12
votes

I have since yesterday a weird "bip" every minute in the server room. It comes from the unit, where 2 servers, one switch and a router are installed. Can anyone help me with this? I'm working in an office right near it! Thanks.

1
  • I hope you mean "beeping". I'm not sure what "bipping in the server room" is, but it doesn't sound like something you'd want to the Internet about.
    – ewall
    Jun 20, 2011 at 14:01

9 Answers 9

20
votes

I hope it's not the smoke detector. ;-)

7
  • Sorry. It's not such a bad question, but at first sight it was funny to read. See my other response.
    – splattne
    Jun 16, 2009 at 13:02
  • 3
    Nice, I'd have guessed a failing UPS.. Jun 16, 2009 at 13:13
  • 2
    I guess waszkiewicz chose this answer not because it was the smoke detector. Now I am really curious, what is causing that beeps.
    – splattne
    Jun 16, 2009 at 13:16
  • 1
    splattne; <gallows humor> If we end up never getting a response, I'd like to change my guess to carbon monoxide detector.. ;) </gallows humor> Jun 16, 2009 at 13:20
  • 3
    Indeed, the batteries of the smoke detector were low, causing a nice beep every minute... Hope this entry will help a lot of IT people to solve their problems! I need rest-> week-end. Thanks splattne! Jun 16, 2009 at 14:39
13
votes

I'm an old man these days and sometimes struggle to find the source of infrequent sounds - I have resorted to using the cardboard inner tube from some paper kitchen wipes to place over/round my ear and act as a 'finder' for odd sounds.

God that's the saddest post I've ever made :(

4
  • OMG, I saw that you're just one year older than me! :-)
    – splattne
    Jun 16, 2009 at 13:14
  • Just wait till you turn 50!
    – Knox
    Jun 16, 2009 at 13:26
  • 1
    Knox: I thought sysadmins had to use the Carousel: imdb.com/title/tt0074812 ;-)
    – splattne
    Jun 16, 2009 at 15:13
  • 2
    What's sad is when the smoke alarm actually goes off and it's too high-pitched for you to hear it at all. Calmly eating a sandwich thinking "That's odd, why are all these youngsters running to the doors or clasping the sides of their heads"
    – username
    Feb 8, 2010 at 3:39
4
votes

If you're not the sysadmin, DONT TOUCH ANYTHING! If you are the sysadmin, shame on you for not knowing.

3
  • Hey!! I'm the pseudo-sysadmin! I never encountered such a problem before! I cheked everything I could. ?? Jun 16, 2009 at 12:55
  • 1
    Don't mind the reflexive panic at the thought of a "helpful" user trying to turn off the source of irksome beeping. :) It's a survival trait! Jun 16, 2009 at 14:35
  • @Kara spotted it - I wish I had a dollar for every production server that's been killed by somebody who had no business touching anything in the data center. I could retire. Jun 16, 2009 at 16:03
3
votes

Usually such "bipping" is an indication that a redundant component has failed.

Check the status of RAID arrays and PSU inputs.

2
votes

While I agree with Paul, is there a UPS battery backup in the room also? Most of the time when I've encountered this, it is because the battery needs to be replaced. Make sure you work with your IT personnel before attempting any changes. You could also look to see if there are any smoke detectors in the room that need their battery changed.

1
vote

One possible reason is, that one of there servers has temperature monitoring enabled in the BIOS. Maybe one of the CPUs is running hot.

Try to check the cooling/ventilation fans if they are still working.

0
votes

Do you know what OS the servers use? The only OS I've experienced that beeps (or bips, even) when unhappy is NetWare. If you don't know or are unable to find out, then please hedd Paul's advice and call someone that does.

0
votes

I'd vote for a complaining UPS unit based on "it comes from the unit"

0
votes

Along with all the above, check the back of the units. There are models of switches/routers with redundant/hot-swap power supplies. Maybe one of them died. Or if they have add-in cards, maybe an add-in card died.

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