A while ago I did a video of using AI for tech support. You can find that here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3Y-8AzE2bw
The major component that enabled this was ‘computer vision’ i.e. the ability of Ai to see the screen. Here is another personal example of using ‘AI vision’ to solve technical issues.
Upon returning late to my home office I found I had no internet. Damm! ISP failure I thought. I did the basics and reset my modem and then resigned myself to waiting until the ISP brought things back online.
I was a bit concerned about the connectivity because after about 30 minutes it hadn’t come back up. Unusual, I thought. After tethering my phone to allow temporary Internet access I check my UniFi console which showed me my home office had been offline for many hours. Now that was very, very unusual and indicated that the problem was more about my equipment than a fault with the ISP. So I started doing some more rigorous testing.
After getting down under my desk and cleaning all the dusk away I discovered my Ubiquiti USG (firewall/security) device didn’t seem to be working correctly. I powered it off and on, but now joy. I also noticed a regular soft ‘chirping’ noise and the console port was flashing.
A dead USG would be a major pain because I had to present my Copilot Flight School via Teams the following day.
My USG device has been superseded so I used Copilot to find me a suitable replacement model. I then check the unit on Amazon to see how quickly it could be delivered. The replacement is here:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Ubiquiti-UniFi-Cloud-Gateway-Ultra/dp/B0D8PSW2BZ/
delivery would be in about a week to my door. Handy, but not enough to save my bacon for tomorrow’s training.
I then went back to Copilot with the symptoms and this is what it told me:
A flashing light on the Console port of a Ubiquiti USG is a classic “cry for help” from the hardware. It almost always points to a specific hardware failure rather than a software crash.
In most cases, it does not mean the main chip is dead, but it does mean the gateway cannot boot. Here is what that flashing light typically signifies:
1. The Power Supply Failure (90% of cases)
The most common cause of a flashing console light is a failing power brick. The capacitors inside the small black power adapter often wear out after 3–5 years. They can still provide enough power to blink an LED, but not enough “juice” to actually boot the internal processor.
The Symptom: You might also hear a very faint “chirping” or “clicking” sound coming from the USG or the power brick itself, synchronized with the flashing light.
The Fix: Find any 12V DC power adapter (at least 1.0A or higher, like 2.0A) with the same barrel plug size. Many people find that an old external hard drive or router power brick fixes the USG instantly.
Ok, so the power supply on the USG device has failed. It also have me this video of pretty much exactly the same issue i was having as confirmation to me that it was the same problem and what was needed to fix it!
Luckily, right next to the USG device I had an very old USB hard disk, with an external power supply, that looked like it could do the job.
I look the above photo, provided it to Copilot and asked whether this woulr work with the USG. Here is what I got back:
Yes, that power adapter is perfectly suitable for your Ubiquiti USG.
Based on the photo you provided, the specifications match exactly what the USG needs to function correctly—and it may even be better than the original.
Why this adapter is a good match:
Voltage (12V): It matches the USG’s required 12V DC exactly.
Amperage (1.5A): The original USG power brick was only 1.0A. This 1.5A adapter provides more “room” for the device to draw power, which often prevents the common power-failure issues seen with the original bricks.
Polarity (Center Positive): The diagram on the label (the line pointing to the center of the circle with a +) matches the center-positive requirement of the USG.
Plug Type: This appears to be a standard 5.5mm x 2.1mm barrel jack, which is the correct physical fit for the USG power port.
How to test it:
Unplug your old power adapter from the USG.
Plug this “Von” adapter into the wall and then into the USG.
Watch the lights: If the power supply was the problem, the console light should stop flashing, and the main square light on top of the USG should eventually turn solid white (booting) or solid blue (connected).
Safety Note: While this adapter is electrically compatible, always ensure it remains in a well-ventilated area, as these smaller “wall wart” adapters can get warm during constant use.
Would you like me to walk you through what to do if the lights still don’t turn solid after swapping the power brick?
It was able to read and verify the specifications of this power supply, based on my photo, and check to see whether it would be suitable and guess what? It was! I used this power supply and my USG can right back up and my Internet was restored. Amazing! All of this at 11pm at night without the need to buy and ship or replacement or talking to anyone!
I also saw the above image floating around my socials and thought that it was interesting to see the impact that Ai is having on technical forums like Stack Overflow and probably every other technical forum out there. My own experience, with all the forums I work with mirrors this, AI is changing the game for anything that relies on expertise. As the Internet democratised and commoditise communication so AI will do the same for expertise it seems!
We now live in a world where I can use AI at anytime of the day, give it a photo of my issue and have it solve it for me with to your delivery by Amazon of any replacement equipment required. Let’s hope your business doesn’t depend on things that have already been superseded!
CIAOPS 