Tools

These are some common tools used to work on this device. You might not need every tool for every procedure.

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting information can be found here: Dell Optiplex SX280 troubleshooting Guide

Upgrades

You can upgrade the performance of the OptiPlex SX280 in a number of ways

  • Processor: Upgrading the processor from the Pentium 4 500 series to a Intel Pentium 4 600 series is an excellent way to increase the speed at which the SX 280 functions.
  • RAM: The easiest way to increase the overall speed of the computer is to install additional RAM. The SX 280 comes with 256 MB RAM (in dual channel), with a speed of 533Hz. This can be upgraded to a maximum of 2GB, 833Hz (dual channel) RAM.
  • Hard Drive: in order to increase the amount of storage on the SX 280, the hard drive can be replaced. The SX 280 can be upgraded with any Serial ATA brand hard drive. The SX 280 comes standard with about 60GB of storage.
  • Linux: This computer with a RAM upgrade and a Hard drive upgrade makes this perfect for Ubuntu Linux, or whatever distribution you use providing you keep tasks light. HOWEVER, If you install 2GB of memory and a 7200RPM Hard drive, it can do heavier tasks to some extent. In fact,some people do this completely stock,so it's possible to do this un-upgraded. An RAM upgrade will probably be needed for most distributions of Linux at the minimum

Identification and Background Information

The SX 280 is most easily identified by its small case size, which should measure 8.9cm x 36.1cm x 26.4cm. All other models built in the same time frame (GX 280, for instance) are much larger in size.

You can also confirm your model by typing "dxdiag" into the search browser under the "Start" menu.

The OptiPlex SX 280 was built for business applications, with compact size and high performance foremost in mind.

To reduce size and bulkiness, the audio and video cards were integrated into the motherboard, making their replacement extremely difficult. However, the SX 280 does support some upgrades, granting it the convenience of an all-in-one PC, with the flexibility of a desktop.

Although the SX 280 was superseded by the OptiPlex GX 520 and Optiplex 320, no model to date is as small as the Optiplex SX 280.

Additional Information