[SOLVED] xeon processor upgrade compatability

[TheDavid8]

Hello,

I have a xeon w3550 in my lenovo s20 and am looking to upgrade to a xeon 5690. Same socket and tdp. Anything unusual I should be concerned about as far as compatibility goes? Ie propietary chipset? Thanks a bunch. Kind regards, -David

 

[DavidM012]

Here's the manual

Intel Xeon E5645, E5649, X5650, X5660, X5667, X5670, X5672, X5675, X5677, X5680, X5687, X5690, W3680, W3690

Is mentioned on page 49 but the odd twist might be that you need at least 4 memory modules. What's cryptic to me is 'no of Dimms installed per cpu bank'.

Here's a diagram of the mobo If it's talking about the same thing then you can have up to 6 4gb ddr3 1333mhz dimm modules.

So if you only have 2 dimm modules of 4gb I'd interpret that as meaning, you'd need a further 2 memory modules for it to work with the x5690.

 

[DavidM012]

If you need the dimms: This site will know what to dimms to use with it. Since they sell them refurbished. So you could enquire of them if you should buy a kit of 4x 1333mhz dimms for 16gb since we don't know what dimms you have.

Or you could identify your dimm part numbers using cpu-z (spd tab) and search for kits. Well technically you should buy a kit of the full amount of memory you want eg. 4x4gb to ensure the actual dimms are compatible with each other but, ddr3 isn't 'so fussy' as to what memory it works with.

If you could find modules of the same make and model that you already have then they would probably have the best chance of working.

So technically I could only say that a 4x4gb kit would work for 16gb since the memory vendors only validate complete kits and if you only need 2 second hand dimms well you can only say they will probably work but there's a chance they might not.

Or you could get a 4x4gb 1333mhz kit and aim for 24gb and see if they work with your modules.

So how much memory do you have with it? You could have any assortment of 1gb, 2gb or 4gb dimms. If your dimms are not already 1333mhz, then you'd have to throw them.

 

[TheDavid8]

If you need the dimms: This site will know what to dimms to use with it. Since they sell them refurbished. So you could enquire of them if you should buy a kit of 4x 1333mhz dimms for 16gb since we don't know what dimms you have.

Or you could identify your dimm part numbers using cpu-z (spd tab) and search for kits. Well technically you should buy a kit of the full amount of memory you want eg. 4x4gb to ensure the actual dimms are compatible with each other but, ddr3 isn't 'so fussy' as to what memory it works with.

If you could find modules of the same make and model that you already have then they would probably have the best chance of working.

So technically I could only say that a 4x4gb kit would work for 16gb since the memory vendors only validate complete kits and if you only need 2 second hand dimms well you can only say they will probably work but there's a chance they might not.

Or you could get a 4x4gb 1333mhz kit and aim for 24gb and see if they work with your modules.

So how much memory do you have with it? You could have any assortment of 1gb, 2gb or 4gb dimms. If your dimms are not already 1333mhz, then you'd have to throw them.

Brilliant responses, thanks a bunch! I have 16GB RAM installed with at least 4 modules, potentially 6. They are ddr4. wmic memorychip get speed returns 1066 so that should be (1066 x 2) 2133mhz correct? If so it seems as if I should be good to go. Cheers!

 

[DavidM012]

Well you should be good to go, but

1066mhz is 533mhz x 2 which is ddr3 1066 or pc 3 8500 specification.

1333mhz is 666mhz x2 which is ddr3 1333 or pc3 10600 specification.

So probably the x5690 can run at the lower memory clock speed but if it won't start then maybe it has to be the exact specification.

So basically if you upgrade your cpu then you'd need 6x 4gb ddr3 1333 dimms (pc 10600) for a full 24gb. Or simply 4x4gb for 16gb.

The way to know is try and find out. You don't have to spend money on faster memory if it works at the lower speed. Not sure how much of a boost it will give you or if it's worth $50 or $80 for ddr3 memory just for that.

It isn't ddr4 memory at all.

The cpu upgrade however, should be ok.

 

[DavidM012]

This shows you the supported memory is ddr3. The cpu upgrade is quite a good boost too. The max. 1333mhz memory is about 30% faster memory.

This article discusses it in the long version. The short version is:

There almost isn't one; the positive boost in 1333 over 1066 is very minimal and does not provide much of a performance increase.

The difference is practically minimal so don't upgrade your memory unless the cpu doesn't work at 1066 speed. It should do.

 

[TheDavid8]

Looks like I should be good to go! On the intel website is says 1066 is compatible. It could even run at 800 I believe. No point in upgrading to 1333 I don't think either. Maybe if I was going from ddr3 to 4 but only one tier in terms of mhz wont make a big enough difference it seems. I was confused, because I had purchased this computer second hand a few years back and the ad showed ddr4 ): But thanks a bunch for the responses that's great.

 

[DavidM012]

no probs! You can compare the cpu to moderner ones on techcity so it's about equivalent to a ryzen 1400 so you should be able to do something with it, like 1080p 60fps on games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018).

Just thought I'd take a look at xeons anyway, though it looks like sandy and ivy bridge have passed their prime!

 

[TheDavid8]

no probs! You can compare the cpu to moderner ones on techcity so it's about equivalent to a ryzen 1400 so you should be able to do something with it, like 1080p 60fps on games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018).

Just thought I'd take a look at xeons anyway, though it looks like sandy and ivy bridge have passed their prime!

Yeah I was looking at it on passmark a while ago and was surprised the single thread performance was a little low despite the clock speeds but it seems like a roughly x2 upgrade overall to my w3550 so im looking forward. I have a 1070 in my machine right now.