Dell PowerEdge R510 Upgrade Guide
Maximize the performance and lifespan of your PowerEdge R510 (11G). Every upgrade option below is verified compatible.
Verified Specifications
| Processor Options | 2 sockets; quad-core or six-core Intel Xeon 5500 and 5600 series (Intel 5500 chipset, QPI) |
| Memory Configuration | 8 DIMM slots; DDR3 up to 1333MHz; max 128GB (1/2/4/8/16GB DIMMs) |
| Drive Configurations | Chassis options: 4x cabled 3.5"; 8x hot-swap 2.5"/3.5"; or 12x hot-swap 2.5"/3.5" plus 2 internal cabled 2.5"; max internal storage 12TB-37.8TB |
| Power Supply Options | 4-HDD: 480W non-redundant; 8-HDD: 750W or 1100W hot-plug (single or dual redundant); 12-HDD: 750W hot-plug (single or dual redundant) |
| RAID Controllers | Internal: SAS 6/iR, PERC 6/i, PERC S100/S300 (software), PERC H200, PERC H700 (512MB/1GB NV cache); External: PERC H800, PERC 6/E |
| Networking Options | Add-in NIC options per spec sheet: Broadcom 5709 dual-port GbE, Broadcom 57711 dual-port 10GbE SFP+, Intel Gigabit ET DP/QP, Intel X520-DA2 10GbE, Intel 10G Base-T single-port |
| Specification Source | Dell official documentation (verified 2026-07-03) |
Upgrade Storage
Moving from spinning disk to SSD or NVMe storage provides the largest single performance improvement — often 10-50x faster I/O. Consider NVMe for boot drives and high-IOPS workloads.
009JYJ Dell 3-TB 6G 7.2K 3.5 SAS W/F238F
009KK9 Dell 3-TB 6G 7.2K 3.5 SAS W/F238F
00J77H Dell 1.8-TB 12G 10K 2.5 SAS W/G176J
00JHTD Dell G14 12-TB 12G 7.2K 3.5 SED/Fips W/X7K8W
00K1PG Dell G14 900-GB 15K 12G 3.5 SAS Turbo W/X7K8W
00KV02 Dell G14 1.2-TB 12G 10K 2.5 SAS W/DXD9H
Upgrade Memory
Memory is the most impactful upgrade for virtualization and database workloads. Upgrading from 64GB to 128GB or 256GB can dramatically improve VM density and application response times.
0146H Dell 8GB RDIMM DDR3-1333 PC3-10600R ECC Memory
04WYKP Dell 8GB RDIMM DDR3-1066 PC3-8500R ECC Memory
093VH Dell 2GB RDIMM DDR3-1333 PC3-10600R ECC Memory
0C1KCN Dell 4GB RDIMM DDR3-1333 PC3-10600R ECC Memory
0MGY5T Dell 32GB RDIMM DDR3L-1333 PC3L-10600R ECC Memory
0R3M1C Dell 16GB RDIMM DDR3-1333 PC3-10600R ECC Memory
Upgrade Controllers
Upgrading your RAID controller enables faster disk I/O, larger cache, and support for newer drive technologies. Essential when adding NVMe or SAS-4 drives.
012DNW Dell Pe PERC H200E SAS RAID Controller
017MXW Dell Pe PERC H710 512MB RAID Controller
0189GX Emulex 8GB/S FC Dual Port PCI-E HBA
01J8JJ Dell Pe PERC H700 1GB SAS RAID Controller
01KRWN Dell QLogic 4GB/S FC DP PCI-E HBA
01THG8 Dell Pe PERC H700 512MB SAS RAID Controller
More PowerEdge R510 Resources
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