System Not Powering On/Won't Power Up

Owned by Anand Rajaraman
Dec 02, 2019
3 min read

To Eliminate 3VR issue check:

  1. If the power light on? 

    • S-Series: steady blue power indicator light next to the power button

    • S-Series 2:  steady white power indicator light above the power symbol on the front of the unit, below the 3VR Logo

    • P-Series: steady pinkish-white light from the 3VR logo on the front of the box

  2. Are the system's cooling fans on?  (Not to be confused with the fan directly on the S-Series power brick.)

  3. Is the hard drive activity light on (steady or flashing) or any internal LEDs visible from the back?

    • S-Series: blue LED on the front, flashes to amber

    • S-Series 2: green LED on the front flashes during activity, flashes at steady interval if chkdsk or rebuild

    • P-Series: green LEDs on each HD bay behind the front panel.

  4. Disconnect the system from the wall completely and let sit for 2 to 3 minutes, then try to power on again.

  5. Does the system emit a beep or series of beeps when the hitting the power button? This indicates a problem with the RAM or a bad RAM port.

  6. Have there been any recent power issues (failures/surges)?

If the system is obviously receiving power but boots to a blank, black screen, see solution 3304.

For units shipped prior to Q1 2010: lights indicate power, but not activity so all 4 will be on and solid during normal operation

For units shipped after Q1 2010: one light indicates data access which will blink and the other will be a power indicator which will always be on when the system is powered up

To eliminate an external power issue:

  1. Have they verified the power cable is securely connected on both ends (and in good shape)?

  2. Have they verified the power outlet/cable voltage with their multimeter (or otherwise)?

  3. Have the customer try a different wall outlet / power strip.

  4. If the system is plugged into a UPS, does it meet the power requirements.

To rule out an issue with the power supply, in S-Series, S-Series 2:

  1. Is the fan built into the external power adapter running?

  2. Is the green LED indicator light on the power adapter solidly lit?

    1. On the S-series, the LED is on the jack connecting the power supply to the unit.

      1. The S-Series 2 does not have an LED on it, see #4 to check for activity.

  3. Does the green LED change if it is dis/connected to the SmartRecorder?

  4. Check the voltage coming from the power supply.  

    1. If it is <19v, it is a failed power adapter. The external power adapter can be easliy replaced; issue an RMA for this part.

If the green light on the S-Series power supply is lit before plugging into the unit, but when the power supply is connected to the S-Series the LED goes out and the system won't power on, you are more likely dealing with a problem with the system and not with the power supply.

In P-Series:

Is the power switch on the back of the unit turned on? (When facing the back of the unit, it is in the top-left corner. Most P-Series should have this covered up, but the cover may have been removed and the power switch changed to 'Off').