PCIe Card Configuration Rules

This server has ten PCI Express 2.0 slots that accommodate low-profile PCIe cards. All slots support x8 PCIe cards. Two slots are also capable of supporting x16 PCIe cards.

• Slots 4 and 5: x4 electrical interface

• Slots 0, 1, 2, 7, 8, and 9: x8 electrical interface

• Slots 3 and 6: x8 electrical interface (x16 connector)

To determine the slot in which to install a PCIe card, follow these guidelines:

• First consider any cooling considerations that require a card to be installed in a certain slot. When possible, place cards that contain temperature-sensitive components (for example, batteries) in the outer slots (0, 1, 8, and 9).

• If your configuration includes a SAS PCIe RAID HBA, install that HBA in slot 0. This slot is a good choice when cabling or cooling concerns exist.

• For high bandwidth cards, install the cards so that the load on the server is balanced between the server's two CPUs, each of which connects to five of the available PCIe slots. (CPU0 connects to slots 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8. CPU1 connects to slots 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9). Avoid slots 4 and 5 for high-bandwidth cards because they are x4 slots. To balance the loads, continue to alternate the high-bandwidth cards between even and odd numbered slots.

• Install lower-speed cards (for example, 1-Gbit/s Ethernet and 8-Gbit/s Fibre Channel adapters) in any remaining slots, since these cards perform well in any location, including the x4 slots, 4 and 5.

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