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I'm building a lab environment for virtualized routers, in prep for my next network cert. I have a Dell Poweredge 2970, but it only has 16G of RAM. I need to upgrade the RAM, to the max of 64GB, but the price for 8GB sticks is too killer to justify for self study.

Is there a functional consumer grade substitute?

The user manual states when all slots are populated with 8gb, it only runs at 533MHz, instead of the normal 667MHz. The specs show DDR2 PC2-5300. My google skills tell me no - this is not possible. However, I'm hoping there's a trick, or some other models that provides the functionality, without the "enterprise®" features. I just need the horsepower to run the VM(s).

Documentation that I referenced:

http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/19/product-support/product/poweredge-2970/manuals

ftp://ftp.dell.com/Manuals/all-products/esuprt_ser_stor_net/esuprt_poweredge/poweredge-2970_User%27s%20Guide4_en-us.pdf

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  • It's PC2-5300R ECC. Registered + ECC is important. Actual bus speed doesn't matter too much if it is lower than the RAM spec. Dec 1, 2014 at 23:51

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You need DDR2 registered ECC memory. Any consumer type non-registered, non-ECC simply wont physically fit in the slot - the notch between groups of pins is in a different place.

If you dont care about warranty or support you dont have to use Dell branded modules - most memory manufacturer sites will let you pick your server and show you compatible RAM. Or if you need it really cheap there is plenty on ebay.

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  • @DylanKnoll Note that there are some individual ones for cheaper - around $30 - so its worth looking for single 8Gb sticks as well.
    – Grant
    Dec 2, 2014 at 1:27
  • Both are great points. @DylanKnoll Thank you for the additional link as well. The one's I had scoped were $400/per 8GB. Now that I know what I need, I'm seeing the price points I'm expecting. Thanks again.
    – McSplodus
    Dec 3, 2014 at 1:23

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