RE: [cobalt-users] RaQ3 Memory Upgrade - Not Allowed!

["Steven Young" <steven.young@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> > >I have a RaQ3 with only 64MB RAM which I was thinking of 
> upgrading to 
> > >256MB or 512MB. The RaQ3 is leased from a colocation provider in 
> > >London. When I got the RaQ3 I was informed the RaQ3's RAM could be 
> > >upgraded by them (although at rather excessive prices) but 
> now when I 
> > >have asked them (a year or two down the line) I get the following 
> > >reply:-
> > >
> > ><snip>
> > >I'm afraid that we are unable to upgrade memory in RaQ3's 
> as in the 
> > >past it has proven to conflict with the motherboard and 
> prevent the 
> > >RaQ from working until the upgrade is removed, 
> unfortunately it has 
> > >also caused problems leading to complete loss of data, as 
> a result we 
> > >stopped
> > >
> > >performing the upgrades.
> > ></snip>
> >
> > That's ridiculous!!!!!!! If RAM fails, it will almost always just 
> > prevent
> a
> > machine from booting, any machine. If it boots, RAM will not cause 
> > that type off error. Now maybe my 22yrs of experience with 
> this stuff 
> > is wrong. But I upgraded my RAQ3i from the 64Meg it came 
> with to 256 
> > the 2nd week I had it; and the machine has never even burped.
> >
> > Jale
> >
> 
> As someone that had a UK2 RAQ3 with the memory upgrade. I can 
> confirm after 7 reloads, 3 hard drives and 5 different stucks 
> of memory. there was a fault with the motherboard that did 
> not allow a batch of RAQ3's to have memory upgrades.
> 
> As soon as you went over 128mb on the board it would slowly 
> start to fail.
> 
> This happened to several people out of 100 that upgraded 
> memory with UK2.
> 
> I can understand UK2's reluctance to upgrade any more RAQ3's. 
> I had a motheboard replacement, a repaired unit from Cobalt 
> and it still caused the same problem.
> 
> Eventually, on a third motherboard .. I got the memory I wanted.
> 
> The whole process took  several weeks and UK2 really did try 
> hard to solve the issue.
> 
> Cobalt where unable to work out why this was happening or 
> offer a solution.
> 
> My own feeling is that there were a batch of faulty boards out there .
> 
> 
> Bassi

Could any one from Sun comment on this? Bruce? If there is a batch of
motherboards that suffer with RAM upgrades, is there a way of
identifying problematic motherboards in advance? Is there a magic list
of serial numbers somewhere? 

Thanks for all the advice on UK colocation providers.

Cheers,
Steven