Enterprise Hard Drive Buying Guide: SAS vs SATA, 7.2K vs 10K, CMR vs SMR
Spinning drives still run most backup targets, file servers, and NAS builds, and the market is full of...
تسوّق محطات عمل Dell Precision T7910 في قطر من ServerDove. تُعد Dell T7910 محطة عمل قوية بمعالجين، مصممة لـ CAD والذكاء الاصطناعي والعرض ثلاثي الأبعاد والمحاكاة والهندسة وأعباء العمل الاحترافية.
تتضمن أنظمة Dell Precision T7910 التي تم اختبارها ومدعومة بالضمان معالجات Intel Xeon ورسومات NVIDIA الاحترافية وذاكرة ECC وحلول تخزين SSD عالية الأداء للشركات والمهنيين في جميع أنحاء الدوحة وقطر.
The Dell Precision T7910, the Precision Tower 7000 Series (7910) on Dell's spec sheet, is the largest workstation of Dell's Xeon E5-2600 v4 generation. Two sockets, sixteen DDR4 ECC slots for up to 1 TB, four PCIe x16 graphics slots with a 675 W graphics budget, eight 2.5-inch drive positions on an integrated 12 Gb/s LSI SAS controller and a 1300 W power supply put it in the class of machine bought for rendering farms, simulation, large CAD assemblies, video finishing and, increasingly, as a cheap dual-socket GPU box. Dell's split chassis design keeps processors and drives in separate airflow zones and offers liquid-cooled processor options. ServerDove holds the T7910 in Doha as complete configured systems and barebone chassis, with 1300 W power supplies and CPU heatsink and fan modules as parts.
A full-size tower of 43.05 cm high, 21.59 cm wide and 52.50 cm deep. The chassis is split into thermal zones for airflow and acoustics; Dell quotes up to 49 percent better acoustic performance than the previous generation, with liquid cooling on the processors as an option for heavy sustained loads. The power supply is externally accessible and tool-less, and it locks. Security fittings are a chassis intrusion switch, Kensington lock slot, padlock ring and the lockable supply.
| Bay | Count | Takes |
|---|---|---|
| Internal 3.5-inch | 4 | Four 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch drives in total |
| External 5.25-inch | 1 | Optical drive, media reader or a 4 x 2.5-inch HDD/SSD kit |
| Slimline optical | 1 | DVD-ROM or DVD+/-RW |
The four internal bays plus the four-drive kit in the 5.25-inch bay are how the T7910 reaches eight 2.5-inch drives on its eight SAS ports.


One or two Intel Xeon E5-2600 v4 processors (Broadwell-EP), up to 22 cores each, on the Intel C612 chipset with AVX, Turbo Boost, AES-NI, Trusted Execution Technology and optional vPro. Dell's sheet names the family rather than individual SKUs, so there is no per-model table here; the range spans four to 22 cores and frequency-optimised parts such as the E5-2687W v4 that appear in our configured units. The second processor is more than compute on this machine: it brings the other eight DIMM slots and two more PCIe x16 Gen 3 slots into play. Both processors must be identical, and the second needs its own heatsink and fan module, which we list as a part. Dell's liquid cooling option replaces the standard heatsink. Earlier T7910s shipped with E5-2600 v3 on the same board; a used unit may hold either generation, and we check before quoting an upgrade.
Sixteen DIMM slots, eight per processor, quad-channel DDR4 ECC at up to 2400 MHz, for a maximum of 1 TB with both processors installed. Memory speed depends on the processor fitted, and Reliable Memory Technology PRO maps out failing locations. With one processor, eight slots are active.
| Configuration | Active slots | Maximum memory |
|---|---|---|
| One processor | 8 | 512 GB |
| Two processors | 16 | 1 TB |
Populate channels evenly: four or eight DIMMs per processor in matched sets. The 1 TB ceiling is what separates this machine from the T7810's 256 GB and is the reason it is chosen for in-memory analysis and large simulation models. Tested DDR4 registered memory is available from Doha stock.
Four PCI Express x16 slots for graphics, up to 675 W total, which Dell specifies as three 225 W cards in three slots. The 1300 W supply is sized for three high-end cards plus two processors. Dell's list for the T7910:
| Tier | Cards on Dell's list |
|---|---|
| High-end 3D | AMD FirePro W9100, W8100; NVIDIA Quadro M6000, K6000, M5000 |
| Mid-range 3D | AMD FirePro W7100, W5100; NVIDIA Quadro M4000, M2000, K2200 |
| Entry 3D | AMD FirePro W4100, W2100; NVIDIA Quadro K620, K420 |
| Professional 2D | NVIDIA NVS 510, NVS 315, NVS 310 |
Two of the four x16 slots depend on the second processor, so a single-CPU T7910 has two full x16 slots available. Modern double-slot cards not on Dell's 2016 list are often fitted to this chassis for GPU compute and rendering; the limits are slot spacing, card length, the 225 W per-card and 675 W total budget, and the auxiliary power connectors present. Ask with the card model before buying. Optional Teradici PCoIP host cards support remote use. See graphics cards.
Storage is where the T7910 differs most from other towers. An LSI SAS 3008 controller on the board provides eight 12 Gb/s SAS ports (6 Gb/s SATA as well) with software RAID 0, 1 and 10 across up to eight drives, and two Intel SATA ports serve the optical drives. RAID 5, or hardware RAID with cache, needs an optional PCIe controller.
| Controller | Interface | RAID | Cache |
|---|---|---|---|
| LSI SAS 3008 (integrated) | 8 x SAS 12 Gb/s, SATA 6 Gb/s | Software RAID 0, 1, 10, up to 8 drives | None |
| LSI MegaRAID SAS 9341-8i (optional) | SAS 12 Gb/s, SATA 6 Gb/s | RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 | None |
| LSI MegaRAID SAS 9361-8i (optional) | SAS 12 Gb/s, SATA 6 Gb/s | Hardware RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 | 1 GB with flash module and supercapacitor |
| Drive type | Maximum per Dell's sheet |
|---|---|
| M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD | 4 x 1 TB on the Ultra-Speed Drive Quad |
| PCIe SSD card (HH/HL) | 2 x Intel 1.2 TB NVMe |
| 2.5-inch SATA SSD | 8 x 1 TB |
| 2.5-inch SAS SSD | 8 x 400 GB |
| 2.5-inch SATA 7,200 rpm | 8 x 512 GB |
| 3.5-inch SATA 5,400 rpm | 4 x 4 TB |
| 2.5-inch SAS 10K 12 Gb/s | 8 x 1.8 TB |
| 2.5-inch SAS 15K 12 Gb/s | 8 x 600 GB |
| Self-encrypting drive | 512 GB 2.5-inch FIPS SED (OPAL 2.0) SSD |
NVMe arrives on Dell's Ultra-Speed Drive Duo (two M.2 SSDs, half-height x8) or Quad (four M.2 SSDs, full-height x16), both actively cooled, or on Intel PCIe SSD cards; there is no M.2 socket on the board. Our configured units commonly pair an NVMe system drive with SAS or SATA data drives on the SAS 3008. Drives larger than Dell's 2016 figures are in common use; the limits are the controller and operating system, not the bays. See solid-state drives.
Two Gigabit Ethernet ports are integrated, on Intel I217 and I210 controllers, with remote wake, PXE and jumbo frame support. Options are an Intel i210 single-port Gigabit card and an Intel X540-T2 dual-port 10GBASE-T card. Audio is a Realtek ALC3220 codec with an internal speaker. Optional add-in cards include the Ultra-Speed Drive Duo and Quad, a 1394a/b card, Teradici PCoIP host cards, a Thunderbolt 2 card and a serial card.
| Location | Ports |
|---|---|
| Front | 3 x USB 2.0, 1 x USB 3.0, microphone, headphone |
| Rear | 3 x USB 2.0, 3 x USB 3.0, 2 x PS/2, 2 x RJ45, 1 x serial, line in/microphone, line out |
| Internal | 1 x USB 2.0, 1 x 2x5 USB 2.0 header, 8 x SAS 12 Gb/s (SATA 6 Gb/s capable) |
A single 1300 W supply, 90 percent efficient and 80 PLUS Gold, with an input range of 181 to 240 VAC, so it is a high-line unit made for 230 V supplies such as Qatar's. It slides out of the rear of the chassis without tools and locks in place, which makes a swap a two-minute job. Dell sizes it for two processors and three high-end graphics cards. We list the 1300 W supply as a replacement part for owners whose unit has failed or who are completing a barebone.

| Form factor | Tower |
|---|---|
| Height | 43.05 cm |
| Width | 21.59 cm |
| Depth | 52.50 cm |
| Power supply | 1300 W, 181 to 240 VAC input |
| Security | TPM 2.0 with Windows 10 (TPM 1.2 with Windows 7 and 8.1), chassis intrusion switch, Kensington slot, padlock ring, lockable power supply |
Dell's list: Windows 10 Professional, Windows 8.1 Professional and Windows 7 Professional, all 64-bit; Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.0 and 7.2 (required for E5-2600 v4 processors), RHEL 6.5, and RHEL 6.8 for v4 processors; Ubuntu 14.04; and NeoKylin 6.0 for China. Later releases are outside Dell's list for this model. Unlike the T7810, the T7910 was specified with TPM 2.0 under Windows 10, which is relevant to newer Windows requirements; confirm the TPM version on a specific unit with us before relying on it.
We hold the T7910 in Doha as complete workstations with processor, memory, graphics and drives stated in each listing, as barebone chassis for buyers who want to build to their own specification, and as parts: the 1300 W power supply and the CPU heatsink and fan module. Refurbished units are tested before they are listed and are covered by the ServerDove warranty, with extended cover quoted on request.
Delivery across Qatar is typically one day from Doha stock. Installation and base configuration, including fitting a second processor, memory or a GPU into a barebone, are available as a service. Business customers can request a quotation for several units. Send the configuration you need on WhatsApp at +974 5521 2108, by email at sales@serverdove.com or through the contact page. For a smaller machine on the same platform see the Precision T7810; for the newer generation see the Precision T7920, or browse all Dell workstations.
Both are dual-socket Xeon E5-2600 v4 towers on the Intel C612 chipset. The T7910 doubles the memory slots to sixteen for up to 1 TB, doubles the internal bays to four 3.5-inch, carries an eight-port 12 Gb/s LSI SAS 3008 controller on the board, has four x16 graphics slots with a 675 W budget and a 1300 W supply. The T7810 stops at eight slots and 256 GB, two graphics cards at 300 W, Intel SATA and an 825 W supply. Buy the T7910 when memory, GPUs or drive count are the point.
The T7920 is Dell's successor on the next Intel platform and is covered on its own page. The T7910 stays attractive because it is well proven, its parts are plentiful and cheap, and the E5-2600 v4 generation still offers high core counts. If your software is licensed per core or per socket, or you want a GPU chassis at low cost, the T7910 is usually the better value; if you need the latest processor features or PCIe generation, look at the T7920.
1 TB of DDR4 ECC memory across sixteen slots with both processors installed, at speeds up to 2400 MHz depending on the processor. With one processor, eight slots and 512 GB are available. Fit modules in matched sets across the four channels of each processor for full bandwidth, and keep the same type throughout.
Dell specifies four PCI Express x16 graphics slots with a total graphics budget of 675 W, arranged as three 225 W cards in three slots, and sizes the 1300 W supply for three high-end cards. Two of the x16 slots depend on the second processor. Dell's list tops out at the Quadro M6000 and FirePro W9100; later cards are often used within the same power and space limits, so send us the card model to check.
The integrated LSI SAS 3008 gives software RAID 0, 1 and 10 across up to eight SAS or SATA drives at 12 Gb/s, which covers mirrored system drives and striped scratch space. RAID 5, or a protected write cache, needs an optional PCIe controller: the LSI MegaRAID SAS 9341-8i without cache or the 9361-8i with 1 GB cache backed by flash and a supercapacitor.
Yes, via PCIe. The Dell Ultra-Speed Drive Duo carries two M.2 NVMe SSDs in a half-height x8 slot and the Quad carries four in a full-height x16 slot, both actively cooled; Intel PCIe SSD cards are also on Dell's list. There is no M.2 socket on the board. Our configured units typically boot from NVMe on such a card, with SAS or SATA drives for data on the SAS 3008. Boot support depends on BIOS version; we set this up before delivery.
Each barebone listing states exactly what is included, typically chassis, system board and power supply with some items such as processors, heatsinks, memory, graphics and drives to be added. Send us the build you have in mind and we will quote the missing parts from Doha stock, fit and test them, and deliver a working machine. The heatsink and fan module and the 1300 W supply are listed separately for owners completing their own build.
Yes. The 1300 W supply is externally accessible and tool-less: release the latch, slide the old unit out of the rear, slide the new one in. It is a single supply, not redundant, so a failure stops the machine, which is why we list the 1300 W part on its own. Input is 181 to 240 VAC, matched to Qatar's mains. Tell us the part number on your existing unit so we can match it.
Yes. Delivery across Qatar is typically one day from Doha stock. Installation and base configuration are available as a service, from fitting processors, memory and graphics into a barebone to setting up RAID and the operating system on a complete unit. Business customers can request a quotation for several workstations and spares together.
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