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I am being told that some limits on some HP servers can be crossed. Do any of you have any experience with that?

A ML150/G6 is limited to 48GB RAM but I have been talking to a German company that guaranties me that this server will be able to be upgraded to 384GB RAM (using 32GB memory modules and 2 CPUs)

http://www.compuram.de/en/memory,HP+%28-Compaq%29,Server,Proliant,ML150+G6.htm

Can this really be true?

The server that I have is using E5504 CPUs but will I be able to upgrade to any CPU that is using a LGA1366 socket? All from a low wattage L5640 all the way to the 6 core, high wattage versions like an X5650? (If cooling and power is adequate ofcause). Is there any limitation with powerregulators and chipset (Intel 5500).

I am looking forward to any reply. Thanks in advance and best regards, - Morten Green Hermansen, Fanitas

ewwhite
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Morten Green Hermansen
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4 Answers4

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You can use Intel Westmere 5600-series CPUs in a ProLiant G6 server. That's fine.

As far as RAM, I would not bother with investing so much effort and money into such a low-end server. However, if you really need 384GB of RAM, you should be looking at higher-end products within the product line. That's where the cooling, power and chassis design are optimized for higher specs. If you aren't willing to do that, there's no immediate harm to trying the third-party RAM upgrade.

ewwhite
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  • CPU: Have anybody TRIED using a 5600-series CPU in a HP ML150 G6, because I have received information that this will NOT work. RAM: The German company guaranties that the ML150 G6 will accept the 32GB RDIMM modules that they sell (12x32GB=384GB). I have problems believing that for the E5500 series that Intel states only accept 144GB per CPU. The E5600 series is stated to be able to handle 288GB per CPU, so it could believe that 384GB of memory is possible with E5600 (but with E5500 only 288GB (6x32GB+6x16GB)). Have anybody TRIED to used RDIMMS larger than 4GB in the ML150 G6? – Morten Green Hermansen Apr 12 '14 at 06:26
  • I don't think so. These wouldn't be common actions, as this is HP's lowest-end server. I've used certain 5600-series CPU's in G6 servers. It depends on the model. – ewwhite Apr 12 '14 at 12:36
  • I happen to have one of these servers and a LOT of 32GB modules. I can assure you this does not work. The system will fail to POST with that much RAM installed. The best you can do is 256GB. The BIOS refuses to count that much, so you have to disable checks if you want boot to succeed. But it is addressable within the OS. Take note, this produces a LOT of heat both from the modules and the chipset. I wouldn't run this box like this long-term. – Spooler Apr 08 '17 at 19:04
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I have 6x16GB (PC3L-10600-09-11-E2-D3) with a single CPU and it works fine.

In case anyone plans to go beyond 96GB (as I did) please bear in mind that the second CPU needs not only an heatsink, but also additional fans (hard to find!) or the system will not boot.

Marco Ullasci
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Now I have tried with 32GB (2x8GB + 4x4GB) register memory, using only one CPU (E5520). According to specs the limit is 24GB (6x4GB). The system has been running very stable for 4 months now. I still really want to see if 32GB modules gets accepted. :-)

Morten Green Hermansen
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  • I have now tried a pair of L5640 (LSBV8) CPUs and I can confirm that these will NOT boot the machine! :-( I DO have the most resent BIOS (2011.01.18). But on the RAM side I have news! I can confirm that 12 x 16GB = 192GB works on this system. I would love to try (6 x 32GB + 6 x 16GB = 288GB). The 5500 series CPUs will not accept more memory than that (one of the reasons I had hoped for the 5600 CPUs to work in this system). – Morten Green Hermansen Apr 25 '20 at 13:09
  • I have now tried a pair of L5530 and these works great in this machine! – Morten Green Hermansen Apr 30 '20 at 07:16
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The ML150 G6 has an intel 5500 chipset (see https://ark.intel.com/products/36784). This chipset will only support 5500 series (Nehalem EP) cpus, not the 5600 ones.

For 5600 series (Westmere EP) cpu you need a machine with a 5520 chipset like the ML350 G6.

The intel website shows your E5504 (and any other E55XX cpu) supports up to 144GB memory (see https://ark.intel.com/products/40711/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E5504-4M-Cache-2_00-GHz-4_80-GTs-Intel-QPI). I assume this is possible by using 9x dual rank 16GB modules. In the ML150 you only have 6 dimm slots per CPU so you should be able to run with 96GB times the number of CPUs installed.

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Jeroen Resoort
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    I'm sorry but you're wrong - the 5500 chipset (with appropriate BIOS) supports E56xx CPUs - see this link https://www.intel.co.uk/content/www/uk/en/support/articles/000006567/server-products.html – Chopper3 Apr 19 '18 at 10:07
  • Did you make 5600 CPUs work. I did try a pair of L5630's with newest BIOS. It did not boot up. – Morten Green Hermansen Apr 25 '20 at 13:15