Apple mac pro early 2009 User Manual

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) General Troubleshooting — Minimum Configuration Testing 31 2010-09-27
a verify step, as you’ve added modules since previous step.
Expected behavior: 
5V STBY LED illuminates, confirming power to the backplane board. If the LED does not 
illumuniate, suspect power supply or backplane board failure. 
6. Momentarily jump the SYS_PWR solder pads to turn ON the Mac Pro. 
Expected behavior: 
• Front and rear processor cage fans (and PCIe fan, if installed) should spin slowly
• One red-colored error LED illuminates on the processor board (next to the memory slots). 
Notes: 
• The solder pads are at the same location where the power button would be.
• To help troubleshoot processor issues, check the related CPU Error LED. See “Processor 
Diagnostic LEDs.”
7. Press and hold the DIAG button. 
Expected behavior: 
• PSU PWROK (green), 5V STBY (amber), EFI DONE (green), GPU OK (green) LEDs illuminated
• No startup tone
• Front and rear processor cage fans (and PCIe fan, if installed) should spin slowly
8.  Disconnect AC power cord.  
At this point, if the Mac Pro powers ON using a known good front panel board, power button, 
and cable, make your testing easier by using it instead of jumpering SYS_PWR solder pads.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) General Troubleshooting — Minimum Configuration Testing 32 2010-09-27
9. Reconnect internal speaker. Reinstall a processor and heatsink in processor A connector, and 
one known good and compatible Apple memory DIMM in slot 1. 
Notes: 
• The Mac Pro won’t start if you use processor B only with an 8x processor board. Use 
processor A connector only.
• Verify no damaged pins on DIMM or processor connectors or mating connector of 
processor board and backplane board.
• Verify no damaged heatsink thermal sensor and fan connector pins or mating connector on 
the processor board. If there is damage, all Mac Pro fans will ramp to 100% when power ON.
• Verify no grime or foreign debris is causing contact issues on DIMM, processor connectors, 
and connectors on processor board and backplane board. 
10.  Connect AC power cord. Press the DIAG button to verify the 5V STBY LED illuminates. This is 
a verify step, as you’ve added modules since previous step.
11. Power Mac Pro ON either by PWR_ON solder pads or front panel board.
Expected behavior: 
• The red-colored error LED on the processor board next to the memory slots at processor A 
should flash once only as the Mac Pro powers on. 
• Startup tone heard (if not, reset PRAM and retest)
• Front and rear processor cage fans (and PCIe fan, if installed) should spin slowly
Notes: 
• If using 8x processor board, both the LEDs next to the memory slots would flash once only.
• Can test both processors independently using processor A connector only.
12.  Disconnect AC power cord. Install a known good hard drive with a compatible/bootable 
Mac OS installed.
Notes:
• Verify no damaged SATA data or power pins on drive and mating connector on backplane 
board.
• Verify no grime or foreign debris is causing contact issues on SATA data or power pins on 
drive and mating connector on backplane board.
13. Connect AC power cord. Power Mac Pro ON either by PWR_ON solder pads or front panel 
board.
Expected behavior: 
Listen for sound of hard drive boot. If no indication of hard drive boot, try drive in another bay.
Note: 
After a short time during boot, verify if a red-colored LED is illuminated within the optical audio 
out jack at the rear of the Mac Pro. If it is, it means software drivers have been loaded.
14.  Disconnect AC power cord. Install a known good compatible PCIe graphics card into slot 1 
and attach a known good display.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) General Troubleshooting — Processor Diagnostic LEDs 33 2010-09-27
Notes:
• Verify no damaged PCIe  pins on the video card and mating PCIe connector on backplane 
board.
• Verify no grime or foreign debris is causing contact issues on the video card and mating 
connector on backplane board.
15. Connect AC power cord. Power Mac Pro ON either by PWR_ON solder pads or front panel 
board.
Expected behavior: 
• Listen for sound of hard drive boot.
• Verify good uncorrupted video on display.
Processor Diagnostic LEDs
The 8-core and quad-core riser boards include a diagnostic LED for each processor that you 
can use in troubleshooting processor issues. The following illustrations show the location of 
each LED and its associated processor. These error LEDs are normally off.  A red illuminated LED 
indicates the associated processor may be missing or in overtemp state (PROCHOT ). 
Quad Core Riser Board  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) General Troubleshooting — Processor Diagnostic LEDs 34 2010-09-27
8 Core Riser Board
Troubleshooting CPU Diagnostic LEDs
Determine if the error LED follows the processor heatsink; verify the heatsink is physically 
undamaged and properly connected to the processor board, check that adequate thermal 
grease is applied, and verify the fan is operating. For 8 core riser boards only: determine if the 
error LED follows the processor by swapping processor A and processor B locations.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) Symptom Charts
 35 2010-09-27
Symptom Charts Overview
Use the following as a general troubleshooting road map for Mac Pro (Early 2009).
CheckResultAction
1.  Plug known good power source and 
power ON computer. 
Does computer power ON?
YesComputer powers on. Go to step 2.
NoGo to No Power Quick Check.
2.  √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime (increase 
sound volume and retest, if unsure)
Connect external DVI or Mini Display 
Port monitor and restart unit. Is video 
observed on the external display?
YesVideo present on both. Go to step 
3.
NoNo video present on both. Reseat 
all DIMMs. Refer to Memory 
Diagnostic LEDs. Then go to No 
Video Quick Check.
3. √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
Restart computer, immediately 
press and hold OPTION key to see 
boot hard drive volumes in Startup 
Manager. Are any bootable volumes 
detected?
YesBootable hard drive volumes 
detected. Go to step 4.
NoNo bootable hard drive volumes 
detected. Go to Power but No 
Boot Quick Check.
4.  √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
√ Boots from hard drive
Try to boot from Install DVD: does it 
boot from it?
YesCan boot from Install DVD. Go to 
step 5.
NoCannot boot from Install DVD. 
Go to Power but No Boot Quick 
Check.
5. √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
√ Boots from Install DVD and hard 
drive
Does computer stay ON. Does it sleep 
and wake, and not shutdown?
YesComputer sleeps/wakes and does 
not shut down. Go to step 6.
NoPossible power-related issue. Go 
to Intermittent Shutdown Quick 
Check.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) Symptom Charts 36 2010-09-27
6. √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
√ Boots from Install DVD and hard 
drive 
√ Reaches the desktop without kernel 
panic/freezes 
√ Computer sleeps/wakes and does 
not shutdown 
Plug USB and FireWire devices. Do 
they appear in System Profiler and 
are they functional?
YesNo USB/FireWire problems. Go to 
step 7.
NoUSB/FW connection fail.  
Go to Input Output Devices 
symptom charts.
7. √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
√ Boots from Install DVD and hard 
drive 
√ Reaches the desktop without kernel 
panic/freezes 
√ Computer sleeps/wakes and does 
not shutdown
√ USB and FireWire functional
Connect to AirPort and Ethernet 
networks. Do Ethernet/AirPort 
network connections work?
YesNo Ethernet/AP communication 
problems. Go to step 8.
NoEthernet/AP Network connection 
fail. Go to Communications 
symptom charts.
8.  √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
√ Boots from Install DVD and hard 
drive 
√ Reaches the desktop without kernel 
panic/freezes 
√ Computer sleeps/wakes and does 
not shutdown
√ USB and FireWire functional
√ Ethernet /AP works 
Use wireless mouse or keyboard, 
pair with the device. Does Bluetooth 
connection work?
YesNo Bluetooth communication 
problems. Go to step 9.
NoBluetooth connection fail.  
Go to Input Output Devices 
symptom charts.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) Symptom Charts
 37 2010-09-27
9.  √ Computer powers on
√ Startup sound chime 
√ Video present
√ Boots from Install DVD and hard 
drive 
√ Reaches the desktop without kernel 
panic/freezes 
√ Computer sleeps/wakes and does 
not shutdown
√ USB and FireWire functional
√ Ethernet /AP works
√ Bluetooth works.
Check for correct sound input 
output setup in System Preferences 
Sound, then connect audio source 
and headphones and check for 
alternate audio in and out ports 
detected. Record sound using 
QuickTime Player app, and play it to 
check for audio in/out functionality.  
Does internal and external audio 
in/out work?
YesNo audio issue. 
NoAudio Issue. Go to Front 
Headphone Jack Has No Audio 
Quick Check.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) Symptom Charts — No Power/Dead Unit 38 2010-09-27
Startup and Power Issues
Follow the steps in the order indicated below. If an action resolves the issue, retest the 
computer to verify. If the issue persists after retesting, return to step 1.
No Power/Dead Unit
Unlikely cause:  Optical drive(s), hard drive(s), fans, memory, processors, PCIe cards, speaker, 
AirPort card, Bluetooth card
Quick Check
SymptomsQuick Check
No Power/Dead Unit
No power
No front panel power/sleep LED
No startup chime
No Image on external display
No HD 
No fans spin
No light if Caps Lock pressed
Non-operational
Reseat all DIMMs. Refer to Memory Diagnostic LEDs. 
Verify power source.
Verify power cable.
Reset SMC by unplugging the AC power cord for 15 
seconds. Reconnect the power cord ensuring the 
power button is not being pressed at the time. After 
5 seconds press the power button and verify if the 
computer turns on.
Reset RTC.  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) Symptom Charts — No Power/Dead Unit 39 2010-09-27
Deep Dive
CheckResultActionCode
1. Verify that connection 
between power supply 
and backplane board is 
undamaged and secure. Verify 
that power button and front 
panel board cable connections 
to the front panel board are 
undamaged and secure. See 
Functional Overview.
YesGo to step 2
NoReseat all connectors and 
retest.
2.  Connect AC power cord to the 
computer. Verify the 5V STBY 
LED illuminates when you 
press the DIAG button on the 
backplane board.
YesSTBY LED illuminates, but 
computer won’t power ON. 
Go to step 4.
NoSuspect power supply failure. 
Replace power supply and go 
to step 3.
P01
3. Verify the 5V STBY LED 
illuminates when you press the 
DIAG button on the backplane 
board. 
YesIssue resolved.
NoGo to step 5.
4.  Disconnect the front panel 
board. Momentarily jumper 
the pictured SYS_PWR solder 
pads on the backplane board. 
(Refer to photo in “Minimum 
Configuration Testing.”) Verify 
the computer turns ON.
YesFront panel board or power 
utton faiure. For front panel 
board, use code M01. To verify 
power button, go to Power 
Button Stuck.
M01
NoGo to step 5.P01
5. Reduce computer to minimal 
configuration. See Minimum 
Configuration Testing. Verify 
the 5V STBY LED illuminates 
when you press the DIAG 
button on the backplane 
board. 
YesSuspect a module that has 
been removed. Reinstall 
modules until symptom 
reappears. Replace affected 
module. Then go to step 6.
NoReplace backplane board and 
retest.
M01  
						

							Mac Pro (Early 2009) Symptom Charts — No Power/Dead Unit 40 2010-09-27
6. Reconnect the processor 
board without processors. 
Press power button and verify 
computer turns ON.  Note that 
you can identify the computer 
has started up by fans and 
LEDs; however, there won’t be 
any other activity since there 
are no processors.
YesAdd processor A and retest. 
If computer power remains 
stable, the power issue is 
resolved.
NoGo to step 1.