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SGI Visual Workstation 550 Troubleshooting Guide

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SGI Visual Workstation 550 M29A system board layout (User's Guide Figure 3-1)
M29A system board layout with jumper, connector and socket designators (User's Guide Figure 3-1)

The SGI Visual Workstation 550 is built on an M29A system board with the Intel i840 chipset and a PC BIOS, so it reports faults the way other PCs of its time do: BIOS messages during the power-on self test (POST), beeps from the on-board buzzer, and the power LED.[1][2] SGI's user guide lists the BIOS messages but no beep codes. Before opening the case, see SGI Visual Workstation 550 General Maintenance for the side panel, bezel and beam.

Will not start

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No start, no picture
Symptom Probable cause Action
New or newly moved system does not boot Graphics card unseated SGI's release notes name this first: unplug, open the case and press the AGP card fully into its slot[3]
No picture, no beeps after a memory change RIMM pairing or C-RIMMs Check the pairing rules under Memory below, and that every empty socket has a C-RIMM[3]
Fans run, no beeps heard at all Beeps sent to an external speaker JP6 selects the on-board buzzer (1-2) or an external speaker (2-3)[1]
Machine off, LED flashing green Suspend mode Press the power button once to resume[3]
Nothing at all Mains lead, power supply, power connector CN5 Check the lead and the outlet, the supply's connector at CN5 and the drive power leads. SGI replaces the 450 W supply as a unit[4][1]

BIOS error messages

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SGI's table of system error messages, shortened to the cause and action. Setup opens with Ctrl+Alt+Esc during POST.[2]

System error messages (User's Guide Table 3-2)
Message Cause Action
CMOS battery bad The battery has lost power Replace the lithium cell at BT1
CMOS checksum error Setup memory corrupted Run Setup and reconfigure the system
CPU clock mismatch The processor frequency has been changed Shown once; the BIOS then sets the clock itself
Diskette drive controller error or not installed Floppy power or data cable unplugged, or the controller is faulty Check both cables at both ends
Diskette drive A (or B) error Drive or cable Check the cable, then replace the drive
ECC facility fail RIMM Replace the RIMMs
Equipment configuration error Hardware does not match the Setup data Run Setup
IDE drive 0 (or 1) error, or auto detection failed Drive faulty, wrong type or badly fitted Check the cable and the Setup settings; replace the drive
Keyboard error, keyboard interface error Keyboard not connected, faulty keyboard or interface Reconnect or replace the keyboard
Memory error at MMMM:SSSS:OOO (W:XXXX, R:YYYY) RIMM or RDRAM fault Replace the RIMMs
RAM parity error RIMM or RDRAM fault Replace the RIMMs
System management memory bad Memory fault Replace the RIMMs
Pointing device error, interface error or IRQ conflict Mouse not connected or faulty, or an IRQ clash with a card Reconnect or replace the mouse; check the IRQ settings in Setup
PCI device error Faulty PCI card Check the card and replace it
Real-time clock (RTC) error Clock circuit Check the RTC circuit or replace the RTC
Onboard serial or parallel port conflict An add-on card uses the same address Change the address of one of them in Setup
Press Esc to turn off NMI, or any key to reboot A non-maskable interrupt occurred Esc ignores the error; any other key reboots

Sources: User's Guide Table 3-2, pp. 87–91.[2] SGI adds that a message offering "F1 to continue" usually points at a configuration error, while hardware faults more often stop the machine completely. Repeated requests to run Setup mean the battery cannot hold the settings.[2]

Memory

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SGI's rules for the four RIMM sockets:[3][5]

  • RIMMs go in pairs: RM1 with RM3, and RM2 with RM4.
  • Both RIMMs of a pair are the same size and speed. SGI recommends the larger pair in RM1 and RM3.
  • Every empty socket holds a C-RIMM.
  • The board takes 64, 128, 256 and 512 MB RIMMs, up to 2 GB. All should be PC800; a slower RIMM slows the whole system.

The user guide also calls each socket an independent bank, but its own installation notes and the release notes both require pairs.[5][3]

In October 2026 an owner reported on the IRIXNet forum that a 550 with four Samsung 256 MB PC800 ECC RIMMs (1 GB) worked, but four 512 MB PC800 ECC RIMMs, first Samsung 40 ns and then Toshiba 45 ns parts, gave no POST and no beeps. A mixed set with 256 MB RIMMs in sockets 1 and 3 and 512 MB RIMMs in 2 and 4 behaved the same, and filling only one pair produced repeated beeps. The thread had no answer when it was read.[6] SGI's guide lists 512 MB RIMMs as supported; the owner's mixed set also had the smaller pair in RM1 and RM3, the opposite of SGI's recommendation.[1][3]

Processors

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  • An empty processor socket needs a terminator board.[7]
  • SGI lists 733, 800, 866 and 933 MHz Pentium III Xeon processors on a 133 MHz bus. SGI's table describes JP7 as "Force CPU to run at 2 x 133 MHz or 2 x 100 MHz", with 1-2 "Set by ICH" and 2-3 "CPU strap".[7][1]
  • A single-processor 550 was shipped with a uniprocessor Windows NT 4.0 kernel. After adding a second processor, reinstall Windows NT so that it is used.[3]
  • Check that each processor's three-pin and two-pin cables from the fan and heatsink are connected. The board has a fan connector and a thermal sensor connector for each processor: CN2 and CN1 for CPU 1, CN11 and CN10 for CPU 2.[7][1]

Jumpers

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M29A jumpers (User's Guide Table 3-1)
Jumper Function 1-2 2-3
JP1 Password Check password Bypass password (default)
JP2 BIOS OEM BIOS BIOS
JP4 Flashed BIOS safety boot FWH top lock FWH top unlock
JP5 Reboot when POST times out Reboot Do not reboot
JP6 Beep output On-board buzzer External speaker
JP7 Processor clock Set by the ICH Processor strap
JP8 SCSI channel A terminator Off On

JP8X sets the terminator for channel B in the same way.[1] The default for JP1 is 2-3, which bypasses the password; SGI's procedure sets the password in Setup and then moves JP1 to 1-2 to enforce it. With JP1 on 2-3 the password is bypassed, which is the way past a forgotten password.[8][1] SGI's guide does not explain JP2 or JP4 further.

Disks and drives

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  • The system disk is on the integrated Adaptec AIC-7899 Ultra160 SCSI controller, channel A at CN32; channel B is CN33. Check the terminator jumpers JP8 and JP8X when disks are added or moved.[1]
  • For several disks on one channel, SGI gives fixed bays and IDs: bottom of the 3.5-inch bay ID 0, top of the 3.5-inch bay ID 1, top of the 5.25-inch bay ID 2, bottom of the 5.25-inch bay ID 3, on cable connectors 2 to 5, with the terminator at the end of the cable.[3]
  • When installing Windows NT on a blank SCSI disk, press F6 as soon as "Setup is inspecting your computer's hardware configuration" appears and load the Adaptec U3 driver from SGI's diskette.[3]
  • IDE drive messages at POST point at the drive, its cable or the Setup drive type (see the table above).[2]

See also Hard Drive Maintenance and Repair and Floppy Drive Repair.

Graphics, network and software

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  • SGI's graphics cards for the 550 include the VR3, an NVIDIA NV10GL, and the V7 and VR7. Red Hat Linux 6.2 had no built-in VR3 driver: SGI's workaround was to pick "NVIDIA GeForce DDR (generic)" with 16384 KB during installation and then install SGI ProPack 1.3 for Linux. SuSE 6.4 would not install on V7 or VR7 systems.[3]
  • The on-board Ethernet is an Intel 82559. Windows NT Setup needs SGI's Intel 82559 driver diskette ("Have Disk") to find it.[3][1]
  • SGI advised against using the Service Pack CD in the Windows NT media kit when reinstalling, and pointed owners to Microsoft's downloads instead.[3]
  • The owner who reported the RIMM problem above found BIOS version V4.0 with SMBIOS 2.3 on their 550 and could not find a later BIOS.[6]

Things that are not faults

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  • "CPU clock mismatch" once after the processor frequency has been changed.[2]
  • A flashing green power LED: the machine is in a suspend mode.[3]
  • A slower system after adding non-PC800 RIMMs: every RIMM runs at the slowest module's speed.[5]
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References

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  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 Silicon Graphics, Inc., Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation User's Guide, 007-4279-001, June 2000, chapter 3, pp. 67–75: M29A board, Figure 3-1 and Table 3-1 (connectors, jumpers, chips). Hosted as File:SGI Visual Workstation 550 User's Guide (007-4279-001).pdf.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation User's Guide (007-4279-001), "Error Messages", Table 3-2 and the corrective measures that follow, pp. 86–92.
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 Silicon Graphics, Inc., Release Notes for the Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation, 007-3941-002, 2001, items 1–15. Hosted as File:SGI Visual Workstation 550 Release Notes (007-3941-002).pdf.
  4. ↑ Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation User's Guide (007-4279-001), "Replacing the Power Supply", pp. 36–37.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation User's Guide (007-4279-001), "Installing and Removing Memory Modules", pp. 83–85.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 IRIXNet forums, "SGI 550 workstation RDRAM trouble + BIOS update?", first post, 14 October 2026. Retrieved 2026-10-21. RIMMs tried, symptoms and BIOS version.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation User's Guide (007-4279-001), "Installing and Removing the Processor" and the terminator board, pp. 76–83.
  8. ↑ Silicon Graphics 550 Visual Workstation User's Guide (007-4279-001), "Supervisor Password", pp. 115–118.


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