Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity?

phillytechguy · 05-27-2009, 08:01 PM

I have a refurbished Dell GX280 SFF that has been functioning well since putting it together and installing drivers.
I pulled the only drivers available for all of the components from the Dell website and they all seem to be working fine.

My confusion is over the onboard NIC, which has a solid orange light and a blinking orange light. I seem to have full connectivity to both networked computers and the internet, and after several bandwidth tests it appears that speeds are normal.
In Bios, all settings for the NIC were normal. There are no conflicts in windows, duplexing is set on Auto.
The LAN cable I am using works perfectly with several machines and they all have green lights.
Pins on the NIC port appear to be clean and solid.

I cannot understand what is wrong with the device, but the orange light has been on it since before an OS was even installed. Any clues as to what the problem may be?

**lorjack** · 05-27-2009, 08:44 PM

If nothing appears to be broken, then i would say that it is working fine. Some NICs have an orange light to indicate that it has a connection.

**johnwill** · 05-28-2009, 08:11 AM

Many times, the color of the lights indicates either a 100mbit or 1gig connection speed. As mentioned, it's probably working fine.

iski4kix · 06-01-2009, 01:51 PM

IIRC orange = 10mbits, green 100mbits

phillytechguy · 06-02-2009, 12:31 AM

yea i understand about the 10mbit vs 100mbit, but I just dont know the reasons why a card would be operating at the lower speed if the drivers are not the cause, the cable and connection arent the cause, the settings seem fine and the mobo is in good shape. its an onboard NIC so, is it possible it is failing if the rest of the board isnt? Any ideas?

**johnwill** · 06-02-2009, 06:30 AM

Actually, it depends on the card. My gigabit cards indicate amber for 10/100 and green for gigabyte connections.

**lorjack** · 06-02-2009, 09:35 AM

Are you saying your connection is slower than it should be? What speed is it operating on now?

05-27-2009, 08:01 PM	#1 (permalink)
phillytechguy Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 13 OS: XP, Win7, Ubuntu	Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? I have a refurbished Dell GX280 SFF that has been functioning well since putting it together and installing drivers. I pulled the only drivers available for all of the components from the Dell website and they all seem to be working fine. My confusion is over the onboard NIC, which has a solid orange light and a blinking orange light. I seem to have full connectivity to both networked computers and the internet, and after several bandwidth tests it appears that speeds are normal. In Bios, all settings for the NIC were normal. There are no conflicts in windows, duplexing is set on Auto. The LAN cable I am using works perfectly with several machines and they all have green lights. Pins on the NIC port appear to be clean and solid. I cannot understand what is wrong with the device, but the orange light has been on it since before an OS was even installed. Any clues as to what the problem may be?

05-27-2009, 08:44 PM	#2 (permalink)
lorjack TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Planet Earth Posts: 2,205 OS: Windows 2K, XP Pro sp3, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Ubuntu	Re: Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? If nothing appears to be broken, then i would say that it is working fine. Some NICs have an orange light to indicate that it has a connection. __________________ Those who can't write, write manuals. Don't trouble trouble until trouble troubles you...

05-28-2009, 08:11 AM	#3 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 41,802 OS: Windows 7, XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	Re: Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? Many times, the color of the lights indicates either a 100mbit or 1gig connection speed. As mentioned, it's probably working fine. __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

06-01-2009, 01:51 PM	#4 (permalink)
iski4kix Registered User Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 5 OS: vista	Re: Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? IIRC orange = 10mbits, green 100mbits

06-02-2009, 12:31 AM	#5 (permalink)
phillytechguy Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 13 OS: XP, Win7, Ubuntu	Re: Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? yea i understand about the 10mbit vs 100mbit, but I just dont know the reasons why a card would be operating at the lower speed if the drivers are not the cause, the cable and connection arent the cause, the settings seem fine and the mobo is in good shape. its an onboard NIC so, is it possible it is failing if the rest of the board isnt? Any ideas?

06-02-2009, 06:30 AM	#6 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 41,802 OS: Windows 7, XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	Re: Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? Actually, it depends on the card. My gigabit cards indicate amber for 10/100 and green for gigabyte connections. __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

06-02-2009, 09:35 AM	#7 (permalink)
lorjack TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Planet Earth Posts: 2,205 OS: Windows 2K, XP Pro sp3, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Ubuntu	Re: Orange Light on NIC but full connectivity? Are you saying your connection is slower than it should be? What speed is it operating on now? __________________ Those who can't write, write manuals. Don't trouble trouble until trouble troubles you...