Lenovo ThinkSystem ST550 Upgrade Guide
Maximize the performance and lifespan of your ThinkSystem ST550 (V1). Every upgrade option below is verified compatible.
Verified Specifications
| Processor Options | 1-2x Intel Xeon Scalable Gen1/Gen2 (to 22C, 3.8GHz, 125W); 2x UPI 10.4 GT/s |
| Memory Configuration | 12x DDR4 RDIMM/LRDIMM to 2933 MHz (6/CPU), max 768 GB; ECC/SDDC/ADDDC/mirroring |
| Drive Configurations | 8/16/20x 2.5in SAS/SATA hot-swap (NVMe option), or 4/8x 3.5in, mixed 8x3.5+4x2.5, or simple-swap; max 614.4TB (20x 30.72TB SSD) |
| Power Supply Options | Up to 2x hot-swap 550/750/1100W Platinum or 750W Titanium; or 1x fixed 450W |
| RAID Controllers | Onboard 6Gb SATA AHCI/RSTe; 12Gb RAID adapters to 8GB FBC; HBAs |
| Networking Options | 2x 1GbE (Intel X722) |
| GPU Options | Slots 3+5 double-wide GPU capable |
| Specification Source | Lenovo official documentation (verified 2026-07-02) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Upgrade Accessories
Rails, bezels, cable management arms, and drive caddies keep your server organized and serviceable. Replacing worn accessories extends the physical life of your equipment.
00KF381 Lenovo Cable Front HDD 80MM for X3650 M5
00N9G Intel Core I3-8100 3.6GHZ Quad Core LGA1151 6MB CPU
00XL065 Lenovo 1M Power Cord Eu/Kr 3-PRONG
01KN185 Lenovo Motherboard for X3500 M5
03X4426 Lenovo Thinkserver RD630 Motherboard
03X4428 Lenovo Thinkserver RD630 Motherboard
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.
00MM832 Lenovo 3.2TB 12G SAS 2.5 V3700 Flash Drive
00NA497 Lenovo Hard Drive 2TB 7 2K SAS 2 5IN
00NA500 Lenovo Hard Drive 2TB 7 2K SAS 2 5IN
00YG665 Lenovo DS 8TB 7.2K NL-SAS 12G 3.5IN HDD DS2200/DS4200
00YG670 Lenovo DS 6TB 7.2K NL-SAS 12G 3.5IN HDD DS2200/DS4200
00YG675 Lenovo DS 4TB 7.2K NL-SAS SED Fips 12G 3.5IN HDD
Upgrade Networking
Stepping up from 1GbE to 10GbE or 25GbE eliminates network bottlenecks for VM migration, iSCSI storage traffic, and backup windows. Most modern workloads benefit from at least 10GbE.
00JY940 Lenovo Intel X710-DA2 ML2 10GB 2-PORT SFP+ Ethernet Adapter (flex System)
00MM850 Lenovo Intel X550-T1 Single Port 10GBASE-T PCIe Adapter
00MM860 Lenovo Intel X550-T2 Dual Port 10GBASE-T PCIe Adapter
00W0039 IBM Mellanox CONNECTX-3 Vpi QSFP FDR14/40GBE
407-BBOP Dell 10GBASE-LR SFP+ Transceiver
407-BBOS Dell 1000BASE-T SFP Transceiver
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.
03-25600-01B Lsi SAS 9300-16I 12GB/S SAS/SATA PCIe 3.0 X8 16-PORT Internal HBA Rev B
03T6739 Lenovo Megaraid SAS 9240 8I 6G 8 Port SAS SATA Controller
05-25190-02 Broadcom Megaraid SAS 9380-4I4E 12GB/S SAS/SATA RAID Controller
05-25420-08 Broadcom Megaraid SAS 9361-8I 12GB/S SAS/SATA RAID Controller
05-25420-10 Broadcom Megaraid SAS 9361-8I (2GB) 12GB/S SAS/SATA RAID Controller
05-25420-17 Broadcom Megaraid SAS 9361-4I 12GB/S SAS/SATA RAID Controller
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.
4M27A11810 Thinksystem Dummy DIMM Package Kit (contains 24 Dummy Memory Dimms)
4X70G88334 Lenovo 16GB 2Rx8 UDIMM DDR4-2400 PC4-19200E ECC Memory
4X77A08632 Lenovo 16GB 2Rx8 RDIMM DDR4-3200 PC4-25600R ECC Memory
4X77A08633 Lenovo 64GB 2Rx4 LRDIMM DDR4-3200 PC4-25600L ECC Memory
4X77A08634 Lenovo 32GB 2Rx8 RDIMM DDR4-3200 PC4-25600R ECC Memory
4X77A08635 Lenovo 64GB 2Rx4 RDIMM DDR4-3200 PC4-25600R ECC Memory
Upgrade Processors
CPU upgrades deliver more cores and higher clock speeds. If your workload is CPU-bound (compilation, analytics, HPC), upgrading from 8-core to 16+ core processors provides significant throughput improvement.
4F17A12349 Thinksystem SR650 Fan Option Kit (for 2ND Gen Processors Only; 1ST Gen
4F17A12350 Thinksystem SR630 Fan Option Kit (2ND Gen Processors Only)
4F17A12351 Thinksystem SR590 Fan Option Kit (for 2ND Gen Processors Only)
4F17A12353 Thinksystem SR550 Fan Option Kit (for 2ND Gen Processors Only)
4F17A12354 Thinksystem SR530 Fan Option Kit (for 2ND Gen Processors Only)
4F17A14487 Thinksystem 1U Performance Fan Option Kit (1 Fan) 1X Cpu: 6
Upgrade GPU
This category provides verified compatible upgrade paths. ICD engineers validate every part for compatibility with your specific server model and workload requirements.
02YE101 Lenovo Thinksystem SR650 V2 2U PCIe GEN4 X16/X8/X8 Riser Board FRU
490-BGMC Dell NVIDIA A100/H100 Nvlink Bridge Kit (3 Bridges for 2 Gpus)
490-BGSH Dell NVIDIA Ampere A100/A40 Nvlink Bridge for R750XA
4C57A09497 Thinksystem AMD Radeon Pro V340 32GB PCIe Passive GPU
4C57A09498 Thinksystem NVIDIA Tesla V100 16GB PCIe Passive GPU
4C57A15005 Thinksystem SR860 V2 X16/X16 PCIe FH Riser 2/3 (supports DOUBLE-WIDE Gpus)
Upgrade Cooling
This category provides verified compatible upgrade paths. ICD engineers validate every part for compatibility with your specific server model and workload requirements.
00KC677 Lenovo IBM Server Fan for X3650 M5
00UP186 Lenovo Thinkpad T460 Fan and Heatsink
01KP652 Lenovo IBM SR650 SR550 CPU High Performance Heatsink Heat Sink
02YE595 Thinksystem SR630/SR650 V2 3-HEATPIPE CPU Heatsink
03X3872 Lenovo Cooling Fan
0A91520 Lenovo Cooling Fan
Upgrade Power Supplies
Higher-wattage PSUs provide headroom for future upgrades — more RAM DIMMs, GPUs, or additional drives. Redundant hot-swap PSUs also protect against single-point power failures.
01DC149 Lenovo DS2200/DS4200/DS6200/D1212/D1224 584W Power Supply Alt Pn
01DC150 Lenovo DS2200/DS4200/DS6200/D1212/D1224 584W Power Supply
4P57A15363 Lenovo Thinksystem 1100W -48v DC Power Supply
4P57A26290 Thinksystem 500W 230V/115V Platinum Hot- Swap GEN2 Power Supply
4P57A26291 Thinksystem 750W 230V/115V Platinum Hot- Swap GEN2 Power Supply
4P57A26292 Thinksystem 750W 230V Titanium Hot- Swap GEN2 Power Supply
Upgrade Complete Server
This category provides verified compatible upgrade paths. ICD engineers validate every part for compatibility with your specific server model and workload requirements.
4M27A60833 Thinksystem ST650 V2/V3 Rack to Tower Conversion Kit
4M27A60835 Thinksystem ST650 V2/V3 Tower to Rack Conversion Kit
4XF7A95478 Thinksystem SE350 Port Dust Cover Kit 7X RJ-45 Fillers
LEN-ST250-V2-TOWER Lenovo Thinksystem ST250 V2 Tower Server (refurbished)
LEN-ST250-V3-TOWER Lenovo Thinksystem ST250 V3 Tower Server (new BTO)
LEN-ST50-V3-TOWER Lenovo Thinksystem ST50 V3 Tower Server (new BTO)
More ThinkSystem ST550 Resources
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