows at the same time.
> It has an AMD Mobile Athlon 1600+ (1.4 Ghz) and 256 MB of
> DDR RAM, so it should be quite good if I get it working.

[ ... ]

>>I'd start with the right memory. I'd be very surprised if the memory
>>you had worked, and surprised it even fit in the slots..
>>MemoryX.net has 512M DIMMs for $60 each. You can take it up to 1GB of
>>RAM which should be fine for most things, or 2GB if you wish.
>>
>>Next step would be a console connector with the keyboard unplugged.
>
> I have now tried that and I got the following endlessly repeated.

Does "Tried that" include putting in the proper DIMMs? If not,
you should expect problems.

> RED State Exception
>
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0004 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0003 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4680 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4684 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0002 TT=0000.0000.0000.0034
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.0c78 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.0c7c TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0001 TT=0000.0000.0000.0063
> TPC=0000.0000.f003.7094 TnPC=0000.0000.f003.7098 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1600
>
>
> RED State Exception
>
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0004 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0003 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0002 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.0208 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.020c TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
> TL=0000.0000.0000.0001 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
> TPC=0000.0000.f000.0064 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.0068 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.0400
>
> I see its not the same each time.
> Does that mean any thing and is it fatal?

It probably means that the DIMMs which you are using are not
compatible with the machine which you have.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: <> | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

On 16 Oct 2008 01:29:17 GMT, "DoN. Nichols" <> wrote:

>On 2008-10-15, Barry OGrady <> wrote:
>> On 15 Oct 2008 03:19:51 GMT, Doug McIntyre <> wrote:
>>
>>>Barry OGrady <> writes:
>>>>I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
>>>>installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
>>>>know if the ones I put in are.
>
> [ ... ]
>
>> From the Sunblade 150 promotional pdf;
>> Memory
>> 2 GB maximum, error correction SDRAM, four DIMM slots,
>> PC133 168-pin DIMMs (256-MB, and 512-MB DIMMs)
>>
>> I thought blades were single board server cards that plug into a rack,
>> but the Sunblade 150 is a desktop machine.
>
> So is the Sun Blade 100, and the Sun Blade 2000 and Sun Blade
>2000, which is what I am currently using.
>
> The SB-1000 and SB-2000 are dual CPU machines -- with up to 1200
>MHz CPUs. THose can hold up to 8 GB of RAM in eight DIMMs.
>
>>>>It had a PCI graphics card installed
>
> [ ... ]
>
>>>>I'm open to suggestions as it seems a nice machine and it
>>>>cam with a SunPCi/3 card.
>>
>> Are you familiar with the SunPCi/3 card? Its a PCI card that allows
>> the Sunblade 150 to run Solaris and Windows at the same time.
>> It has an AMD Mobile Athlon 1600+ (1.4 Ghz) and 256 MB of
>> DDR RAM, so it should be quite good if I get it working.
>
> [ ... ]
>
>>>I'd start with the right memory. I'd be very surprised if the memory
>>>you had worked, and surprised it even fit in the slots..
>>>MemoryX.net has 512M DIMMs for $60 each. You can take it up to 1GB of
>>>RAM which should be fine for most things, or 2GB if you wish.
>>>
>>>Next step would be a console connector with the keyboard unplugged.
>>
>> I have now tried that and I got the following endlessly repeated.
>
> Does "Tried that" include putting in the proper DIMMs? If not,
>you should expect problems.
>
>> RED State Exception
>>
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0004 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0003 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4680 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4684 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0002 TT=0000.0000.0000.0034
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.0c78 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.0c7c TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0001 TT=0000.0000.0000.0063
>> TPC=0000.0000.f003.7094 TnPC=0000.0000.f003.7098 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1600
>>
>>
>> RED State Exception
>>
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0004 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0003 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0002 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.0208 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.020c TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.1500
>> TL=0000.0000.0000.0001 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.0064 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.0068 TSTATE=0000.0044.5600.0400
>>
>> I see its not the same each time.
>> Does that mean any thing and is it fatal?
>
> It probably means that the DIMMs which you are using are not
>compatible with the machine which you have.

I tried some 512 MB DIMMs from an AC200. They are ECC.
I still got the exception and no video, but there is no beep and the power button
light does not come on.
From Googling it appears it could be a faulty CPU.
I took the CPU out and put it back in and reseated the memory but no change.
With no memory I get
Invalid memory configuration

First Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM1 slot
Second Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM2 slot
Third Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM3 slot
Fourth Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM4 slot

Thanks.

> Enjoy,
> DoN.
>
>--

Barry
=====
Home page
http://members.iinet.net.au/~barry.og

On 15 Oct 2008 13:43:34 GMT, Doug McIntyre <> wrote:

>Barry OGrady <> writes:
>>On 15 Oct 2008 03:19:51 GMT, Doug McIntyre <> wrote:
>
>>>Barry OGrady <> writes:
>>>>I bought a Sunblade 150 from an auction. It had no RAM so I
>>>>installed 2 x 256 PC-133. I know they should be ECC but I don't
>>>>know if the ones I put in are.
>>>
>>>Its doubtful that the memory you put in is working. The Blade150
>>>didn't take normal PC memory, didn't you have to force in the DIMMs
>>>you had? The SunBlade150 doesn't take normal PC memory..
>
>>From the Sunblade 150 promotional pdf;
>>Memory
>>2 GB maximum, error correction SDRAM, four DIMM slots,
>>PC133 168-pin DIMMs (256-MB, and 512-MB DIMMs)
>
>
>Yes, ECC SDRAM. Not very common in the PC world, you'd tend to know it
>if you had ECC memory sitting around, coming out of your server grade
>machines..

When I read that I remembered I have a Netra AC200 with 2 x 512 DIMMs.
A Google search suggested they should be suitable and they are ECC,
but that did not fix the problem.
With the non-ECC RAM I get a single beep and the power button light
comes on, but no beep and no power light with the ECC RAM.
A Google search also suggested that it could be a faulty CPU.
I removed and replaced the CPU, and reseated the RAM, but no change.

>>I thought blades were single board server cards that plug into a rack,
>>but the Sunblade 150 is a desktop machine.
>
>
>SunBlades were in the market a lot longer ago than blade servers have
>existed. There is a Sun blade server, but long before then, SunBlades
>were all SPARC workstations..
>
>
>>>>It had a PCI graphics card installed
>
>>Its a
>>Matrox Millennium G200 Graphics Card - G2+/DUALP-PL
>>16MB
>
>>The connector looks rather like a DVI connector but with more pins
>>I also remembered I have another Matrox dual card and adapter
>>cables to VGA.
>>But alas, still no video.
>
>
>Yeah, I have a G200 around here too somewhere. I'm not sure there are
>any Sun drivers for it, maybe the previous owner was running Linux or
>something else with different drivers? Its not stock Sun as far as I know..
>The stock FB in the Blade100/150 are pretty ****poor. If you really
>want it running Solaris, I'd suggest having 1G of DRAM, and getting
>a supported better frame-buffer.

Thanks for the advice though I had better see if I can make it work first.

>>Are you familiar with the SunPCi/3 card? Its a PCI card that allows
>>the Sunblade 150 to run Solaris and Windows at the same time.
>>It has an AMD Mobile Athlon 1600+ (1.4 Ghz) and 256 MB of
>>DDR RAM, so it should be quite good if I get it working.
>
>I have a couple SunPCi first gen cards. They worked alright in my
>SunBlade 100's.

I'll investigate what other machines can use that board.

>>>I'd start with the right memory. I'd be very surprised if the memory
>>>you had worked, and surprised it even fit in the slots..
>>>MemoryX.net has 512M DIMMs for $60 each. You can take it up to 1GB of
>>>RAM which should be fine for most things, or 2GB if you wish.
>>>
>>>Next step would be a console connector with the keyboard unplugged.
>
>>I have now tried that and I got the following endlessly repeated.
>
>>RED State Exception
>
>>TL=0000.0000.0000.0005 TT=0000.0000.0000.0010
>> TPC=0000.0000.f000.4200 TnPC=0000.0000.f000.4204 TSTATE=0000.0000.1500.1500
>
>>Does that mean any thing and is it fatal?
>
>
>Well, thats a pretty bad error, but generally indicitive of bad memory.
>
>This guy here says he put in fresh memory and fixed the same error.
>
>http://www.sunmanagers.org/pipermail...il/003539.html

Thanks. It seems the SB150 may be critical of memory.

Barry
=====
Home page
http://members.iinet.net.au/~barry.og

* Doug McIntyre:

> Its doubtful that the memory you put in is working. The Blade150
> didn't take normal PC memory, didn't you have to force in the DIMMs
> you had? The SunBlade150 doesn't take normal PC memory..

That's just wrong. The SB100 (and also the SB150) use standard
JEDEC-compliant SDRAM-DIMMs, in case of the SB100 it's generic PC133
with ECC which in fact was quite common in PC servers and PC
workstations of that time (P3 aera).

Benjamin

Benjamin Gawert <> writes:
>* Doug McIntyre:
>> Its doubtful that the memory you put in is working. The Blade150
>> didn't take normal PC memory, didn't you have to force in the DIMMs
>> you had? The SunBlade150 doesn't take normal PC memory..

>That's just wrong. The SB100 (and also the SB150) use standard
>JEDEC-compliant SDRAM-DIMMs, in case of the SB100 it's generic PC133
>with ECC which in fact was quite common in PC servers and PC
>workstations of that time (P3 aera).

I never had or seen out on my gigs a PC workstation that took ECC
memory then unless somebody built a workstation out of a server board.

Servers certainly had it, but RAM rarely ever gets yanked out of a
server, it usually goes in to stay for some time. Since most of them
have a large # of DRAM slots, it just accumulates for more memory
rather than being replaced like in desktops and their small # of DIMM slots.

On 2008-10-16, Barry OGrady <> wrote:
> On 16 Oct 2008 01:29:17 GMT, "DoN. Nichols" <> wrote:
>
>>On 2008-10-15, Barry OGrady <> wrote:

[ ... ]

>>> I have now tried that and I got the following endlessly repeated.
>>
>> Does "Tried that" include putting in the proper DIMMs? If not,
>>you should expect problems.
>>

[ ... error messages snipped ... ]

>>> I see its not the same each time.
>>> Does that mean any thing and is it fatal?
>>
>> It probably means that the DIMMs which you are using are not
>>compatible with the machine which you have.
>
> I tried some 512 MB DIMMs from an AC200. They are ECC.

Here is the description for the 512 MB DIMM for the 150 from the
FEH:

512MB 3.3V ECC 10ns
PC133 SDRAM DIMM
Option 6181

Sun Barcode: 370-4151

and

512MB 3.3V ECC 10ns
PC133 SDRAM DIMM
Option 6181

Sun Barcode: 370-5678

So -- are the DIMMs which you tried 3.3.V?
Are they 10ns -- or slower?
You did say that they are ECC
Are they SDRAM

O.K. Here is what the FEH says fits the AC200:

512MB 3.3V ECC
PC133 SDRAM DIMM
T1/N120/V120
Option 7092

Sun Barcode: 370-4281

Here is what Wikipedia says about the PC133 standard:

================================================== ====================
PC133 is a computer memory standard defined by the JEDEC. PC133 refers
to Synchronous DRAM operating at a clock frequency of 133 MHz, on a
64-bit-wide bus, at a voltage of 3.3 V. PC133 is available in 168 pin
DIMM and 144 pin SO-DIMM form factors. PC133 was the fastest and final
SDRAM standard ever approved by the JEDEC, and delivers a bandwidth of
1064 MB per second ([133 MHz * 64/8]=1064 MB/s). PC133 is backward
compatible with PC100
================================================== ====================

They are all PC133, but since Sun gives them different barcodes,
there is probably some reason why they won't work.

> I still got the exception and no video, but there is no beep and the power button
> light does not come on.
> From Googling it appears it could be a faulty CPU.
> I took the CPU out and put it back in and reseated the memory but no change.
> With no memory I get
> Invalid memory configuration
>
> First Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM1 slot
> Second Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM2 slot
> Third Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM3 slot
> Fourth Memory DIMM must be placed in DIMM4 slot

That sounds like the CPU is working well enough to recognize the
memory status (working from on-board cache, probably), so you need to
try it with one of the memorys which Sun *expects* someone to put in a
SB-150.

370-5676 128MB
370-5677 256MB
370-5678 512MB

Good Luck,
DoN.

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