Tonight I ran into my first setback for my all-in-one homelab server build. I’ve been purchasing the parts piecemeal in order to be financially responsible with my hobby. As someone who tends to jump into new hobbies with both feet and someone who is aware of how expensive this hobby could be, I wanted to take my time with the build.

Tonight the RAM modules for the server finally arrived. This was the only thing I had been waiting on in order to boot the box for the first time. The plan was just to get BIOS settings squared away and maybe do a test run with ESXi installed on a USB flash drive.

It turns out that this plan was optimistic. When I powered the server on I was immediately greeted with beep code errors from the box. The beep code the server is emitting is 3 short beeps followed by 1 long beep.

To troubleshoot I tried re-seating all four RAM modules, but that didn’t help. I then tried installing just a single module in memory Slot 2, which is what the manual specifies for a single module installation. The error code persisted, so I swapped each of the remaining three modules into Slot 2 one at a time. No luck.

I then tried powering on the computer with no memory installed, which resulted in the same error. I tried removing the PCI-E NIC I had also installed tonight. That didn’t help. I also tried making sure all fans were connected. Beep Beep Beep BEEEEEEP.

At this point I wondered if the new power supply was a problem, so I pulled the original power supply out of storage and connected it. And still the beeps remain.

At this point I’m out of ideas. I suspect it is a memory issue, but the modules I bought should be compatible with the TS140 motherboard. They meet the recommended specs exactly. If it is not the memory, then I suspect the motherboard itself could be faulty which would be a major setback. I really hope that isn’t the problem.

I’ve posted on the ThinkServer board of the Lenovo Community Forum. Hopefully someone there will be of assistance. Until then I’m dead in the water.

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