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SGI Indy General Maintenance

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SGI Indy with cover removed (Rules666)
An Indy with the cover removed. The power supply with its yellow hazard label is on the left, the eight SIMM sockets and the CPU module heat sink are in the centre (Rules666, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Routine care and service procedures for the SGI Indy, taken from Silicon Graphics' Indy Workstation Owner's Guide (007-9804-060), with notes from owners who rebuild Indy power supplies and replace the Dallas timekeeper module.[1][2][3] SGI designed the Indy to be maintained by its owner: the guide covers replacing the graphics board, CPU module, SIMMs, drives and power supply, but gives nothing below that level.[4] The newest Indys are now nearly 30 years old, and the parts that age are the power supply and the battery inside the timekeeper module.[5][6]

Environment and handling

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Indy physical environment (SGI Table 9-3)
Item Specification
Power 100–132 V AC at 2.4–1.8 A, or 200–264 V AC at 1.2–0.9 A; 47–63 Hz
Operating temperature +13 to +35 °C
Storage temperature −40 to +65 °C
Relative humidity 10% to 80% operating, 5% to 90% not operating, non-condensing
Heat dissipation 900 BTU per hour
Altitude 10,000 ft operating, 40,000 ft not operating

[7]

SGI's list of things to avoid bears directly on the machine's life:[8]

  • Do not stand the Indy on carpet or another soft surface, which changes the airflow through the bottom of the chassis, and do not shut it in a cupboard or cover it.
  • Do not run it with the top cover off. SGI says this alters the airflow and can greatly reduce product life.
  • Do not connect cables other than audio, or add hardware, while it is switched on.
  • Do not move it while it is running or within one minute of switching off, to protect the hard disk.
  • Do not use an adapter to plug it into an ungrounded outlet, and do not lay it on its side.

SGI also recommends a surge-protected power strip and the supplied wrist strap whenever SIMMs or boards are handled.[8]

Opening the case

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Shut the system down with the power button and unplug the mains lead before removing the cover.[9]

  1. Facing the front, put your right thumb on the small lip at the back of the cover and your second and third fingers under the finger ledge.
  2. Brace against the lip, push the finger ledge up and push the cover firmly towards the front. SGI warns that it may take some force the first time.
  3. Slide the cover forward about an inch and lift it off.
  4. To refit it, lower the cover to a few inches short of closed, tilt it so the tab goes through the hole in the rear of the chassis, and slide it back until it snaps into place.

The lock bar at the back takes a padlock to keep the cover shut, which also protects the password jumper.[9][10]

Memory

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The eight SIMM sockets are in two banks: bank 0 (S1 to S4) beside the power supply and bank 1 (S5 to S8) beside the graphics board. Fill bank 0 first, and fit four SIMMs of the same size in each bank.[11] The Indy takes 72-pin fast-page-mode SIMMs with parity, 60 or 70 ns.[3]

  1. Shut down, unplug the mains lead, remove the cover and put on the wrist strap, clipped to the chassis.
  2. Hold the SIMM with the notch in the bottom corner to your right, push it into the socket at 45 degrees, tipped away from the power supply, then tilt it upright until the metal latches click round it.
  3. A GIO board fitted on the SIMM side of the graphics board can block the last socket of bank 1; remove it first.
  4. Check that every SIMM stands vertical and level with its neighbours before refitting the cover. SGI asks for the cover to be on before testing, so that the airflow is right.
  5. Power on and check the total under "Hardware" in System Manager. A blinking red LED with no picture means a SIMM is not seated.[11]

CPU module

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The CPU module sits at the front of the case between the power supply and the system disk, under its own heat sink, which SGI says not to remove.[12]

  1. Shut down, unplug, remove the cover and fit the wrist strap.
  2. Remove the two Phillips screws that hold the module to the system board.
  3. Brace your hands against the power supply and the chassis and push the module up with your thumbs. SGI warns that it comes free suddenly.
  4. To fit a module, slide its feet into the slippers on the chassis base, line up the screw holes and the connector, and press down firmly. If it does not seat, do not force it; lift the end slightly and lower it again.
  5. Tighten the two screws a little at a time, first one and then the other.[12]

Check that the PROM is new enough for the module before fitting it: the R4400 200 MHz, R4600 133 MHz and R5000 modules each need a later PROM than early Indys carry.[3]

Power supply

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Warning: the supply rectifies the mains onto two large input capacitors (200 V, 680 µF on the Nidec board), and one carries a "Caution High Voltages" sticker. Unplug the supply and let the capacitors discharge before working on the board.[13]

Removing and refitting

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SGI's procedure, with the system shut down, unplugged and the cover off:[14]

  1. Disconnect the two cables from the system board. Pull the smaller connector straight up by its body; press the lever on the side of the larger one and pull it up. Do not pull on the wires.
  2. Remove the screw that holds the supply to the chassis.
  3. With one hand on the supply and the other on the chassis, slide the supply forward about a quarter of an inch to free it, then lift it away.
  4. To refit, slide the new supply towards you against the chassis until the two metal buttons on its side engage the holes in the chassis, refit the screw, and plug in the larger connector, then the smaller.

The supply's fan cools the whole system unit, so check that it turns whenever the machine is on.[15][16]

Preventive rebuild

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SGI used two supplies, Nidec (part 9430813) and Sony (part 060-0008-001).[3] weblacky, who rebuilds Nidec units for sale, recommends recapping a supply while it still works: a supply that has stopped working has usually damaged a semiconductor as well, and a machine that worked when it went into storage should be recapped before it is switched on again.[17][15] His rebuilds replace every electrolytic capacitor, including the two large input capacitors, with Nichicon and United Chemi-Con parts from the same families, check the front-panel buttons, and replace two or three load resistors that run hot and scorch the adhesive around them.[18][15] The SGI Indy Capacitor Replacement Guide gives the details.

The case has no screws. It is held by clips along the long top edges and separates along one side only, which needs a stiff putty knife or similar to start; do not bend the clips.[15]

Bench test

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The supply starts whenever mains is applied unless the system board pulls the run line (pin 3 of the 20-pin auxiliary header) to ground, so a supply unplugged from the board runs on its own.[2] Test it unloaded only briefly, and with a load where possible: weblacky loads the 3.3 V and 5 V rails at 4 A each and then runs IRIX on the rebuilt supply for at least three hours.[18][19] Expected outputs are in the troubleshooting guide.

Timekeeper module and battery

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The Dallas DS1386-8K-150 timekeeper holds the clock, the PROM environment and the Ethernet address, and its battery is sealed inside. When it runs down, the Ethernet address is lost and the Indy stops at the PROM monitor.[3][6] Owners either fit a new or used DS1386-8K (the -120 speed grade also works) or cut into the old module to wire in a CR2032 holder.[3][20] A used module may have little battery life left.[3] A DS1386-32K is not a direct substitute; see the troubleshooting guide for the reason and for reprogramming the Ethernet address after the change.[21]

Mouse

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SGI's cleaning procedure for the ball mouse: unplug it, slide the bottom cover towards the cable and lift it out, take out the ball, wipe the two metal rollers with a dry cloth or tape-head cleaner and check that they turn freely, wipe the ball, and reassemble.[22]

Checklist for a machine out of storage

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  1. Remove the cover and look for burnt or cracked tantalum capacitors on the system board, especially on the underside near C602 and at C15 to C17.[23][24]
  2. Recap the power supply, or at least inspect it, before applying mains.[17]
  3. Check the supply's fan, buttons and LED.[15]
  4. Reseat the SIMMs and the CPU module.[11][12]
  5. Note the Ethernet address from the label on the rear panel before it is needed.[25][3]
  6. Power on, watch the LED sequence and run the IDE diagnostics from the System Maintenance menu.[16]
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References

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  1. ↑ Silicon Graphics, Indy Workstation Owner's Guide, 007-9804-060, 1996 (File:SGI Indy Workstation Owner's Guide (007-9804-060).pdf).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Indy Power Supply Information", TechPubs Wiki, based on measurements posted by SGUG forum member Elf in 2019, tech-pubs.net (revision of 27 September 2025). Run signal on pin 3 of the auxiliary header.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 Andrej Bukošek, "SGI Indy", Hardware collection, bukosek.si (retrieved 21 October 2026). SIMM type, power supply part numbers, DS1386-8K-150 and -120, used-module battery life, PROM requirements.
  4. ↑ SGI, 007-9804-060, p. 133. "This system is designed to be user maintainable"; list of replaceable parts.
  5. ↑ "SGI Indy", Wikipedia, revision of 28 July 2026, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SGI_Indy. Production dates.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Indy", TechPubs Wiki, tech-pubs.net (retrieved 21 October 2026). Power supply as the part most prone to failure; Ethernet address in battery-backed RAM.
  7. ↑ SGI, 007-9804-060, p. 181, Table 9-3. Physical environment specifications.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 175–176. Hardware do's and don'ts.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 36–39. Removing, replacing and locking the top cover.
  10. ↑ SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 127–128. Password jumper.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 43–48. Installing and checking SIMMs.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 152–155. Replacing the CPU module.
  13. ↑ Andrej Bukošek, photograph of an Indy Nidec power supply board (File:SGI Indy Nidec power supply board (Andrej Bukosek).jpg). Input capacitor markings and warning sticker.
  14. ↑ SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 168–170. Replacing the power supply.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 "Repair / Refurbish Indy power supply", IRIX Network forums, posts by weblacky, 20–21 July 2023, forums.irixnet.org. Replacing every electrolytic including the input capacitors, hot load resistors, case clips, front-panel buttons, supply cooling the system.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 SGI, 007-9804-060, pp. 108–115. Power-on LED sequence, fan check, IDE diagnostics.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Starting Indy PSU Teardown and Research.", IRIX Network forums, posts by weblacky, April to August 2021, forums.irixnet.org. Recapping a working supply, not powering a long-stored supply before recapping.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Rebuilt SGI Indy Nidec 170W PSUs for Sale, see details!", IRIX Network forums, weblacky, 8 January 2022, forums.irixnet.org. Rebuild method: all electrolytics replaced with United Chemi-Con and Nichicon parts, buttons checked, 4 A load test on 3.3 V and 5 V, three hours in an Indy.
  19. ↑ "dead indy", IRIX Network forums, weblacky, 9 July 2022, forums.irixnet.org. Bench-starting the supply with the auxiliary cable unplugged; do not leave it running unloaded.
  20. ↑ "An unusual drill mod for a DS1386-8k-120 Dallas RTC...", IRIX Network forums, weblacky, 22 January 2022, forums.irixnet.org. Wiring a CR2032 holder to an Indy timekeeper module.
  21. ↑ Adrian Chadd, "Installing a 32k DS1386 into an SGI Indy that expects an 8k DS1386", 15 December 2025, adrianchadd.blogspot.com.
  22. ↑ SGI, 007-9804-060, p. 105. Cleaning the mouse.
  23. ↑ "Value of capacitor C602 on Indy logic board needed!", IRIX Network forums, 30 May 2019, forums.irixnet.org. Burnt tantalum C602, 4.7 µF 20 V.
  24. ↑ "Indy will not power on", IRIX Network forums, dexter1, 21 January 2019, forums.irixnet.org. C16 in the row C15 to C17.
  25. ↑ SGI, 007-9804-060, p. 129. Serial number label on the rear panel; the number beginning 08 shown by netstat -ia.


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