Recover BIOS on ML115

[NickBrown]

Anyone have definitive instructions on how to do this? I've got a corrupt BIOS as a result of a power outage whilst flashing. I see the "BIOS Recovery" jumper on the motherboard, but don't know how to use it. I've tried the obvious - remove jumper, power on, wait for beeps, power off, replace jumper, but no success. Are there circumstances where the BIOS is too screwed for this to work? TIA, Nick.

[Brian_Murdoch]

Hi Nick,

There is a procedure for CMOS reset using Switch SW2 which reads as follows:-

1. Locate the system configuration button (SW2) on the system board.
2. Press the button. AC power must not be connected.

Note that AC power must be removed for this procedure. It's possible that the power cable also needs to be removed when using the BIOS Recovery jumper for the first time since the AUX 5V and other voltages are always present when the power cable is inserted.

If I can find the correct procedure for using the jumper I will reply back.

I hope this helps.

Brian

[Graham UK · Accepted solution]

Hi Nick,

The SW2 CMOS reset did't work for me but this procedure worked successfully on a ML115 G5.

1) Download the USB ROMPaq Firmware Upgrade for HP ProLiant ML115 Servers (For USB Key-Media) from HPs website.
2) Follow the instructions included with the Rompaq on how to format an USB key with the Rompaq Firmware Upgrade.
3) Power off the server.
4) Find the small jumper BIOS Recovery on the server motherboard and remove.
5) Insert the USB key created fron 2 above into one of the front usb slots.
6) Power on the server.
7) Server should load the Rompaq BIOS you should see usb drive flashing.
8) Wait until you hear a mini melody of system beeps.
9) Power off and remove USB.
10) Replace BIOS recovery jumper.
11) Power on and the BIOS should be recovered.

If you are updating to the latest firmware on the G5 you may experience a problem with loud fans after POST. More details on how to resolve at
http://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/questionanswer.do?threadId=1361154

I had reset the CMOS using the SW2 switch before the BIOS Recovery so you may need to do this as well.

The USB used was a 512MB USB stick however up to 2GB media is supposed to be supported.

Hope that is useful

Graham

[James.B.Hudson]

Hi,
Thanks for the help here! I was in the same situation but everything here worked. However...

I really need some help because I updated to the recent bios firmware and had the high speed fan issue. So I followed the advice in the forum and upgraded the lightsout firmware (despite the module not being present). My server is now broken.

I get "601-Error: BMC Not Responding". The boot takes over five minutes just to get past post screens. There's 2 seconds of operation then about 30 seconds of system hang and so on... I've tried a re-flash of the lightsout firmware and get "Error 38 Intel chipset not supported" It appears something has gone seriously wrong despite it saying the flash was successful.

The heart beat light no longer functions (i.e. it's out). Does that mean my system is dead?

Not to stick it at the company engineers but did someone actually take time to write a verification routine to the firmware updater? My machine is broken and now useless. Can someone here help, pleeese?

Cheers,
James

[Graham UK]

Hi James,

I'm not sure if this will help however an extra step that I took was to recover to a previous BIOS 2009.04.20 (A) (17 Jun 2009) for the ML115 G5 at http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/SoftwareDescription.jsp?lang=en&cc=uk&prodTypeId=15351&prodSeriesId=3683705&swItem=MTX-cf42b292289b47909bcfb53c64&prodNameId=3683706&swEnvOID=1005&swLang=8&taskId=135&mode=4&idx=2 before updating the ILO firmware to 3.11. I then updated the BIOS to the latest version. I do have an Lights Out 100 Card however. Did you reset the CMOS using the SW2 switch with the power disconnected? One additional problem I encountered was that the firmware upgrade for the ILO wouldn't start without removing my E200 Smart Array card.

Hope that is helpful.

Cheers

Graham

[James.B.Hudson]

Hi Graham,
Thanks for the advice. Nothing has fixed it though. My machine still loads but the lightsout bios has been seriously corrupted to the point that the system heartbeat has stopped. I doubt it's fixable. Can anyone offer advice?

Going up on ebay for spares / repair. I had (still have) problems with the hard drive pausing for 30+ seconds during read/write, which has already been brought up on this forum. That's why I followed the guidance on flashing.

Anyone else in my boat be careful with the flashing recommendations!! It has killed my server.

Cheers,
James

[NickBrown]

Belated thanks for the replies. In my case I appeared to have a loose memory DIMM which was why the BIOS upgrade process was failing - strange how this seemed to be an issue only after flashing the BIOS, but there you go.

Anyway I re-seated the memory, followed the upgrade process and my system was brought back to life. I then had to upgrade the ILO firmware to fix the issue with the fans running at full speed permanently.

[NickBrown]

See previous update

[keith.bucknall]

Dear All,

I have followed the above with both a 2GB and 512MG USB stick, however the stick's light did not flash after I powered on the server (with the jumper removed) - how long should I wait???

Thanks

[Leigh Ellis]

This may be of assistance to those who try the foregoing but do have any success.
I followed the procedures above, however I did not have any success. I then inserted the USB key in the onboard USB port (ie on the system board) instead of using the USB port on the front of the machine. What do you know, it worked. Saved myself the time, expense and hassle of replacing the system board. I hope it works for you.