How do I use OMSA to identify a failed RAM stick & have it replaced on a Linux server?

If you do encounter an error related to the server’s memory (RAM) and you wish for a RAM stick to be replaced, you will need to provide as much of the following information as possible to our support team, to allow the technicians to correctly identify which RAM stick needs replacing:

1. The failed RAM stick’s DIMM slot number (i.e. the Connector Name)

2. The failed RAM stick’s size

3. The failed RAM stick’s type

You can use Dell EMC’s OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) application to find this information. You must first be logged into the server’s root account and have located the RAM stick with the error. Please see the sections on accessing OMSA if you are unsure on how to access it. To find the details about the memory configured in the server, run the following command:

Command 1
Command Description	Run the following command to bring up a list of what RAM sticks are configured within the chassis, their status and their details.
Command	omreport chassis memory
Image of Command being Run
Image of a Successful Result of Command

Here you will be able to see a list of the RAM sticks attached to the motherboard, their statuses, their connector names, their type and their size. If a stick of RAM appears with an error and you wish for it to be replaced, you will need to supply all the information about this stick of RAM shown in the results, in a support ticket, so that the technician can identify the failed DIMM and replace it. You can also supply a screenshot of this page.

Occasionally, if a RAM stick completely fails, it may not appear on this page with an error, but might actually be missing from this page all together. As an example, the server below is meant to be configured with 4x 16GB RAM sticks (or 64Gb of memory in total), but only 3x 16GB RAM sticks are appearing. If this is the case, it is quite likely that a stick has completely failed and needs replacing. If this has happened you will not be able to find the required information above on the failed RAM stick to get it replaced. Instead, you can provide the information on all the other RAM sticks that are still present, so the technicians can locate the failed DIMM through a process of elimination. You can also supply a screenshot of this page.

Once you have provided all the above information in a support ticket, the technicians should be able to locate and replace the faulty RAM stick.

If you have any further questions about OMSA, please look through our FAQ section. If our FAQ page does not have the answer, please feel free to raise a support ticket, and we will be happy to help.