Power on the controller.

  1. Power on the display.
  2. Power on the chassis.
  3. Verify that the controller boots.

What if the controller does not boot?

Several problems can cause a controller not to boot. Here are some things to look for and possible solutions.

Things to Notice

  • Which LEDs come on? The PWR OK/FAULT LED should stay lit green. The DRIVE LED should blink during boot when the disk is accessed.
  • What appears on the display? Does it hang at some particular point (BIOS, Operating System, and so on)? If nothing appears on the screen, try a different monitor and cable/adapter. Does your monitor work with a different PC? If it hangs, note the last screen output that you saw for reference when consulting NI technical support.
  • What has changed about the system? Did you recently move the system? Was there electrical storm activity? Did you recently add a new module, memory chip, or piece of software?
  • Refer to your PXI chassis documentation for additional troubleshooting steps.

Things to Try

  • Make sure the chassis is plugged in to a working power source.
  • Check any fuses or circuit breakers in the chassis or other power supply (possibly a UPS).
  • Make sure the controller module is firmly seated in the chassis.
  • Remove all other modules from the chassis.
  • Remove any nonessential cables or devices.
  • Try the controller in a different chassis.
  • Try a similar controller in the same chassis.
  • Reset the CMOS.
  • Recover the internal drive on the controller.
  • Make sure the RAM is properly seated.

My chassis or controller does not appear in NI MAX or Hardware Configuration Utility. How do I use these configuration utilities to identify and configure my PXI system?

If you are using NI MAX or Hardware Configuration Utility to configure your PXI system, you must install the PXI Platform Services software on your controller.

What if I can’t see the video?

If you can see the BIOS screen at boot time but do not see video from the operating system, the video card output may be set past the monitor limits.

To resolve the problem:

  1. Start Windows in Safe Mode by booting the controller from your recovery media and verifying that Windows troubleshooting options are available.
  2. If you do not see your BIOS screen on boot up, check all cables, adapters, and monitor connections and power.

My system boots fine as long as a particular module is not in my chassis. How do I boot the chassis with the module installed?

The most common cause of this problem is a damaged module.

  • Try the module in a different chassis or with a different controller.
  • Remove any external cables or terminal blocks connected to the system.

If the module does not work in these cases, it is likely damaged. Contact the module manufacturer for further troubleshooting.

What if some modules installed in a remote Thunderbolt chassis show up in Windows Device Manager with yellow exclamation points?

Thunderbolt does not allow peripherals to take advantage of legacy IO Space. Some devices, such as serial or Ethernet modules, may rely on IO Space, creating resource allocation issues in the system. These modules should not prevent boot or operation of other devices, but will not function using IO Space.

For more information, visit ni.com/support.