D-Link Forums
The Graveyard - Products No Longer Supported => D-Link Storage => DNS-320L => Topic started by: richiec86 on October 02, 2013, 09:02:58 AM
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Hi,
Im a bit of a newbie and need some assistance, if someone could advise i would greatly appreciate it.
i have had the d-link 320l NAS for about a year, no problems installing and access the 1TB HDD installed. had been using Win8 to access the NAS, but originally set up using Win7 on a PC.
I have recently moved house, and when plugging in NAS into the router and turning it on, the power light is just flashing blue. No HDD lights or noise from the HDD or fan.
I have tried to access the web UI, but just get a "cannot connect" message. I have also tried pinging the address of the NAS (192.168.0.x) but get the message "destination host unreachable".
I have tried resetting the NAS with the hard reset button, i have reset the router and then the NAS to see if it was a network issue, and have tried plugging the NAS directly into my laptop, but still nothing.
Having search all the the DLINK forums and google, it would suggest either a networking issue (?) or that the NAS is bricked.
Not sure if it something to do with trying to access through Win8 having originally set up with Win7, and worried that its bricked!
Any advice would be great.
Thanks
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Hi Richiec86!
Not sure if it something to do with trying to access through Win8 having originally set up with Win7, and worried that its bricked!
I have set up my DNS-320L from a Win7 PC and can easily access it from a Win8 PC. Has nothing to do with that. Network access works very similar in both OS.
What you describe sound like a damage, probaly from transportation during house move.
Check if you can get access when you remove the HDD.
Regards to the guys from your moving company... ;)
Mausschubser
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Hi Mausschubser,
Thanks for responding.
I have removed the HDD from the NAS, and tried to boot it up, but again the power light just flashes and no access to the web UI! I assume this means its been damaged?
IS there any definitive way to prove that it has been damaged or bricked? Dont want to pay for a new one untill i can confirm it is actually broken?
Many thanks
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Hi!
Before buying a new one...
possible reasons for not getting a connection (especially after setting up an entire new network after moving to a new house):
- DNS-320L is damaged
- network cable is damaged
- wall network socket is not connected
- router is not connected to correct network line
- router has been reset and now provides a different IP-address for your NAS
- your PC has a IP address in a different sub-network than your NAS (e.g. PC=192.168.0.1, NAS=192.168.1.1, both with subnet mask =255.255.255.0)
and many more...
check this:
Blue blinking LED:
The manual says that blue blinking power LED means system is starting. My DNS-320L needs about 2.5 mins before it turns to continous LED after power on (with HDDs inside). So this takes a while.
The LED also turns to continous blue without a network cable connected. In case it is blinking for a longer time, I'd proceed with resetting the device.
Network adapter LEDs:
check on the rear side: there are 2 LEDs at the network adapter. The right side green LED shows, if there is a connection; the left LED if this is GBit-LAN. I'd expect at least the right side LED to turn green.
Reset the device:
At bottom side there is a small hole. Take a paperclip and press the internal button for at least 5 seconds (with power on of course). This resets the device to factory settings.
Get connection:
Use the "D-Link storage Utility" to find the device in your network. If it can't see it, try a direct connection with your PC, through a network cable that has been proven to be OK.
If you are a bit familiar with your router: try to look into it's DHCP settings. Normally there is something like a "network client list" which shows MAC-Adresses (the networks adapter's unique number) and the assigned IP-address. The MAC-address of the NAS is printed on the label on the bottom side, called MAC-ID. Once you can find it in the router's client list, type the assigned IP address (not the MAC-address...!) into your browser's address bar.
good luck!
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Hi again,
Thanks for the tips. Have tried a few different things but still no avail:
Blue blinking LED: when first reading this, i had disconnected the NAS and reconnected and left for about 10 minutes, but the power light still flashes and does not go solid. I have also tried changing the Ethernet cable to one i know works and no change.
I had also removed the Ethernet cable to see if this would make the power light stay solid, but nothing (i had also tried removing the HDD and loading the NAS as i know i should be able to access the web UI even with no HDD, but still nothing)
after 10 minutes of it being on with the working Ethernet (and HDD installed), i had tried to reset using the pin hole on the bottoms of the NAS, while the NAS was on for about 10 seconds... nothing changed, not even a break in the flashing power light.
Network adapter LEDs: the left network LED on the back is green (mostly solid, sometimes flashes) but the right LED is not even on, assuming that this means there is no connection, but no connection to the router or the network?
Reset the device no change!?
Get connection: the D-Link storage Utility does not show the NAS, either wirelessly or with a direct connection to my laptop. I have also explored the "advanced" options on my router (VM superhub) and the NAS does not appear on the client list.
Having tired all these options, this leads me to believe that it is either:
• DNS-320L is damaged
• router has been reset and now provides a different IP-address for your NAS
• your PC has a IP address in a different sub-network than your NAS (e.g. PC=192.168.0.1, NAS=192.168.1.1, both with subnet mask =255.255.255.0)
So just need to figure out how to check if the NAS and laptop are on different sub-networks and/or if a new IP address has been provided by VM.
Without being able to access the web UI for the NAS (or any other config tools for the NAS) how do i determine what address the NAS is on (if any) and change it to match that of the router?
Thanks again for your assistance
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You could look at the DHCP clients listed in your router and that should reveal the IP address assigned to the NAS.
There is also some software on the dlink disk that explores your network and shows the detected devices from memory
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Hey Richiec86!
This does not sound very good. Action #1 should be to get the thing running without a flashing blue power LED. Probably a good time to get into touch with D-Link service directly...
Sorry, but i don't have a better idea now.
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Hi Mausschubser,
Thanks again for getting back to me. I assumed this would now be the case since i cant do anything with it, D-Link here i come!
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I got the same problem with my first DNS320L.
After sending it back and getting a new one all works fine.
Which hardware version you got?
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Same here, about 2 months ago, my unit behave in a similar fashion. Switch it on, the power LED will continue to blink. If more than a minute, I would switch it off, wait, then switch it on and hope that this time, the hard drive LED turns on. Usually about 1 in 3 tries will be successful. But at the end, it just refuse to cooperate.
Checked my envelop full of receipts, found it, showed that it was still under warranty. Went to their repair center, got a replacement unit, a Rev A3. I think the original one was Rev A2.
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Same problem here. Blue light keeps blinking even after removing HDD and LAN cable. Also tried removing battery. Nothing helps... Any idea ?
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I have in total 2 units of 320 and another 2 units of 320L. Both of 320L behaved the same as what you described after operating for less then one year.
One unit is permanently bricked. The second unit able to reboot after I unplugged power cable for 24 hours. It can not do Auto power failure reboot.
I will never buy D-link again.
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Hello People ...
I'm coming here and seeing that unfortunately I am not alone with this problem.
I do not know if this is good ... :D
I do not know if this is bad ... >:(
(However, most likely, just to get here I can already take the bad ...) :( :( :(
Two weeks ago my 'schedule nightly shutdown and startup every morning' began to not work as expected. At the appointed hour to boot, my DNS320L (rev. A3) is stucked in flashing blue LED. If I turn off manually and I switch back on, things return to normal operation. (#WTH?! #WTF?!)
I've done the upgrade from version 1.01 firmware for some other versions that found available for download.
Both in 1:02, and after the 1.04b, same problem from hell here.
Will I even need to buy a new NAS (this one has a little over a year), another manufacturer? My good old Lynksys NAS200 [bought in 2009] is right there, watching all this and smiling :) ... Slow since factory and an old man, but smiling (laughing, actually ... ;D).
Someone recommends a model [in the same price range] from another manufacturer?
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For the record, I just find proof of purchase of my dns320l. In the next Saturday, will have only 13 months bought (6 November 2013). I confess that I find very "strange" that equipment start fails, a few days after your warranty has expired...
:-X
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For the record, I just find proof of purchase of my dns320l. In the next Saturday, will have only 13 months bought (6 November 2013). I confess that I find very "strange" that equipment start fails, a few days after your warranty has expired...
Hi,
I also got the blue LED blinking from hell after using the NAS for over one year. I only got one year warranty from the store but when I created a dlink support case they informed me that I have two years warranty from dlink on the DNS-320L. This was one of the responses from the support center:
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Hi,
If power is blinking blue, it means the device is booting/restarting.
The other 3 leds front of dns-320l are for usb and for hdd`s(left and right).
The LAN port is equipped with 2 LEDs:
-The LED on the right will illuminate solid green for a good connection and will blink during data transmission. If this LED is off, check the connection/cable to the device you are connecting to.
-The LED on the left will light solid for a Gigabit connection and will remain off when connected to a 10/100 device.
According to your description it seems that your DNS-320L is faulty.
If reset doesn't help to solve the problem, then there is not much more to do. Reset is located at the bottom panel of your DNS-320L. Press and hold this button for more than 5 seconds to reset the unit to factory defaults.
You have a 2 year warranty for DNS-320L.
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Now I'm waiting for the RMA number to put on the package and return the NAS to dlink...
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Hi guys,
Just resurrecting this to see if there was a resolution, am experiencing the same situation (also VM SuperHub router).
Thanks
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Does the DNS power up when not connected to any router?
Check the power adapter for correct voltages, if the output voltage is a bit low or not the same as listed on the sticker, this could cause the DNS to fail to start correctly. Remove the drives and test as well. Try a different out let.
If any of this fails, I recommend that you phone contact your regional D-Link support office and ask for help and information regarding this. We find that phone contact has better immediate results over using email.
Let us know how it goes please.
Hi guys,
Just resurrecting this to see if there was a resolution, am experiencing the same situation (also VM SuperHub router).
Thanks
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Am a long sufferer of the blue blinking light problem and I finally found the solution!
Thanks to cmazzi and dslguru in the post http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=55647.0
The problem is really due to a faulty temperature sensor. I used to have to wait many hours after restarting or upgrading firmware before the NAS can boot again. The same happen to me again after I upgraded to 1.06 firmware and had to reboot. Because I stayed in Singapore and it's so warm here, it could not boot up despite more than 24hrs' wait. Finally I decided to try what dslguru did which was to put it in a fridge (not freezer). 10 mins later, I plugged it in and it boot successfully.
Am so grateful that I registered an account here to share the solution. Thanks everyone here. especially JavaLawyer.
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Can you put the DNS on top of a Laptop cooler to help keep the device cool?
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Hmm I don't have a laptop cooler to try so I don't know. May not help a lot in my instance as the ambient temperature is high. Also the DNS works fine after booting up so I only need to cool it down when rebooting.
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Might give it a try. Or place some forum of air induction behind the unit to help draw the heat out from the inside...It won't hurt to have some additional air flow. Also you might try to find a cooler place for the unit as well if possible.
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I'll second the laptop cooler method. Same as Singapore, Jakarta is not any cooler and my DNS320L occasionally shutdowns because it exceeds the temperature threshold . Then it won't boot up, gives the blinking blue LED symptoms. What I do is to dismantle/take out the HDD, and let it cool down on a laptop cooler. I also have those cheapo USB fan, which I use to cool down the main unit (the fridge trick is nice, I'll try it next time). It takes about 10 to 15 minutes for the HDD to be "cold," I mean, you know when metal is not hot or warm. Reassemble, and plug back to the network, boots back as expected. But frankly, it does show that this design, isn't for tropical countries :-\
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Thanks for posting feed back. Ya, seems that these units need additional cooling in warmer climates. ::)
I'll second the laptop cooler method. Same as Singapore, Jakarta is not any cooler and my DNS320L occasionally shutdowns because it exceeds the temperature threshold . Then it won't boot up, gives the blinking blue LED symptoms. What I do is to dismantle/take out the HDD, and let it cool down on a laptop cooler. I also have those cheapo USB fan, which I use to cool down the main unit (the fridge trick is nice, I'll try it next time). It takes about 10 to 15 minutes for the HDD to be "cold," I mean, you know when metal is not hot or warm. Reassemble, and plug back to the network, boots back as expected. But frankly, it does show that this design, isn't for tropical countries :-\
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I also found that the 320L has a BIOS battery located at the bottom of the motherboard (under the drives). Once this battery dies the system will not boot properly. Replacing it solved the problem.
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Same problem. In the beginning it was irregular and after some attempt it started. But the last time there is no way to power on, the led blinks and the NAS doesn't start. I try with and without HDD, I try to remove the battery, nothing to do. So I just buy the DNS-327L.
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Just a quick question. Have you checked the power supply is producing 12volts @ 3Amps?
Just measuring the voltage will not give a correct reading because it is a 'switching' power supply and if a component is faulty it can show 12v without load but that can drop under load (below 10v the NAS box circuits do not work correctly even though the LEDs might flash - the disks need a minimum of 11.8v to be able to spin the platter up and 4.8v for the control firmware to position the heads).
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Hello
I have the same problem or similar
Every time I turn off and on or restart the device, it starts blinking and never stops.
But if I leave it off for an hour or more and turn it on then it starts without problems
It happens to me with the last firmware and with several previous ones.
It's not a temperature problem, when is working it reaches only 100F/38º
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Most probably your power supply has a capacitor that is losing capacity when hot. Try another power supply that can supply 12v @ 3A.
If that does not work check the cmos battery in the unit (sorry but this does mean you have to take it apart so mark the drives with which slot they are in so they go back in the same place).
Anything else requires some knowledge of electronics to know what to look for.
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It is neither the power supply or the battery, I have tried with another
power supply and does the same and the battery I put it new a short time ago.
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OK, that has eliminated the usual reasons for what you are seeing.
The next thing you need to do is make a full backup of your data in the NAS (make sure you can read the backup data), because it could stop working if it is a component failing and I include the disks as components here.
Since you only see this when you switch off your NAS and switch it on again after a short time why not leave it on 24/7/365 as we do? All our, and our clients, NAS boxes get switched off once a year when they are cleaned out inside. In the years we, and our clients, have been using D-Link NAS boxes we have seen power supplies that have died and a couple of disks that didn't pass the full SMART test, other than that no problems.
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Since you only see this when you switch off your NAS and switch it on again after a short time why not leave it on 24/7/365 as we do? All our, and our clients, NAS boxes get switched off once a year when they are cleaned out inside. In the years we, and our clients, have been using D-Link NAS boxes we have seen power supplies that have died and a couple of disks that didn't pass the full SMART test, other than that no problems.
Yes, my NAS is on 24/7.
When I wrote the post, it was not to find a solution, but in case someone who has the problem with the flashing led, can prove what I do and there is luck and it works
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For NAS thats left on 24/7 I recommend installing a laptop cooler under the NAS for additional cooling. This will help with keeping the NAS cooler and may help with some heat issues. Over time heat will degrade internal components. I keep a laptop cooler under my main host router 24/7. Works well.
Example:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Audiopipe-IBMFAN275R-Nippon-15in-Laptop-Fan-Cooler-Super-Slim-Design/28501741 (https://www.walmart.com/ip/Audiopipe-IBMFAN275R-Nippon-15in-Laptop-Fan-Cooler-Super-Slim-Design/28501741)
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Hi all,
I too have been plagued by the blue flashing light issue with the DNS-320L.
I've read most of the other posts about this issue on the internet, but only in this thread I've found a real clue to what the real problem is (the post about the freezing on page 2). After many attempts to freeze particular parts of the motherboard, I've came to the conclusion that the problem is with the NAND flash memory chip (in my case a Hynix H27U1G8F2BTR, see the picture - it's the one I'm pointing at).
After freezing the chip with some pressurized air in a can, the NAS boots up just fine and works perfectly until a restart... I tried updating to the latest firmware, but since it doesn't solve the issue, I'm fairly confident this is a hardware problem. Unfortunately, none of my programmers support reading and writing NAND chips, so (for now) I can't say if the whole blue blinking lights issue would be solved with a new chip containing the backup from the original one.
In any case, I'd love to hear feedback in any form - if freezing this chip makes your NAS work too, if you have access to a NAND programmer and can make the experiment, etc. I'll continue looking for a programmer myself and will update the thread with my findings.
(http://i.imgur.com/CRZMoRV.jpg)
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If this chip seems to be the issue, this maybe a over heating problem of the chip and may need a metallic heat sink placed on the chip to help dissipate the heat being generated.
Something like we did here for a DAP model unit:
http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56166.msg224586#msg224586 (http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56166.msg224586#msg224586)
D-Link were using these composite heat sink tabs on chips in various using which were not good enough to help dissipate heat so we came up with putting metallic ones on and removing the original tabs.
Combining the heat sink mod with external cooling with the DNS may help keep the DNS going.
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I don't really think a chip that's rated to be usable in the temperature range from 0 to 70 degrees Celsius would be overheating in any form. See the chip's datasheet here: http://natisbad.org/NAS/refs/Hynix_NAND_128Mo_H27U1G8F2BT.pdf (page 13, the NAND in my NAS ends with a C, so that's Temperature Range Option 1).
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Well since you said that when you use a can of air on this chip to cool it down, and the DNS comes back online, I would presume there is a heating issue with this chip...an addition of a nice size heat sink enough to fit in the case and not impact it's surroundings would be a good test to try.
I don't really think a chip that's rated to be usable in the temperature range from 0 to 70 degrees Celsius would be overheating in any form. See the chip's datasheet here: http://natisbad.org/NAS/refs/Hynix_NAND_128Mo_H27U1G8F2BT.pdf (page 13, the NAND in my NAS ends with a C, so that's Temperature Range Option 1).
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I think you didn't read my posts carefully enough. When using the pressurized air in a can, the chip freezes and it's temperature falls below 0 °C. That's when this joke of a NAS starts working. No amount of passive cooling would solve this issue.
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Even thought it falls below 0, there maybe a reset happening when this is done and a threshold is triggered. If additional cooling is added to the chip to prevent the trigger from happening, might help. The heat sinks are cheap and would be worth trying. Any and all additional cooling would be good to prevent this from happening in the first place. Up to you though.
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It's useless. With a heatsink installed, and even with a fan on top of said heatsink, it still doesn't work because of simple physics - the maximum temperature the chip reaches with all this additional cooling is always higher than the ambient temperature. If the temperature in my room was 0 °C though (I had some days like this during the winter), the NAS would work 10 out of 10 times.
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Well you won't know for sure unless it's tried. We did the same thing on the DAP-1355 and it worked.
This is a HW issue and should be reviewed by support to see if there is any thing that can be done. I recommend that you phone contact your regional D-Link support office and ask for help and information regarding this. We find that phone contact has better immediate results over using email.
Good Luck.
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I would, but I have no proof of purchase - I got this unit at a flea market. I posted the original post just to let people in my situation know that there might be a solution to the problem they were experiencing.
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Aside from suggestion I mentioned, not much else we can do here.
If the unit is unable, and your not going to try the modification, I'd get your data off the drives and do with something else.
Since you said you got this 2nd hand at a fleamarket, possible problem the original owner saw or unknowingly didn't know what was wrong with his unit thus only saw the unit not powering up. I can only presume that the unit had been working and over time, heat on this chip probably degraded it to the point were it failed and possibly beyond repair. So I would agree with you to a point that the chip is damaged enough that maybe the mod may not work. Still, worth a try with the mod.
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Hello,
Has anyone managed to solve this problem after so many years?
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Don't believe so.