Last updated 2018/06/21
Objective
At some point during the life of your server, you may encounter a fault due to a hardware issue. For these issues, your server is equipped with some diagnostic tools to help identify faulty hardware components.
This guide will show you how to diagnose hardware issues on your server.
Requirements
Instructions
Activate rescue mode
You can activate rescue mode by logging into your OVH control panel, and going to your server's page. Then go to Server Status > General information > Boot and click the Edit button to change the boot mode.
On the next screen, select Boot on rescue mode. If your server has a Linux-based OS, select rescue64-pro from the dropdown list. If you have a Windows server, select WinRescue. Lastly, type your email address in the text field, then click Next.
Confirm your options on the next screen, and then reboot your server to apply your changes. Your server will now reboot in rescue mode, and you will receive the credentials for logging in via the email address you provided. To exit rescue mode, simply change the boot mode back to Boot on the hard disk, then reboot your server.
Use the web interface
Once your server has rebooted, you'll receive an email with your rescue mode access credentials. The email will also contain a link to the rescue mode web interface. The link usually looks like this: https://your_servers_ip_address:444.
After clicking the link, you be taken to the web interface, as shown below.
Run all hardware tests
From the top of the web interface, you can click the Start all tests button, which will run all available hardware tests simultaneously.
Run separate hardware tests
The web interface allows you to run separate tests for:
- Processors
- Network connection
- Memory
- Disk partitions
You will also be able to view your server's SMART logs, which give you detailed hard disk information.
Processors
The processor test checks the working order of your server's processor, and needs about 30 minutes to run successfully. If the server crashes during this test, then it means that the processor is faulty.
To start the test, click the button as shown below.
Network Connection
The network connection test checks your internal and external bandwidth. To start the test, click the button as shown below.
Memory
The memory test checks the integrity of your server's RAM modules. If the server crashes during this test, then it means that the one or more of your RAM modules is faulty.
To start the test, click the button as shown below.
Disk Partitions
The partitions test is comprised of a disk access test and a file system check. The disk access test checks if the system can communicate with your server's hard drives. The file system check uses the fsck -fy command to check the entire file system.
Running a file system check on a damaged hard drive can result in data loss.
Go further
Join our community of users on https://community.ovh.com/en/.