Technical Comparison: Dell PowerEdge R750, HPE ProLiant DL380 Gen10 and Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650 Servers
- server-parts.eu server-parts.eu
- Sep 12, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: Sep 14, 2024
When choosing between Dell PowerEdge R750, HPE ProLiant DL380 Gen10 and Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650 servers, you need to consider a few key factors: performance, scalability, reliability, support, and cost. Here’s a breakdown to help you get started.
I Dell PowerEdge, HPE ProLiant or Lenovo ThinkSystem?
Processor Options and Performance
Dell PowerEdge R750
Processor Support: Intel Xeon Scalable (up to 3rd Gen), dual-socket support.
Cores: Up to 40 cores per processor (Intel Xeon Ice Lake).
Best for: High-performance computing, virtualization, cloud infrastructure, data analytics, and AI/ML tasks.
Key Advantage: Dell servers are known for their balance of CPU, memory, and storage flexibility, allowing easy customization for specific workloads.
HPE DL380 Gen10
Processor Support: Intel Xeon Scalable (up to 3rd Gen), AMD EPYC support in the DL385 (if considering AMD).
Cores: Up to 40 cores per processor.
Best for: General enterprise workloads, databases, big data analytics, and highly virtualized environments.
Key Advantage: Known for its reliability and flexibility, it’s often favored for data-heavy workloads. HPE offers unique innovations, such as workload-optimized server profiles.
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650
Processor Support: Intel Xeon Scalable (up to 3rd Gen), dual-socket.
Cores: Up to 40 cores per processor.
Best for: High-performance computing (HPC), virtualization, and enterprise applications.
Key Advantage: Lenovo offers strong performance at a lower cost and is known for its strong reliability and energy efficiency, often with lower power consumption under similar loads.
Memory Capacity and Performance
Dell PowerEdge R750
Memory: Supports up to 4TB of DDR4 or DDR5.
Memory Channels: 8 channels per CPU (for DDR4); 16 DIMM slots per CPU.
Best for: Workloads requiring a large amount of RAM, such as in-memory databases (e.g., SAP HANA) and virtualization with high VM density.
HPE DL380 Gen10
Memory: Supports up to 6TB of DDR4, with support for persistent memory (Intel Optane DC).
Memory Channels: 6 channels per CPU.
Best for: High-memory environments and workloads like large databases and analytics. HPE’s support for persistent memory (Optane) provides significant advantages for memory-intensive workloads.
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650
Memory: Up to 4TB DDR4 with 16 DIMM slots per CPU.
Memory Channels: 8 channels per CPU.
Best for: Environments requiring high memory configurations for demanding applications, especially considering Lenovo’s reputation for energy efficiency and performance.
Storage Capabilities
Dell PowerEdge R750
Storage Options: NVMe, SSD, SAS, SATA (up to 24 NVMe drives, supporting hybrid configurations).
Best for: Performance-heavy environments needing high storage IOPS (Input/Output Operations per Second), like databases and AI training environments. NVMe support makes it excellent for fast data access.
HPE DL380 Gen10
Storage Options: NVMe, SSD, SAS, SATA, with up to 30 NVMe drives.
Best for: Mixed storage environments where flexibility is key. The DL380 also excels in storage-dense environments with its ability to handle a wide range of storage types.
Key Advantage: HPE’s Smart Array technology offers enhanced storage manageability and performance tuning.
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650
Storage Options: Up to 24 NVMe, SSD, SAS, SATA drives.
Best for: Scalable storage needs and workloads requiring high-performance IOPS (e.g., virtualization, data analysis).
Key Advantage: Lenovo provides strong cost efficiency without sacrificing performance, especially for storage-heavy environments.
Networking and Expansion
Dell PowerEdge R750
Network Options: 1GbE to 100GbE NICs, with OCP 3.0 mezzanine cards for flexibility.
PCIe Slots: PCIe Gen4 for faster data throughput, essential for NVMe drives and high-speed networking.
Best for: Scalable networking environments where high bandwidth and low latency are critical, such as cloud-based services and AI training environments.
HPE DL380 Gen10
Network Options: 1GbE, 10GbE, 25GbE, up to 100GbE NICs available.
PCIe Slots: PCIe Gen3/Gen4 support for higher throughput.
Best for: Enterprise environments needing flexible networking options, particularly for hybrid cloud or large-scale virtualization.
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650
Network Options: Supports multiple options from 1GbE to 100GbE.
PCIe Slots: PCIe Gen4 slots available.
Best for: Cost-effective networking solutions that still require performance. Lenovo excels at providing high performance for price-conscious organizations.
Management Tools
Dell PowerEdge R750
Management: iDRAC 9 (remote management tool), which is highly regarded for its ease of use and functionality.
Best for: IT departments needing extensive remote management and monitoring features.
HPE DL380 Gen10
Management: iLO 5, considered one of the best remote management tools in the industry.
Best for: Companies that need advanced remote management with features like workload management profiles and proactive alerts.
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650
Management: XClarity Controller, with a focus on simplicity and ease of use, though slightly less mature than Dell or HPE's tools.
Best for: Organizations that want straightforward management without extensive customization.
Specific Use Cases
Dell PowerEdge R750
Best for: AI/ML, large-scale virtualization, cloud-native applications, heavy workloads requiring high CPU and memory density, and edge computing.
Recommendation: If your workload focuses on performance-driven tasks with heavy networking and storage demands, Dell PowerEdge R750 is a strong choice.
HPE DL380 Gen10
Best for: Database management, hybrid cloud environments, in-memory analytics (e.g., SAP HANA), virtualization at scale, big data, and mixed workloads.
Recommendation: If you need flexibility, strong reliability, and the best remote management tool, HPE DL380 Gen10 is highly recommended.
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650
Best for: Organizations looking for a balance between cost and performance, energy-efficient data centers, virtualization, and storage-heavy applications.
Recommendation: If cost-efficiency is key, while still maintaining high performance, Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650 is an excellent option for general-purpose enterprise workloads.
Conclusion and Recommendations
For performance-heavy tasks (e.g., AI/ML, high IOPS storage environments), Dell PowerEdge R750 is a strong contender due to its flexibility and powerful remote management.
For general-purpose, highly scalable workloads (databases, hybrid cloud), the HPE DL380 Gen10 offers the most flexible storage and memory configurations, alongside industry-leading remote management.
For cost-conscious enterprises with a focus on reliability and energy efficiency, Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650 stands out for its ability to offer robust performance at a competitive price.
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