BITCOIN MINING RIG FAILED

[WayneRall]

Good Day

 

Compliments for the new year, may it be a prosperous year.

 

I have been tasked by a client to investigate the complete failure of their bitcoin mining rig, where all system components (motherboards, GPUs, power supplies, etc.) experienced a catastrophic malfunction. The rig was located at a coastal site, and I suspect environmental factors may have played a role. Please find attached images of the rig setup for context.

After conducting a detailed visual inspection of the GPUs, I observed the following (see attached images of disassembled GPUs):

1. Rust Formation:

   • Significant rust was present on the heatsinks and the exterior of several GPUs.
   • Some solder pads on the PCBs showed traces of rust, although there was no obvious evidence of short circuits caused by it.

2. Oily Substance:

   • An oily, residue-like substance was observed on the PCBs of nearly all the GPUs.

3. Liquid Damage:

   • Traces resembling liquid damage were present on some GPUs. However, it’s possible these were left behind by the oily substance as it evaporated, mimicking the appearance of liquid damage.

4. Dust Accumulation:

   • Large amounts of dust were found on some heatsinks and PCBs, likely affecting cooling efficiency.

Given the extent of damage observed, I am seeking your technical insights regarding the potential causes of a total system failure. While the environmental factors and the damage noted above are evident, I find it difficult to conclude that these alone could result in the simultaneous failure of all system components.

 

For additional context, the rig consisted of the following components:

• 4 Power Supplies
• 4 Motherboards
• 72 GPUs, connected to the motherboards via PCIe expansion boards
• etc.

I would greatly appreciate any advice or hypotheses regarding the root cause of such a failure, particularly in relation to environmental conditions or other potential contributing factors.

 

Thank you in advance for your expertise.

[jaslion]

Lmao yeah this dude left the windows open or put it in a garage or something. This is typical salt and moisture damage from being near the ocean and putting electronics in a non controlled room against moisture and temp swings. Run bt someone who did no maintenance at all and took no care of the hardware as even by just dusting em you see the damage super obviously.

 

 

[WayneRall]

2 minutes ago, jaslion said:

Lmao yeah this dude left the windows open or put it in a garage or something. This is typical salt and moisture damage from being near the ocean and putting electronics in a non controlled room against moisture and temp swings. Run bt someone who did no maintenance at all and took no care of the hardware as even by just dusting em you see the damage super obviously.

 

 

Agreed, and all GPUs are in this state. See below how the rig was setup.

 

[Needfuldoer]

Looks like they had it near an open window right next to a beach, or maybe tried water cooling by dunking them in the ocean.

 

Those look like older, mid to low end cards. What specific GPU die is that under the paste?

 

You could try cleaning those boards with alcohol and a brush, but an ultrasonic cleaner would be more effective. Maybe there's a snowball's chance one might be salvageable.

[jaslion]

36 minutes ago, WayneRall said:

Agreed, and all GPUs are in this state. See below how the rig was setup.

 

Yeah typical no care at all for the hardware chuck it in an out building kinda setup. So wastefull not that it matters really since mining hasnt been profitable for years anyway. Can do as @Needfuldoer says these are not impossible to return to working but well up to you if you wanna put in the effort. Chuck the psu's tho for safety reasons and also those look very much like some improper trash

[WayneRall]

Thanks Jaslion for your comment. Yups I also do agree, was not a very professional setup.