Good day everyone!

I need your help. I have an original unmodified (hardware perspective) ex487 that had issues with mcafee and a few other issues where I decided just to do a recovery. The server had all the latest 2.5 updates. however, I restored using the original recovery disk (which is a 2.x?). The server has rebooted but the recovery process has closed down the wizard and now I'm faced with a server whose hard disk lights and the 3 lights next to the pinhole are blinking in unison blue. Would it be safe just to install the home server connector manually and apply updates, should I wait, should I retry the recovery process? I've rebooted the server once but the lights haven't changed when it came back up. The server does have a bit of info (1.2 tb total used) on it but doesn't have any extra addins

BTW, i'm also interested in the 3.0 upgrade for this server. I read in a thread and confirmed that the cd software order page isn't available. I'm in Bermuda, and wondering what are my alternatives?

George

You can try the PC Client Installation CD and see if the recovery picks up where it left off. No harm will come to the server from this but its worth giving a shot.

As for the 3.0 upgrade your going to have to keep an eye out for someone selling their 3.0 upgrade for your EX487. Make certain its for the EX485 or EX487 and not for the other servers as its hardware specific.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8

Thanks a bunch! This suggestion worked1

I still haven't found the 3.0 upgrade, but at this point I'm possibly thinking of building my own custim whs machine. Is there a way of transferring the files/backups from the stock ex487 to another machine? Is there any chance of HP doing an about face with WHS?

If you build another WHS v1 machine and also have a copy of WHS-OEM v1 then you can simply move all the drives to the new unit and perform a server recovery which is quite different than with your current server because it will be done at the server itself and you will also need to have the 32 bit drivers if you build a WHS v1 server. I have in the past used the COA Key which can be found under your current server to activate the license however if you sell your server then you will not have the right to use the key as the key would transfer ownership to the new owner of the server.

If you build a WHS2011 server then you will need to copy the data from the server but also you might be able to move the drives and simply set the new server to be able to see hidden files and folders and simply copy the data to where you want it to go then once you move the data simply format the drive and repurpose it in the new server.

There are more ways to work around this and so if you read through the forums pertaining to WHS v1 or 2011 you will get a good idea of what others have done and experienced. Better to have a full understanding of the process at hand rather then have one of those OH OH moments with a few explitives we can't post about.

There are pros and cons to everything and I still run WHS v1 even though I have made an investment in building my primary WHS2011 server I call Highlander. I am not quite ready to move away from WHS v1 and so I still refer to Highlander as a build in progress because I have simply not come to terms with using a RAID or a DE Replacement solution. What I do know is that my WHS2011 server streams much better than my ProLiant running WHS v1 but both are serious servers predicated on performance with the primary goal to stream content online for me, my family and a few close friends who help me test things out.

As for HP its interesting you mention this because not to long ago they were packaging WHS2011 with their ProLiant Microserver a unit that is affordable and should meet the needs of most but not the most powerful unit out there. Still its a nice compact unit not quite as attractive looking as the MSS which I have become very fond of and so I keep my EX470's still running performing tasks I know they perform well. I recently gave one to my GF who is enjoying it very much but as you are well aware the costs of the hard drives are holding her back from expanding it futher.

Damian just did a writeup on a LIAN Li enclosure and a build he did with it. It can house Mini-ITX, DTX and BTX motherboard but it can house 8 drives and 5 are hot swappable. While there are plenty of Mini-ITX boards available to chose from there other form factor boards are not which are like Mini-ITX boards but have a second expansion slot. If I could find an acceptable DTX or BTX board I would go with that enclosure for a server build but alas only Zotac is building a DTX board right now and it appears the DTX and BTX SFF boards are like dead in the water yet you can find many enclosures that will support the DTX and BTX form factors.

Food for thought....Sorry about the rambling and I hope your have much success with your future build.

_________________
Exploring the possibilities!

Migrated from WHS2011 to WS2012E: HIGHLANDER

~ Norco 4220 Enclosure
~ Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD5
~ AMD Phenom II X4 995 3.2 GHz
~ 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
~ 3 Supermicro AOC-SASLP-MV8