Solid Amber/Yellow Light - Hardware Failure?

My Airport Extreme (Gigabit N, pre dual-band) was offline for a while and when I tried to power it up, I got a solid green light momentarily then a solid yellow light. Tried a soft reset (no effect) as well as a hard reset (hold reset button while powering up); I was able to see the Extreme in the Airport Utility but it quickly disappeared and won't come back.
Any amount of restarting (soft or hard) does not seem to pull it out of its solid yellow state. It's just over a year old; I have a bad feeling that this means the hardware is fried and won't be fixed by Apple?
Feedback appreciated.

Jeff, welcome to the discussions!
Sometimes after repeated reset attempts, the Extreme will lock up and a power down of 20-30 minutes will help the device reset. It's worth a try if you haven't done this yet, although I suspect that you have.
Unfortunately, the information in your post indicates that an internal component in the power supply section of the Extreme has likely failed, so you may want to contact Apple to review your options.

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Solid amber status light on ASA 5505

Hi,
I have a Problem with a ASA 5505
when i power on the ASA the Power LED change to green and the Status light to solid amber.
There is no Console output or anything else.
Is this a DRAM or Flash Problem?
What can i do ?
thanks a lot!

Had the same problem, and this fixed it for me. If i plug the power supply into the ASA then plug the power supply into the wall, i get the amber status light and green lights flashing failure. However if I plug the PSU into the wall first, then wait a few minutes and plug the tiny little adapter(Fail on the adapter design Cisco) into the ASA 5505, ta-da it works! It seems like the PSU needs to build up the power before being plugged into the ASA. I don't know for sure, but this works for me. I never wanted to plug in the tiny adapter first because i was afraid of it arcing in the adapter and that causeing problems, but this method works for me, hope it helps.

HELP - Airport remains solid amber

I've just bought the Airport extreme and when I plugged it in for the first time, for brief moment I saw green and then solid amber and it remains like that for hours and hours without changing.
anyone got a solution?

This Apple support article explains meanings of status lights
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Airport/5.0/en/status.html
It states that a solid amber status light means "AirPort Express is completing its startup sequence." If your new AEBS is still showing that after some time then it is not completing startup.
You need to do more investigation / provide more information. For example:
1) can you connect to the AEBS with the AirPort utility?
2) did you install the software on CD that came with the AEBS before powering it on?
If you can connect with your computer (is it a Mac or PC?) and run the AirPort utility, and you can see the AEBS on the list, then following instructions in this article...
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305101
and getting to the summary screen and then double-clicking the amber status light dot the AEBS will tell you what the issue is.
One point, if you have a cable/xDSL connection with a modem you will need to make the modem 'aware' of the new AEBS. This is usually done by powering down the modem, waiting for a few seconds and then powering up the modem again. Then I would power down and up the AEBS.
Regardless, you need to see if you can get into the AEBS with the AirPort utility (only use version 5.2 - on the CD - or above), to see what the AEBS is reporting.

TC solid AMBER LIGHT then dies. Apple won't help.

Over the weekend my time capsule powered off. When I tried to restart it, it went to a solid amber light for 15-30 seconds, and then died.
I unplugged it for half an hour, same problem, unplugged it overnight, same problem.
Soft reset won't work, hard reset won't work. Can't access it with ethernet.
Tried factory reset many times, solid amber light starts to blink, then when I release reset button (having held it for various amount of time) it goes solid amber, for a split second it sounds like it might start, then dies. No light. D E A D.
So, I've researched it online, and it seems a little different to the heat / power issue. I call Apple support, and the first tech just tries to order me a new one. My serial number 819 however prevents this. So a senior advisor comes on to tell me it can't be replaced. He get's cut off....
So I call back, and the tech reads the notes and basically tells me there is nothing that can be done, and is quite blasé about the whole thing. He offers me no advice and makes no attempt to diagnose the problem, just tells me it's done and I need to buy a new one as I don't have applecare.
I point out (nicely) it's only two years old, I expected more, it's supposed to be server grade, etc.
He replies "It's only a hard drive" which I found very interesting. ONLY A HARD DRIVE? So why did I pay $340 for it? He also tells me I should have backed up my back ups. So how many "server grade" back ups do I need to make? I need to buy 5 time capsules to back up my macbook incase 4 of them just give up suddenly? He also says that it's an electronic device and electronic devices fail. Just like that. May as well have just said "Tough luck, buddy!"
Later he tries to retract that statement and puts me through to another senior advisor. Predictably she tells me the same thing. No offer of repair or attempts to diagnose problem, just it's finished. She was as nice as she could be about it, but that's the conclusion. Eventually after I explained I was disappointed with this attitude, she said maybe I could take it to the genius bar to have the information taken off and moved to a new TC.
So basically, my new drive will be costing me in the region of $700 (given that my original $340 TC is only good for the trash).
My current thinking is I shall try and retrieve the data myself, use one of my other much, much cheaper external HD's that have been running flawlessly for years as a back up, and wait to see if Apple start to issue replacements for my serial number.
Ultimately I don't want a free replacement TC, I'd rather mine worked. I was expecting a better service, at least an attempt to make me feel like this was out of the ordinary, or they were concerned about me buying more Apple products in the future.... I was also expecting a server grade HD to last more than two years.....
Anyway, stepping off my soap box..... If anyone has any suggestions how I can get this going, or what the cause might be please before I try and retrieve the data myself.
Thanks!

I had the same problem while doing a backup. My Capsule is a 2008 model, but an "818" in the serial number so it's not part of the recall.
THIS IS HOW I RETREIVED MY DATA FROM MY DEAD TIME CAPSULE:
Put time capsule in Zip-lock freezer bag and suck all the air out of the bag using a straw.
Put time capsule into deep freezer for a few hours. (the zip lock is to stop/reduce humidity on the electronics inside the capsule)
Remove from freezer, cross your fingers and plug it in.
On mine, after the solid yellow light went out, there was loud fans and lots of noise. Let it boot for a couple minutes and either connect to it wireless/ethernet and start transferring your data. Depending on how cold your freezer is (deep freeze is usually -18C/0F and house freezer is -9C/15F) will probably depend on how long the TC is up and running. Mine ran for 45min straight, then i was done transferring and left it to see if it was fully operational again. Checked back on it an hour later and the drive had stopped and the light was off...
You could even try to run it from inside the freezer as well...
GOOD LUCK!!

What does it mean (and how do I fix) my light is solid amber?

I plugged my Time Capsule in, but the light stays amber - what does this mean and how can I fix it?

Normally on start up, the Time Capsule should flash green for a second, then display solid amber for 15-20 seconds and then...if the settings are correct....the light will turn to green. If there is a problem at this point,the amber light will normally blink slowly.
If the light stays solid amber, this indicates that the Time Capsule has "locked up" and may have possibly experienced an internal component failure.
Power down the Time Capsule for at least 15 minutes
Hold in the reset button and keep holding the reset button in for another 10 seconds as you plug the power back in to the Time Capsule
Release the reset button and see if Time Capsule will go through the normal start up sequence
If you get a slow blinking amber light after approximately 30 seconds, you can now reconfigure the Time Capsule again using AirPort Utility
If you try the factory default reset sequence above a few times and the light remains constant amber, I'm afraid that you'll need to take the Time Capsule to an Apple store to let them have a look.

My airport express is stuck with a solid amber light.

I have reset via hard reset instructions and also factory default by holding in the reset button while plugging in the device. My internet connection works fine when I hard wire connect it to my mac but airport utility will not recognize the airport express

My AirPort Express is stuck with a solid amber light.
If that is the case, and several tries at a Factory Default Reset have not been able to free up the lockup, then it is unfortunately likely that the AirPort Express has experienced an internal electronic component failure and will need to be replaced.

New 2TB Time Capsule: solid amber light, but TC working well...what's wrong?

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help me...thanks in advance for reading through this question!
I have a brand new 2TB Time Capsule, using it with the AT&T U-verse modem/router 3801 HGV.
After much consternation, I finally got the TC set up in bridge mode with the U-verse router.
The TV, phone, and internet are all working well through AT&T...and my wireless internet
connection through the TC is working great as well. Also, the TC is performing the first
back up of my MacBook Pro hard drive. Everything seems to be working great, I think.
However, I have some questions that I feel need to be addressed:
1- The light on the TC is solid AMBER, not green. When I check the connections in the Airport
Utility, all indicator lights on my screen are green, and the "dot" beside the TC icon is green.
Solid amber indicates that the "Time Capsule is completing its start-up sequence". I would expect
the start-up sequence to be completed long ago and the light to be green...and I can't find anything
wrong.
Any ideas as to why the light on the TC could be solid amber??
2- What should I do to get the light to be green??
3- I have no idea of the speed of the back-up, and what it should be. I have about 190GB of data
to back up. I totally understand that it takes many hourse for the first back-up. It looks like the
speed I'm seeing is changing frequently, and it's backed up about 3.5GB in about 20 minutes or so.
Is that a fairly "normal" speed?? I just want to make sure my configuration is good.
4- I'd like to set up a "guest" wireless network with an easier password...I had done it earlier when
the connections were not working and perhaps I accidentally removed it when updating to "bridge"
mode. To set up a new network, do I just write over the info in the fields when I get to "Wireless"
tab in the Airport Utility?? The info from my "home" network populates those fields now, and I
just don't want to risk overwriting the info and losing that network.
Does the TC "add" a new wireless network when I add new data in those fields...and SAVE the
original "home" network I created?? Just making sure!
Thanks to those who reply!
Chris

1- The light on the TC is solid AMBER, not green. When I check the connections in the Airport Utility, all indicator lights on my screen are green, and the "dot" beside the TC icon is green.
That is weird.. most TC I look at solid AMBER means the hard disk is dead. Not sure but since it is working it is no biggie.. there is some control over how the led functions.. but I doubt you can set the color different.
In other words.. not a clue.. if the TC is new take it to the genius and show them.. that is not the way it is supposed to work.
3- I have no idea of the speed of the back-up, and what it should be. I have about 190GB of data
to back up. I totally understand that it takes many hourse for the first back-up. It looks like the
speed I'm seeing is changing frequently, and it's backed up about 3.5GB in about 20 minutes or so.
Is that a fairly "normal" speed?? I just want to make sure my configuration is good.
Over wireless expect slow.. you did not state wireless or wired.. but those look like reasonable wireless speed. your files will load at different speed.. small files are slow.. larger files much faster.. it takes time to write the tables for many smaller files.
We always recommend first backup over ethernet.. even if the TC is pulled out of the network.
4- I'd like to set up a "guest" wireless network with an easier password...I had done it earlier when
the connections were not working and perhaps I accidentally removed it when updating to "bridge"
mode. To set up a new network, do I just write over the info in the fields when I get to "Wireless"
tab in the Airport Utility?? The info from my "home" network populates those fields now, and I
just don't want to risk overwriting the info and losing that network.
Guest network is removed as an option in bridge mode.. just use the uverse modem wireless for guest.

HT4600 i Get a solid amber light sometimes, bUT all works fine. I have to unplug the airport extreme to reset it and then it turns green and starys that way for a week or so and then turns back to amber. why is this and how do i fix it ?

I gat a solid amber light once a week on my airport extreme, but all works fine. I have to unplug it to reset it and then the light turns back to green and it is good for another week and then it happens again. why is this and what can i do to fix it ?

Solid amber on an AirPort Extreme is an indication that the internal power supply is starting to act up.
If the AirPort Extreme is in warranty, it shouid be exchanged for another AirPort Extreme.
If the AirPort Extreme is several years old, keep any eye on things. When/if you find that you are having to reset the device several times a week, it's time to start thinking about a replacement device, as the end is near.

Airport Extreme Shows SOLID Amber light only after Powerup

This is a relatively new Airport Extreme (802.11n), bought from the Apple store. This morning, all of a sudden I had no internet access. I finally determined that it wasn't the cable or the modem, but the base station.
I have tried powering it down (unplugging it from the back) and even leaving it powered down for up to five minutes. When I plug it back in, it shows green, blinks once and then shows solid Amber.
Solid Amber is supposed to mean that it's starting up. Airport Utility does not recognize the base station at all. I've tried a hard reset, but it seems to have no effect. No blinking light or anything.
Am I screwed?

Bummer.
Make sure you turn off the Airport card when you hook up to it with Ethernet.
There's a small reset button on the back that you should hold down with a paperclip or pen. Restart and see if that clears it.
If that doesn't work, it looks like you need to take it to the nearest Apple store

Explanation of solid amber light?

Hi,
i am having trouble to get Apple TV (First edition from 2007) to display a picture on my beamer. its a ASK Proxima M3 wih DVI input, resolution is XGA. My MacBookPro interfaces perfectly with the beamer. Cable is HDMI-DVI from Oehlbach.de.
When power is connected, everything seems to be fine: the white light turns on (and stays solid).
I have tried to get Apple TV switch through resolutions using menu and "+" (plus) keys.
After a couple of seconds the white light turns off - and the amber light goes on and stays solid.
What does the solid amber light mean? Documentation doesn't mention solid amber, just blinking...
Any help is appreciated. Thanks.
Matt

Hi Winston,
thanks for reply.
I haven't been able to connect the Apple TV device to any other display - I don't have any other
My beamer supports even higher resolutions and scales them down correctly. From my understanding, connecting it using a HDMI-DVI cable is the correct way.
Besides the connection and the beamer... the solid amber light is there!
I have tried it again and again, also with no display attached: just inserted the power cord, waited until the blinking amber turns solid white. Then: press and hold menu and plus. White light blinks, then turns off after a second. Release. Solid amber turns on. And stays on...
Any ideas?

Solid Amber light ????

I have my wireless network setup with a Linksys router and I have an airport express setup so that I can stream audio to my home stereo. I have hooked it up correctly (as far as I can tell) with the airport assistant and it works great - for about 2 or 3 days. Then the light goes from green to solid amber and it won't work again until I unplug the airport express and plug it back in. Any thoguhts? It's not a huge deal, but it ***** to have to reach behind the stereo and do this everytime I want to stream from iTunes. Thanks!!!!
-AV

Hi Armando,
The solid amber light means that it is completing its "startup sequence". It is not set up in WDS right? Anyways if it is solid and not working I would reset it. The link below will bring you to the Apple Tutorial on how to reset your Airport Express:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=108044
I hope that helps,
Jon

Solid Amber Light (LED) - out of nowhere.

I had a network running very well for a while, then all of a sudden, the main airport express gave a solid amber light, and now it won't reset (hard or soft).
I had:
- TW cable modem hooked up to
- main airport express
- second airport express picking up signal and sending out via ethernet to
- router, splitting to
- 2 desktops
all was running fine, now I can't get that main airport to stop with the amber light. I have tried unplugging and hard reset. I have not messed with firmware yet only because it took me a while to get that whole network together in the first place.
suggestions/help?
thanks,
-A

If plugging an ethernet cable won't help, hard/factory reset won't too, then you need to:
1- Submit a feedback to Apple at http://www.apple.com/feedback/airportexpress.html with explanation.
2- Call/Visit Apple to explain the problem hopefully they know the common issue that everyone's having these days and get you another one for free or even fix it.
References:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2031252&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2022396&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1979687&tstart=60
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2035806&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1932053&start=15&tstart=75
Have a good day.

Solid Yellow Light requiring reset

I have an AirPort Extreme base station with two iMacs as my basic wireless home network. I have a TiVo Series 2 unit also on the network. My DSL modem is attached to the AirPort Extreme base station and I have a rock solid connection to the Internet from both iMacs.
I bought an AirPort Express for the sole purpose of streaming iTunes to my Living Room stereo and for many months have enjoyed consistent and reliable service.
Recently however, I frequently discover that the AirPort Express is missiing from the network. There is no AirTunes selection button in iTunes and the AirPort Express doesn't show up in the AirPort Admin Utility. Checking the unit reveals a solid yellow light rather than the solid green used to always see. Unplugging the unit results in a reset and things are fine for a day or so when suddenly the yellow light is back and the AirPort Express is missing in action again.
I've tried all sorts of variations on the "Use Interference Robustness" change channels, etc. strategy with no change.
Any ideas?
Thanks,
Bailey Walker

Bailey:
A continuous solid yellow status indicator on the Airport Express is never consistent with any normal operating mode for this device.
I suggest you do a factory default reset per:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=108044
...then reconfigure it from scratch with the Airport Setup Assistant.
If this problem recurs, it is likely you have a defective Airport Express - and if it is still under the one-year warranty I suggest you get it replaced.

Lost Airport Express in my network. Solid amber light.

I've an Airport Extreme base station and use an Airport Express to extend the range throughout my house. Yesterday I had to restart Airport Extreme and reset it back to default mode, to make it burp out a 'stock' IP number. I renamed my network; but now my computers, using Airport Utility, can't 'see' the Airport Express. And its light is now solid amber. How do I get Airport Express back into my network to extend my range? Thank you. (BTW: I can't find the Airport utility disc that came with Airport Express.)

Welcome to the discussions!
If you reset the Extreme back to factory defaults and reconfigured it, you will need to do the same for the Express.
Plug the Express into power and hold in the tiny reset button until the amber light begins to blink rapidly.
Open AirPort Utility to reconfigure your Express to "extend" the network created by the Extreme. If Airport Utility can't "find" the Express, temporarily connect an ethernet cable from the Express to your computer.
You may find it a bit easier to use the Manual Setup option on the Express since you already know how your Extreme is configured and you will use many of the same settings.

Airport Extreme stuck on solid amber light - no response at all

I got my Airport Extreme this morning, set it up easily and was online for a few hours. I decided to set up my printer to the Airport, and when doing so - I unplugged the Airport Extreme and plugged it into a new outlet.
Now the base will only show a solid amber light, and Airport Utility says that it is unable to find any base stations.
I've tried unplugging the base, unplugging my modem, resetting the base, and nothing is working.
Can anyone help, please?
Message was edited by: tvchicklet
Message was edited by: tvchicklet

Have you tried connecting your MacBook directly, using an Ethernet cable, to one of the AEBSn's LAN port, and then, tried using the AirPort Utility to access it?
If so, and have already done multiple "hard" resets on the AEBSn, something might have gone wrong when moving the unit, possibly a voltage surge. Have you tried plugging it back into the original outlet to see if that would resolve the problem. Otherwise, if practical, you might want to take it to your nearest Apple Store to have them take a look at it.

Solid Amber/Yellow Light - Hardware Failure?

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