Can't erase flash or startup-config on my new eBay switch

I have a problem with a switch I bought off eBay. It has a lot of stuff configured on it, and when I gave the command "delete:vlan.dat" I only got "%Error deleting flash (No such file or directory)." When I tried the command "erase start" I got "% Invalid input detected at '^' marker." Needless to say, I was in privileged exec mode, so I don't know why I got the error.

Can someone help? I can't do my work without a working switch! Otherwise I'll have to drive 40 miles to the school lab.

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Comments

markzab

This might help...

http://techexams.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=23248&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=25

Tricon7

No - didn't help. His problem, whatever it was, wasn't really the same thing as what I have. It asks for the username and password, which I know, since I put it in the other day, but when I try to delete all the previous configurations from NVRAM, it won't let me, and gave me those errors I mentioned.

Still have no idea how to proceed.

keenon

what kind of switch is it?

most switches you can

hold down the mode button, power the switch back on and go through the password recovery/ delete the start up config.. i'm curious what the config register is

markzab

Re-read the first page, not the 2nd one. It explains how to rename the config.text file and then reboot into a clean machine.

markzab

[quote=DW [banned]]Have you considered trying this real quick.

1. Boot the switch.
2. Hold down the mode button for say 30 seconds or so.
3. Let it boot....

when it boots you'll get three commands:

flash_init
load_helper
something else...

Type flash_init

then load_helper

Perform a "dir flash:" - every letter counts...

You are looking for config.text.

if you can perform the following you are GOLDEN

"rename flash:config.text flash:config.old"

then boot

You got a fresh switch on your hands...

if not - I'm working on it as speak... to try another option or two..

Then either call me or give me your number.

I'm getting you an image - this may fix things here...

Can you call me?

It's in your PM and we can walk through this one - it can be tough.[/quote]

Tricon7

keenon wrote:

what kind of switch is it?

most switches you can

hold down the mode button, power the switch back on and go through the password recovery/ delete the start up config.. i'm curious what the config register is

Switch is a 2924. Here's the startup-configuration:

Jeff#show start
Using 1568 out of 32768 bytes
!
version 11.2
no service pad
service password-encryption
no service udp-small-servers
no service tcp-small-servers
!
hostname Jeff
!
enable secret 5 $1$P8yl$VtXI58slJdzjrgEN5kQIc.
enable password 7 05080F1C2243
!
!
no spanning-tree vlan 1
!
!
interface VLAN1
ip address 192.168.1.2 255.255.255.0
ip helper-address 10.1.1.50
ip helper-address 134.141.193.71
no ip route-cache
!
interface FastEthernet0/1
!
interface FastEthernet0/2
!
interface FastEthernet0/3
!
interface FastEthernet0/4
!
interface FastEthernet0/5
!
interface FastEthernet0/6
!
interface FastEthernet0/7
!
interface FastEthernet0/8
!
interface FastEthernet0/9
!
interface FastEthernet0/10
!
interface FastEthernet0/11
!
interface FastEthernet0/12
!
interface FastEthernet0/13
!
interface FastEthernet0/14
description NIA
!
interface FastEthernet0/15
!
interface FastEthernet0/16
!
interface FastEthernet0/17
!
interface FastEthernet0/18
!
interface FastEthernet0/19
!
interface FastEthernet0/20
!
interface FastEthernet0/21
!
interface FastEthernet0/22
!
interface FastEthernet0/23
!
interface FastEthernet0/24
description Twister Connection to MetroPlexB C100
speed 100
duplex half
!
ip default-gateway 10.11.0.1
snmp-server community public RO
snmp-server community fanbwan RW
snmp-server trap-authentication
snmp-server chassis-id 0x10
snmp-server enable traps config
snmp-server enable traps vtp
snmp-server host 10.10.22.10 fanbwan
!
line con 0
password 7 01100F175804
login
stopbits 1
line vty 0 4
password 7 045802150C2E
login
line vty 5 15
password 7 045802150C2E
login
!
end

I hope this sheds some light on things. Startup password is "cisco"; secret password is "class."

Tricon7

My Cisco instructor took a look at my switch and fixed it. Seems it wasn't recognizing the "erase start" command - only the "write erase" command, which did the trick. He wasn't sure why the other didn't work. But - at least now I can work at home instead of driving 40 mi. round-trip to the lab at school.

LOkrasa

Possibly because its version 11.2... write erase is a old IOS command.

shednik

LOkrasa wrote:

Possibly because its version 11.2... write erase is a old IOS command.

Yep my thoughts exactly

Netstudent

I had a similar issue with one of my 2924's the other day. I was trying to erase the startup-config. So from priv. mode I was issueing the erase nvram command. The switch would ask for confirmation and I would press enter. Then it gives you that message saying it is formatting NVRAM or something like that. Reloaded the switch and it never killed that startup-config. So then I tried erase startup-config and that worked. Wierd.