Intel NUC7i3BNH shutting off suddenly, and the power button remains off for few minutes before turning amber for restart

[ASaha12]

I have a NUC7i3BNH which i use as a esxi server for home lab. Using Seagate 2TB Firecuda non-ssd hdd and crucial 32 gb (16gb in each slot) 2133 CL15 DDR4. It was working fine, all of a sudden it started shutting off abruptly. Post shutting off the power button remains off for few 4-5 minutes. After which it turns amber so that i can restart ( btw the bios is configured not to restart after power failure).

What i have done so far:

1. changed power adapter
2. changed memory
3. changed HDD
4. Reset CMOS
5. Updated bios
6. Changed the thermal paste and cleaned the fan
7. Changed the fan speed to 100% in case of excess heat

but nothing worked. The esxi log also dont show anything which might be helpful.

Does anybody ever faced this issue, i guess may be a hardware issue.

I have another NUC with same config and esxi which works fine.

Any help is welcome.

[n_scott_pearson]

Two things to look at. First, there have been reports of some graphics drivers causing issues like this. I personally upgraded all of the NUCs I use for testing to the latest DCH drivers and have not seen any issues. Second, there have been reports of spontaneous shutdowns and reboots and the issue was traced to bad memory. I too haven't seen this (I stick with Crucial for a reason!) occur. For this investigation, I suggest removing one SODIMM and running for a few days. If nothing happens, switch to the other SODIMM and repeat.

Hope this helps,

...S

[ASaha12]

Thanks Scott for the reply. As i said i use the NUC as Esxi server so DCH drivers can be ruled out. For the memory, i tested the both the SODIMM with RAM from the other NUC which runs fine, but same issue.

In best case, when power fails and come back, the power button should turn amber immediately, but that is not happening in this case, the button is turning amber after 3-4 minutes. In this time gap i cannot restart the NUC as the power button is off.

[LeonWaksman]

Hi @ASaha12​ 

1. I understand that you running this esxi server  on bare machine?
2. Try to install Windows 10 ( https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-clean-install-windows-10-a.html)and install the latest drivers (https://downloadcenter.intel.com/product/95066/Intel-NUC-Kit-NUC7i3BNH), including DCG Graphics driver (https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/28816/Intel-Graphics-Windows-10-DCH-Drivers?v=t) and see how it;s working.

Leon

[n_scott_pearson]

I hate to say it, but Leon's suggestion, as much work as it is, may be the only thing that will tell you.

If that doesn't work, you likely will need to talk to Intel Customer Support directly (can't do it not here) to see about a warranty replacement.

...S

[ASaha12]

Thanks Leon and Scott, i will test out win 10 and reply back how it goes.