NUC9i7QNX - no output signal , constant blinking white light.

[Zano]

I've been using my NUC9i7QNX  for a few months and what I have unfortunately noticed in the past few days is a constant failure to successfully boot and output video signal.  Video of the problem here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/AjWMq8emZWFmJQVM9 

 Sequence of events is as follows:

1. Power button is turned on (solid white light appears) and I can hear fans starting to spin.

2. No BIOS splash screen appears and after less than a minute the compute element fan stops spinning.

3. I hear an off/on 'click' and fans start to spin up again and this time I see a rapidly blinking white light from the power LED (it never stops blinking)

4. Wait for another minute, no output is displayed and the fans stop again.  Power will remain on and the white like keeps blinking.

5. I hold the power button to force everything to turn off, but when I try again I find myself back at step 1.

I thought this might be a  'thermal trip warning' since that's the closest blink code I could find but those errors supposedly only have 16 associated blinks.  In this case the blinking never stops.

The only way I've been able to get back into the system is after disconnecting everything , resetting the RAM and trying again after a couple of hours or overnight.  Even then this doesn't consistently work and I've definitely tried other RAM modules from my other NUCs but the result is the same.  In all these instances the HDMI input on the compute element never was able to output a signal.

On one of the occasions where I was able to get into the system I was able to install the latest BIOS and reformatted my Win 10 OS but the problem still persists.  Fortunately I was able to get a system summary output  in on of those instances and have attached it. 

Really do like the Ghost Canyon NUC and hope someone has some insight on getting things back to a working state , Thanks!

[n_scott_pearson]

This is acting suspiciously like the BIOS Configuration jumper has been removed. Can you check that?

...S

[MRoss5200]

Did you try the system without the Nvidia GT710 installed? The internal Intel graphics will be disabled when a discrete GPU is installed.

Did you try the system without an SSD installed?

What speed are the SoDIMMs you are using and what voltage are you running them at? Memory should be at 2666MHz at 1.2v. This is what id tested on this for system compatibility. 

Like Scott said, check the recovery jumper to make sure it is on pins 1-2.

If you do a recovery BIOS flash, make sure you are using the RECOVERY.CAP file NOT the normal F7 flash CAP file. They are named different and are not interchangeable. 

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/downloads/eula/30483/BIOS-Update-QXCFL579-?httpDown=https%3A%2F%2Fdownloadmirror.intel.com%2F30483%2Feng%2FQXCFL579.0062.RECOVERY.zip

[Zano]

My pins arrangement look slightly different from what you have and I don't have the additional yellow jumper on the back two pins..... is that missing ? 

I did remove the jumper on the front (assuming it allows access to the Power Button menu) but was not able to get to the  menu by doing the typical three second hold of the power button.  I'm guessing the different pin setup requires a different manner in which to get to the PBM ?  How should I clear the CMOS on NUC9i7QNX ?

One difference I am seeing though with the jumper removed is that I'm not getting a blinking white light a minute after powering on,  no video output or BIOS splash screen,  but power stays on. Certainly did try removing the graphics card and also removing the SSD, but in both cases I'm still getting to a blank screen.

Memory should be compatible with the requirements. From one of the last times I was able to get into the BIOS I grabbed this screenshot.  Did try the memory in both slots.

I do have the recovery QXCFL579.cap file on a USB that is plugged in to the NUC ready to go, but is there any way to auto-start the BIOS recovery without going through the PBM ?

Thanks for the help thus far!  Appreciate it

[MRoss5200]

On your picture, the header with the yellow jumper is Jumper Recovery block. If the yellow jumper is on pins 1-2 (like in the picture), it is in normal mode. If it is on 2-3, it is in lock mode. This means no access to BIOS Setup (F2), BIOS Flash (F7), One Time Boot (F10), Network Boot (F12), during POST. If the yellow jumper is removed, you are in Jumper Recovery mode. You do not need to hold the power button for 3 seconds to get to the Power Button Menu. The system will boot to the Recovery Menu automatically. If you put the Recovery CAP file in the ROOT of a USB flash drive formatted for FAT32 (make sure it is the only CAP file), the system will start a BIOS Recovery when the system is powered on. Use the back USB ports for this.

The CMOS Clear jumper just needs a jumper placed on the 1-2 pins to short and clear the CMOS NVram. You can use the yellow jumper from the recovery block to do this. Do not leave the yellow jumper on permanently.  Remove it after powering on, waiting a few seconds and then power off.

[n_scott_pearson]

Zano, please provide us with the SA# for your NUC.

...S

[Zano]

Here you go:

[n_scott_pearson]

Thanks. There was a specific issue that sometimes occurred with older (-404) systems, but you have the newer version that is not susceptible.

Just to reiterate Mitch's message, clear CMOS and attempt BIOS Recovery by doing the following:

1. Move your yellow jumper to the CMOS Clear (2-pin) header.
2. Power on the system.
3. Wait 5 seconds.
4. Power off the system.
5. Move the yellow jumper back to the 1-2 pins of the BIOS Recovery (3-pin) header.
6. Power on the system and see if it will POST. If it does, you are back in business.
7. If it will not post, Power off the system.
8. Remove the yellow jumper from the BIOS Recovery (3-pin) header.
9. Insert a flash drive that has the BIOS Recovery .CAP file in its root folder (no other .CAP file should be there).
10. Power on the system.
11. You should see the BIOS Recovery process starting. This will start with accesses to the flash drive (if it has one, its access LED will flash) followed by Recovery progress display on the primary monitor.
12. If you do not see the process starting, wait 15 minutes before powering off (just in case) and let us know.
13. If process runs to successful completion, power off the system and unplug from wall.
14. Restore the yellow jumper to the 1-2 pins of the BIOS Recovery (3-pin) header.
15. Plug in and power on the system and see if it will POST. If it does, you are back in business. If not, let us know. Actually, let us know regardless.

Hope this helps,

...S

[Zano]

So I moved the jumper over to the CMOS Clear (picture below) but after putting the parts back together the system does not power on.   Should it ?  I pressed the power button but didn't hear or see the system make an attempt to turn on (no white LED light , no fans spinning)

Assuming the mere fact that I plugged in the system to the outlet for a brief period of time was enough to clear it, I did then take off the jumper, hooked everything back up and plugged in my USB with only the .CAP file on it along with my HDMI cable onto the back of the compute element.  The system did then power on, but I still witnessed the behavior from what I initially recorded on video.  (Power goes on, LED is lit up, but then starts blinking indefinitely and no video output)

I'm guessing the CMOS didn't clear or there's something I could do differently to clear it (via battery?) Definitely appreciate the detailed guidance you guys have given me, still willing to try any other ideas and if there aren't any I'm going to start looking into a warranty replacement.

[n_scott_pearson]

The other way to clear CMOS is to unplug the CR2032 battery for 15 minutes. This requires a little deeper digging; it is plugged in near the M.2 connectors.

After doing this, try POSTing before you resort to the BIOS Recovery process.

...S

[Zano]

Still no luck  

- Removed battery for 15 ~ 20 min, plugged it back in.

- Tried POSTing first, still had a black screen.

- Removed jumper to get into recovery mode , plugged in recovery USB but that too still had the same results.  

From all the BIOS recovery attempts I never was able to get and sort of video signal going.  Not sure if anything else can be attempted on my end. Going to contact the vendor and see what can be done.  Thanks for your help guys.

[scare]

Hi Scott

I have a -404 system exhibiting this same behavior ..... can you share what the other known issue is with that?

Thanks,

Steve

[n_scott_pearson]

Unless you're in the first 30 days, you'll have to go the RMA route.

After verifying that your warranty is still active (here: Determine if Your Product Is Still Under Warranty), you need to directly contact Intel Customer Support to initiate the RMA process (you cannot do this through the forums). Here are pages where you can lookup contact information, including local/country phone numbers, by geography:

• U.S. and Canada: Intel Customer Support NA
• Europe, Middle East and Africa: Intel Customer Support EMEA
• Asia-Pacific: Intel Customer Support APAC
• Latin America: Intel Customer Support LAR

You can use the online forms service or email, but I actually recommend calling them directly. The above links provide local or toll-free numbers in most countries and support most local languages. You could also use the chat service (start here: Intel Customer Support Chat), but understand that this service is offered in English only and is subject to the normal (9:00-5:00 M-F) office hours in the Pacific (UTC-8) time zone.

Hope this helps,

...S

[Zano]

This definitely helps out, I have started engaging with customer support to start the RMA and am waiting to hear back. 

Thanks for all the support you guys provided here, learned a few things along the way

Zano

[n_scott_pearson]

Here to help,

...S

[n_scott_pearson]

Some -404 units had an issue in their power supply firmware that could cause them to not power on at all. Since this firmware was not upgradeable in the field and Intel offers no repair facilities, replacement was the only option.

If you are seeing the same set of symptoms being discussed in this conversation, this other issue is not what you are suffering from (if it was going to occur, it would have been occurring from day one). Still, if the remediation discussed in this conversation is not working for you either, the result is the same: a replacement would be necessary.

If this is the case, after verifying that your warranty is still active (here: Determine if Your Product Is Still Under Warranty), you need to directly contact Intel Customer Support to initiate the RMA process (you cannot do this through the forums). You can start here: Contact Intel Support or use this page where you can directly look up local/country phone numbers: Intel Support Phone Directory.

You can use the online forms service or email, but I actually recommend calling Intel directly. The above link provides local or toll-free numbers for most countries and the folks behind these numbers support most local languages. You could also use the chat service (start here: Intel Customer Support Chat), but understand that this service is offered only in English and is subject to the normal (9:00-5:00 M-F) office hours in the Pacific (UTC-8) time zone.

Hope this helps,

...S