Beep codes on startup
Product: Agilent Connected Instrument Device (CID) for OpenLab CDS Audience: Agilent Support, IT/network administrators Support reference: Boot / activation connectivity
The diagnostic procedures on this page are intended for IT administrators familiar with Linux commands. Incorrect use of the underlying tools can misconfigure the CID and render it inoperable. Proceed only if you are comfortable working in a Linux environment.
Symptom
You hear a sequence of one, two, three, or four beeps from the CID during or after startup. The sequence may repeat.
Root cause
Each beep count corresponds to a different check during boot or activation. During activation, failed checks repeat about every 30 seconds:
- 1 beep, Corporate NIC unavailable. The Corporate NIC is not connected or has no IP address. Possible causes include a disconnected cable, a disabled switch port, or swapped Corporate and Instrument NIC cables.
- 2 beeps, registration API unreachable. The Corporate NIC has link and an IP address, but the CID cannot reach the Registration API on TCP 443. Possible causes include firewall, DNS, or routing problems. Swapped Corporate and Instrument NIC cables can also produce this pattern when the instrument network has its own DHCP server.
- 3 beeps, no matching CID record in CID Hub. The CID reached the registration API and CID Hub recognized its MAC, but no CID record is linked to that MAC. Either the CID has not been added to the organization in CID Hub, or it was added under a different MAC.
- 4 beeps, activated CID cannot reach registration API on boot. A previously activated CID booted without connectivity to the Registration API. A registered CID with OpenLab CDS already installed emits the 4-beep pattern once and continues booting; an unregistered or partially activated CID repeats the pattern every 30 seconds until connectivity is restored.
Confirm this is the right document
Count the beeps in the pattern, then use the following table to identify the failing check.
| You observe | Next step |
|---|---|
| 1 beep | The Corporate NIC is disconnected or has no IP address. Continue with Step 1. |
| 2 beeps | The CID has network link but cannot reach the registration API. Continue with Step 2. |
| 3 beeps | The CID reached the registration API but no matching CID record was found in CID Hub. Continue with Step 3. |
| 4 beeps | A previously activated CID cannot reach the registration API on this boot. Continue with Step 4. |
| No beeps, but CID is offline in CID Hub | This page does not apply. See Verify CID internet connectivity instead. |
Affected services
The effect depends on the beep pattern. Two or three beeps prevent activation from completing. One beep means the Corporate NIC is unavailable. Four beeps mean the CID cannot communicate with CID Hub; a registered CID continues booting, but CID Hub management remains unavailable until connectivity is restored.
For the complete list of domains the CID requires for activation and registration, see the Internet requirements section of System requirements.
Prerequisites
- Physical access to the CID and to the Corporate NIC cable.
- For 2- and 4-beep diagnosis: command-line access to the CID via SSH or direct console connection, with
nc,curl, andnslookupavailable. - For 3-beep diagnosis: CID Hub access for the customer organization, with permission to view and add CIDs.
- The 12-character Corporate NIC MAC address printed on the QR-code sticker affixed to the CID chassis.
Diagnostic steps
Step 1. Resolve a 1-beep pattern (Corporate NIC unavailable)
Check the Corporate NIC connection and IP address:
ip address show
| Result | Next step |
|---|---|
Corporate NIC interface shows state DOWN or NO-CARRIER | The cable is unplugged, faulty, or the switch port is disabled. Reseat the cable and verify the switch port is active. |
Corporate NIC interface shows state UP but no IP address | Check the network's address assignment and confirm the cables are in the correct ports. |
Corporate NIC interface shows state UP with an IP address | Confirm the cables are in the correct ports. If they are swapped, restore the correct cable assignment, then reboot. |
| Pattern persists after these checks | Reboot the CID. If the 1-beep pattern continues, open a support ticket with Agilent Support and note the beep count and the steps already attempted. |
Step 2. Resolve a 2-beep pattern (registration API unreachable)
Verify reachability of the registration API:
nslookup hub-ac-registration-api.prd-51.aws.agilent.com
nc -zv hub-ac-registration-api.prd-51.aws.agilent.com 443
| Result | Next step |
|---|---|
nslookup fails | DNS is misconfigured. See DNS resolution failure. |
nc returns Connection refused or times out | TCP 443 to the Registration API is blocked. See TCP port 443 blocked. |
| Both succeed, but the CID continues to beep twice | The network layer is reachable; the registration call itself is being blocked or rejected. Work through TLS handshake failure, Certificate validation errors, and NTP time synchronization failure in that order. |
| Cables look correct from the front but the CID still beeps twice | Confirm the Corporate NIC cable is in the Corporate NIC port and the Instrument cable is in the Instrument NIC port. A cable swap can produce two beeps when the instrument network has its own DHCP server. |
For a broader first-pass triage across all network failure modes, run Verify CID internet connectivity before working through the linked pages individually.
Step 3. Resolve a 3-beep pattern (no matching CID record)
The CID has reached CID Hub, but no CID record is linked to its device record:
- Read the MAC address and PIN from the QR-code sticker on the CID chassis.
- In CID Hub, open Settings > Devices and find the device by its MAC or Code.
- Check its Status and CID columns.
| Result | Next step |
|---|---|
| The device is New and has no linked CID | Add a CID using the PIN. See Activate a CID. |
| The device is missing, its MAC differs from the label, or it already has a linked CID | Contact Agilent Support with the PIN and MAC from the label. |
Step 4. Resolve a 4-beep pattern (activated CID cannot reach API)
This pattern indicates a previously activated CID has lost connectivity to the Registration API. If OpenLab CDS is already installed on the CID, the 4-beep pattern is emitted once and the CID continues booting; in-progress CDS acquisitions continue to function, but no Hub-driven management is possible until connectivity is restored. If the CID is partially activated (OpenLab CDS not yet installed), the 4-beep pattern repeats every 30 seconds.
Run the same reachability checks as Step 2:
nslookup hub-ac-registration-api.prd-51.aws.agilent.com
nc -zv hub-ac-registration-api.prd-51.aws.agilent.com 443
| Result | Next step |
|---|---|
nslookup fails | DNS resolution for the Registration API has broken since activation. See DNS resolution failure. |
nc returns Connection refused or times out | An outage or firewall change has blocked the CID's outbound path to the Registration API. See TCP port 443 blocked. |
| Both succeed, but the 4-beep pattern recurs across reboot | The network layer is reachable; the registration call itself is being blocked or rejected. Work through TLS handshake failure, Certificate validation errors, and NTP time synchronization failure in that order. If the pattern still persists, open a support ticket with Agilent Support and note that the 4-beep pattern recurs despite the Registration API being reachable. |
Resolution
Apply the action for the diagnostic step that identified the cause.
| Recommended action | Applicable when |
|---|---|
| Reseat or replace the Corporate NIC cable; verify the switch port is active | Step 1 confirmed no link |
| Restore the correct Corporate / Instrument cable assignment | Step 1 or Step 2 identified swapped cables |
| Apply the resolution from DNS resolution failure | Step 2 or Step 4 showed DNS failure |
| Apply the resolution from TCP port 443 blocked | Step 2 or Step 4 showed TCP 443 blocked |
| Work through TLS handshake failure, Certificate validation errors, and NTP time synchronization failure | Step 2 or Step 4 succeeded on TCP but the beep pattern persisted |
| Add a CID in CID Hub | Step 3 shows a New device |
| Contact Agilent Support | Step 3 shows a missing or inconsistent device record, or Step 1 or 4 did not resolve the problem |
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