Dell
Dell R430 8x Bay PowerEdge 1U Server 2X E5-2630 V3 64GB 4X 960GB SSD (Renewed)
Dual Xeon E5-2630 V3 horsepower and 3.84TB of SATA SSD throughput in a 1U chassis that won't break the rack budget.
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Overview
Reliable Performance for Demanding Workloads
The Dell PowerEdge R430 is a 1U rack server engineered for peak two-socket performance in space-constrained environments. Featuring dual Intel Xeon E5-2630 V3 processors, 64GB DDR4 ECC memory, and four 960GB SSDs, this server delivers exceptional speed and reliability. With an iDRAC 8 Express and dual 550W PSUs, it provides robust management and power efficiency for HPC, web tech, and infrastructure scale-out.
Specifications:
- Brand: Dell
- Model: PowerEdge R430
- Form Factor: 1U Rackmount
- Processors: 2x Intel Xeon E5-2630 V3 2.4GHz 8-Core 20MB Cache
- Memory: 64GB DDR4 ECC Registered (4 x 16GB)
- Storage: 4x 960GB SATA 6Gbps 2.5" SSDs
- RAID Controller: Dell PERC H330 12Gbps RAID Controller (0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, 60)
- Network: Quad Port 1GbE LOM
- Management: iDRAC 8 Express with Lifecycle Controller
- Power Supplies: 2x 550W Power Supplies
- Rails: Rail Kit Included
Pros & Cons
👍 Pros
- Dual E5-2630 V3 CPUs deliver 32 threads at 2.4–3.2GHz, sufficient for running 20–30 lightweight VMs simultaneously.
- 4×960GB SATA 6Gbps SSDs provide 3.84TB of flash storage with sequential read headroom well above 450MB/s per drive.
- 64GB DDR4 ECC registered memory ships installed and tested, eliminating memory seating or compatibility risk out of the box.
- Redundant 550W hot-swap PSUs allow one supply to fail without downtime — critical for production deployments.
- H330 controller supports RAID 0/1/5/6/10/50/60 across the 8-bay backplane, giving administrators full RAID topology flexibility.
👎 Cons
- The E5-2630 V3 is a Haswell-EP chip from 2014 — DDR4 bandwidth tops out around 68GB/s aggregate, which is a bottleneck compared to current-generation Xeon platforms.
- The H330 lacks an onboard write-back cache module, so write-intensive workloads will see lower IOPS than the SSDs are capable of delivering without an aftermarket RWBD kit.
- Only 8GB of per-DIMM density is installed across 4 slots at 16GB each — the uneven load means careful planning is needed if you add DIMMs to maintain optimal memory interleaving.
- Quad-port 1GbE networking is the ceiling here; 10GbE requires a PCIe add-in card, consuming one of the limited expansion slots in the 1U chassis.
- As a renewed unit, firmware and BIOS may not be at current revision — a full iDRAC Lifecycle Controller update pass is recommended before production deployment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total CPU core and thread count available in this configuration?
16 physical cores and 32 threads total. Each E5-2630 V3 is an 8-core/16-thread Haswell-EP chip running at 2.4GHz base with a 3.2GHz turbo, giving you solid parallel throughput for virtualization, web serving, or containerized workloads.
Does the H330 RAID controller support RAID 5 and 6, and is there a write-back cache?
Yes to RAID 5/6 support, but the H330 ships without a battery-backed write cache module — it operates in write-through mode by default. If you need write-back performance, you'll need to add a RAID cache (RWBD) and battery backup unit separately.
Can the 64GB of DDR4 ECC memory be expanded, and what is the maximum capacity?
The R430 supports up to 384GB of DDR4 RDIMM/LRDIMM across 12 DIMM slots. The current 4×16GB load leaves 8 slots free, so you have significant headroom. Stick with Dell-certified DDR4 ECC registered modules for iDRAC compatibility.
What does iDRAC 8 Express give me versus iDRAC 8 Enterprise?
Express provides remote KVM via the dedicated management port, virtual console (1 session), and basic Lifecycle Controller functionality. Enterprise adds virtual media, 2 concurrent KVM sessions, vFlash SD card support, and RESTful API access. For most remote management needs, Express is sufficient.
Is the rail kit compatible with standard 4-post racks?
The included Dell ReadyRails II kit fits standard 19-inch EIA-310 4-post square-hole and round-hole racks. Two-post relay racks are not supported without an additional adapter bracket.
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