So, I've read through many other posts about similar issues but mine seems a little more unique considering there is no crash. it simply does not boot at all (I'll explain more below).
Hardware:
SuperMicro X7DBE (Latest BIOS that I could find)
2x Intel 2.0GHz CPU (model I cannot remember at the moment but I'll update when I get a chance)
32GB ECC RAM (I've run multiple memtests and everything looks perfect)
LSI 9207-8i/Avago 2308 SAS HBA (firmware 20.00.04.00 so not the very latest but pretty close and I see no reason this would be the issue)
8x 4TB HGST 12Gb SAS HDDs in a single RAIDZ2 configuration
I first noticed this after an upgrade from 11.0 to 11.2 (can't remember which versions exactly as it was a while back and I was able to "magically" work around it somehow).
Everything was running fine until the update. After the update, instead of being prompted with the GRUB bootloader (as it's been removed) it started the little spinning bar (Ex: | / -- \ | / -- \ |, etc... I hope this makes sense?) and then just stops at apparently the same point every time (with the bar in the "--" position). So, figuring something went bad during the upgrade, I decided to do a fresh install and then just upload the config as I have plenty of config backups (and still do). This, however, failed as well many, many times. I was using a converted 11.2-U2 (at the time) ISO to IMG on USB to boot and install to another USB. Sometimes the installation would work, sometimes it wouldn't. I thought, "Maybe this is a USB issue? Brand? Quality? Size? I dunno...". So, I tried many different USB brands and sizes including:
Cheap MicroCenter 16GB and 32GB
PNY 16GB
Kingston 8GB and 16GB
Gigabyte 32GB
Samsung 32GB and 64GB
Transcend 16GB
I also tried burning the ISO to CD and installing from CD to USB but, alas, all with the exact same result. The install would be hit and miss (usually successful, though). However, upon booting from USB, the bootloader would start spinning (very fast, mind you. Much faster than my systems that *ARE* working) and it would halt in the same "--" position. There are no options to do anything as it doesn't make it further than the spinning bar stuck in the "--" position.
At this point, I figured, "Well, I'll just try the 9.10-RELEASE and see what happens.". To my amazement, the 9.10-RELEASE installs and boots perfectly every single time (I did this a lot trying to troubleshoot where everything was going wrong). Even after upgrading to the latest 9.10 after the initial install, everything worked perfectly. Of course, after this, I'm curious and think, "Well, let's shoot for an update from the latest 9.10 to 11.2-U2 and behold, everything works perfectly fine. Boots right up, I configure everything from scratch (just in case) and all is good. That is, until the 11.2-U3 update.
Once the 11.2-U3 update rolls around, I think I'm safe so I upgrade (which goes without a hitch) but, again, it's now stuck at the darn spinning bar in the same darn positiion! Aargh!
Again, like an insane person, I try multiple different USB stick brands and sizes with the exact same results as before only to end up having to do what I've done in the past. Start with 9.10-RELEASE, update to latest 9.10, then upgrade to the latest stable 11.2 train. This takes a while but it went without issue. However, being as I'd configured a bunch of stuff and didn't want to start from scratch again, I attempted to upload my config to the 11.2-U3 system after all the upgrades and *BAM*, stuck at the spinning bar *AGAIN*! There is absolutely nothing I can do at this point. There is no option to boot a previous version. No keystrokes prompt me for anything at all. It just simply attempts to run the bootloader and fails. I cannot generate any logs or troubleshoot what is wrong. I'm at a total loss as to what is going on aside from something in the 11.2+ bootloader perhaps doesn't like my hardware. However, why does it work before I put my previously working config into place? I've also noticed that while the GRUB boot loader stays in place (or at least the menu appears) when upgrading from 9.10 to the 11.2, everything works fine. If I try a fresh 11.2, I never get that menu. Also, that menu seems to go away after I've uploaded my latest working backup config when going the 9.10 -> blah blah blah -> 11.2-U3 route.
I do know that if I were to do this all over again (install 9.10-RELEASE, upgrade to latest 9.10, then upgrade to 11.2-U3 and reconfigure from scratch), that it would all work again. But, why? Why won't a fresh install of 11.2 boot? Why won't an upgraded from 9.10 to 11.2 work after a config upload boot? I know this isn't a hardware failure problem as the 9.10 version works EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. There appears to be a serious issue with the 11.2 bootloader that is preventing my system from booting like it should and I can't for the life of me figure out how to troubleshoot anything as once the new bootloader is in place, I cannot proceed.
Granted, this system *IS* is a backup system for a backup so it isn't incredibly time sensitive but I would really like to get this system back up and running again. Has anyone seen or heard of anything like this? Is there any possible way of troubleshooting this if I can't get the bootloader to behave at all? I'm all out of ideas so if anyone has any thoughts I am most certainly all ears. Also, if there is any additional information that I failed to mention or that you would like to see, please let me know.
Aside from this, FreeNAS has been running fantastically for years on this machine (and many others) and I'm very thankful for all the hard work and dedication to this project. I'm currently trying to get iX Systems in the door at my work which would be great for all parties involved! The trouble right now is getting all the NetApp and Nimble (now HPE, of course) fans to just simply listen and take a look at what FreeNAS/TrueNAS has to offer. I'm working on it, though!
Hardware:
SuperMicro X7DBE (Latest BIOS that I could find)
2x Intel 2.0GHz CPU (model I cannot remember at the moment but I'll update when I get a chance)
32GB ECC RAM (I've run multiple memtests and everything looks perfect)
LSI 9207-8i/Avago 2308 SAS HBA (firmware 20.00.04.00 so not the very latest but pretty close and I see no reason this would be the issue)
8x 4TB HGST 12Gb SAS HDDs in a single RAIDZ2 configuration
I first noticed this after an upgrade from 11.0 to 11.2 (can't remember which versions exactly as it was a while back and I was able to "magically" work around it somehow).
Everything was running fine until the update. After the update, instead of being prompted with the GRUB bootloader (as it's been removed) it started the little spinning bar (Ex: | / -- \ | / -- \ |, etc... I hope this makes sense?) and then just stops at apparently the same point every time (with the bar in the "--" position). So, figuring something went bad during the upgrade, I decided to do a fresh install and then just upload the config as I have plenty of config backups (and still do). This, however, failed as well many, many times. I was using a converted 11.2-U2 (at the time) ISO to IMG on USB to boot and install to another USB. Sometimes the installation would work, sometimes it wouldn't. I thought, "Maybe this is a USB issue? Brand? Quality? Size? I dunno...". So, I tried many different USB brands and sizes including:
Cheap MicroCenter 16GB and 32GB
PNY 16GB
Kingston 8GB and 16GB
Gigabyte 32GB
Samsung 32GB and 64GB
Transcend 16GB
I also tried burning the ISO to CD and installing from CD to USB but, alas, all with the exact same result. The install would be hit and miss (usually successful, though). However, upon booting from USB, the bootloader would start spinning (very fast, mind you. Much faster than my systems that *ARE* working) and it would halt in the same "--" position. There are no options to do anything as it doesn't make it further than the spinning bar stuck in the "--" position.
At this point, I figured, "Well, I'll just try the 9.10-RELEASE and see what happens.". To my amazement, the 9.10-RELEASE installs and boots perfectly every single time (I did this a lot trying to troubleshoot where everything was going wrong). Even after upgrading to the latest 9.10 after the initial install, everything worked perfectly. Of course, after this, I'm curious and think, "Well, let's shoot for an update from the latest 9.10 to 11.2-U2 and behold, everything works perfectly fine. Boots right up, I configure everything from scratch (just in case) and all is good. That is, until the 11.2-U3 update.
Once the 11.2-U3 update rolls around, I think I'm safe so I upgrade (which goes without a hitch) but, again, it's now stuck at the darn spinning bar in the same darn positiion! Aargh!
Again, like an insane person, I try multiple different USB stick brands and sizes with the exact same results as before only to end up having to do what I've done in the past. Start with 9.10-RELEASE, update to latest 9.10, then upgrade to the latest stable 11.2 train. This takes a while but it went without issue. However, being as I'd configured a bunch of stuff and didn't want to start from scratch again, I attempted to upload my config to the 11.2-U3 system after all the upgrades and *BAM*, stuck at the spinning bar *AGAIN*! There is absolutely nothing I can do at this point. There is no option to boot a previous version. No keystrokes prompt me for anything at all. It just simply attempts to run the bootloader and fails. I cannot generate any logs or troubleshoot what is wrong. I'm at a total loss as to what is going on aside from something in the 11.2+ bootloader perhaps doesn't like my hardware. However, why does it work before I put my previously working config into place? I've also noticed that while the GRUB boot loader stays in place (or at least the menu appears) when upgrading from 9.10 to the 11.2, everything works fine. If I try a fresh 11.2, I never get that menu. Also, that menu seems to go away after I've uploaded my latest working backup config when going the 9.10 -> blah blah blah -> 11.2-U3 route.
I do know that if I were to do this all over again (install 9.10-RELEASE, upgrade to latest 9.10, then upgrade to 11.2-U3 and reconfigure from scratch), that it would all work again. But, why? Why won't a fresh install of 11.2 boot? Why won't an upgraded from 9.10 to 11.2 work after a config upload boot? I know this isn't a hardware failure problem as the 9.10 version works EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. There appears to be a serious issue with the 11.2 bootloader that is preventing my system from booting like it should and I can't for the life of me figure out how to troubleshoot anything as once the new bootloader is in place, I cannot proceed.
Granted, this system *IS* is a backup system for a backup so it isn't incredibly time sensitive but I would really like to get this system back up and running again. Has anyone seen or heard of anything like this? Is there any possible way of troubleshooting this if I can't get the bootloader to behave at all? I'm all out of ideas so if anyone has any thoughts I am most certainly all ears. Also, if there is any additional information that I failed to mention or that you would like to see, please let me know.
Aside from this, FreeNAS has been running fantastically for years on this machine (and many others) and I'm very thankful for all the hard work and dedication to this project. I'm currently trying to get iX Systems in the door at my work which would be great for all parties involved! The trouble right now is getting all the NetApp and Nimble (now HPE, of course) fans to just simply listen and take a look at what FreeNAS/TrueNAS has to offer. I'm working on it, though!