FM2A88M Pro3+ can't boot without GPU

Asrock b85+e3 1230 worked well as a headless server. The b85 is not server board. So when i want to build a cheap server which also suppoet pcie passthrough, i choose asrock again...

I don't want an extea video card is that except it will take pcie solt, it is also strange for this application.

This cpu is cheap but support pcie passthrough. For intel, you have to buy i5 to suppoet this feature which take much more money.

Edited by fkpwolf - 25 Nov 2015 at 8:08am

This may or may not help you. It could down the line prove a PITA too.

Once it's set up the way you need, go back into the BIOS and set Graphics for iGPU, power down normally, pull the discreet card, and see it it'll boot properly this way.

If it does, whenever you need graphics to troubleshoot or maintenance you may have to remember to clear the BIOS and re-install that discreet card. It's the clearing the BIOS and the req'd manual changes needing all reset that'll be a PITA.

Why not just get a cheap inexpensive fanless card like I use here, a PowerColor AX5450 1GBK3-SHEV Radeon HD 5450. It has most output ports, is low power, low profile, and not having a fan is maintenance free.

fkpwolf wrote: I ever used an Intel E3-1230 as a headless server. Why CPU need a GPU to get work? I think it is a BIOS issue but I am not sure.

Ok. C'mon now. If, IF, in your experiences building you had an E3-1230 have a display outputted w/o a discreet graphics card installed it was most likely on a server board with an ASPEED or like processor on-board.

Plain and simple. Your desktop FM2A88M Pro3+ does not have an ASPEED or like processor on-board. Thus, any display output is dependent on the CPU having an iGPU internally or a discreet graphics card.

There's no getting around that. Your current Athlon II X4 840 does not have an internal iGPU. You must use a discreet graphics card to set it up. Then if you feel comfortable with the stability of the machine you can certainly remove the card afterwards for headless operation.

You cannot use an Athlon CPU without a discrete GPU. It does not matter if you plan to use it without a monitor or not, it will not work without a GPU. If you want a system without a discrete GPU then you would need an A series APU which has a built in GPU, something like an A10 5/6/78XX or A8 5/6/7XXX if you want quad core. The Athlon IIs on the FM2 platform do not have an iGPU.