A partner calls with a familiar request. Their client’s DL380 Gen10 shipped with one processor, the workload has grown, and they want to add the second CPU. The main question is: What is fully required for the upgrade? Before the order goes out, a client wants to know exactly what is required. On a Gen10 ProLiant it usually isn’t the whole job, and HPE’s own documents explain why.
What an HPE -B21 processor kit contains
HPE sells Gen10 processors as option kits with a -B21 suffix, and each kit is built for one chassis. In HPE PartSurfer, each of the four kits below is made up of three parts: the processor, a heatsink and a fan module. P02517-B21 for the DL380, for example, contains the Xeon Gold 6254 processor (spare P11620-001), a high-performance heatsink (875071-001) and a standard fan module (875075-001). The DL360 kits pair their processor with a standard 1U heatsink (872452-001) and a standard fan module (875283-001).
That is the gap a bare CPU leaves. The kit brings the heatsink HPE matches to that processor in that chassis, plus the fans HPE expects for the second socket. The DL380 QuickSpecs says the second processor option kit contains two additional fans. The DL360 QuickSpecs says its -B21 kits include two fans, apart from a few listed exceptions.
The four kits at a glance
| Kit | Processor | Cores / base clock | TDP | Heatsink in kit | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P02517-B21 | Xeon Gold 6254 | 18 / 3.1 GHz | 200W | High performance | DL380 Gen10 |
| P23549-B21 | Xeon Silver 4210R | 10 / 2.4 GHz | 100W | Standard | DL380 Gen10 |
| P02574-B21 | Xeon Silver 4210 | 10 / 2.2 GHz | 85W | Standard 1U | DL360 Gen10 |
| P02580-B21 | Xeon Silver 4214 | 12 / 2.2 GHz | 85W | Standard 1U | DL360 Gen10 |
Standard or high-performance heatsink
HPE ties the heatsink to the processor, not to the drive or GPU layout. Both QuickSpecs give the same rule: processors at 130W TDP or higher, plus the 8256, 8156, 6128, 5222 and 5122, ship with the high-performance heatsink. All other processors ship with the standard heatsink. That is why the 200W Gold 6254 kit carries the high-performance heatsink and the 100W Silver 4210R kit carries the standard one.
The drive and GPU configuration decides the fans instead. The DL380 QuickSpecs says high-performance fan kits are required for rear drives, GPU or NVMe configurations, and that the 12 LFF and 24 SFF chassis ship with six high-performance fans as standard. On the DL360, the 10 NVMe chassis always includes seven high-performance fans.
DL380 vs DL360: order for the chassis
The two servers don’t share kits. DL360 kits use a 1U heatsink, and HPE names a single server in every kit description. Fan counts differ as well. HPE says DL380 single-processor models typically ship with four standard fans and two-processor models with six. A DL360 with two CPUs includes seven standard fans. A 4210 kit for a DL360 and a 4210R kit for a DL380 are different parts, so we always quote the kit for the chassis in front of you.
What else changes with the second CPU
PCIe slots. On the DL380, the secondary riser (870548-B21) and the tertiary riser (875780-B21) both require processor 2 to be populated. HPE describes the DL380 as upgradeable to eight slots in a two-processor configuration. On the DL360, the secondary riser (slot 3) is listed under CPU 2. If the client already has cards planned for those slots, they need the second processor first.
Memory. In the DL380, each processor has 12 DIMM slots across six channels, two DIMMs per channel. Mixing RDIMM and LRDIMM memory is not supported. HPE publishes the full placement rules in its white paper, “Server Memory and Persistent Memory population rules for HPE Gen10 servers with Intel Xeon Scalable processors”, and we follow it when we plan memory for the new socket.
Matching the two processors
The DL360 Gen10 QuickSpecs puts it plainly: mixing two different processor models is not supported, and the second processor should be the same model, ordered as the -B21 kit. The DL380 QuickSpecs adds that even the 5218 and 5218B can’t be mixed in one system. Two more HPE rules matter here:
- “U” processors, such as the 6212U, are supported only in single-socket configurations.
- HPE does not support field upgrades from 1st generation (x1xx) to 2nd generation (x2xx) Xeon Scalable processors.
All four kits above are 2nd generation (x2xx) parts. If the installed CPU is a 1st generation model, the second one has to be the same model.
How we work with partners
We sell B2B only: the End User, to MSPs, IT partners and resellers. We take purchase orders on Net terms for most clients and return quotes within one business day. Send us the server’s current processor and drive layout, and we’ll match the kit, fans and risers to it. We also provide fully configured DL380 Gen10 and DL360 Gen10 servers, and our HPE CPU catalog covers both platforms.