Dell - PowerEdge - R720 - Technical - Guide

PowerEdge R720
and R720xd
Technical Guide
Built to run
complex workloads
using highly
scalable memory,
I/O capacity and
flexible network
options.
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September 2013 | Version 5.0
ii PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Table of contents
1 System overview ................................................................................................................................................................. 6
Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................................ 6
New technologies .............................................................................................................................................................. 7
2 System features .................................................................................................................................................................. 9
Comparison of PowerEdge systems .............................................................................................................................. 9
Specifications ................................................................................................................................................................... 10
3 Chassis views and features .............................................................................................................................................. 13
Chassis views ..................................................................................................................................................................... 13
Chassis features ................................................................................................................................................................16
4 Processors ......................................................................................................................................................................... 20
Processor features ........................................................................................................................................................... 20
Supported processors ..................................................................................................................................................... 20
GPU support ..................................................................................................................................................................... 22
Chipset ............................................................................................................................................................................... 23
5 Memory .............................................................................................................................................................................. 24
Supported memory ......................................................................................................................................................... 24
Memory configurations .................................................................................................................................................. 25
Memory speed ................................................................................................................................................................. 26
Memory RAS features...................................................................................................................................................... 27
6 Storage ............................................................................................................................................................................... 29
Internal storage ................................................................................................................................................................ 29
External storage ................................................................................................................................................................ 31
Storage controllers ........................................................................................................................................................... 31
Optical drives .................................................................................................................................................................... 33
Tape drives ........................................................................................................................................................................ 33
7 Networking and PCIe ...................................................................................................................................................... 34
Select Network Adapters ................................................................................................................................................ 34
PCIe expansion ................................................................................................................................................................ 36
8 Power, thermal and acoustics ....................................................................................................................................... 39
Power consumption and energy efficiency ................................................................................................................ 39
Power supply units .......................................................................................................................................................... 40
Thermal and acoustics.....................................................................................................................................................41
9 Rack rails and cable management ................................................................................................................................ 44
Sliding and static rail systems ........................................................................................................................................ 44
Cable management arm................................................................................................................................................. 46
10 Operating systems and virtualization ........................................................................................................................... 47
Supported operating systems........................................................................................................................................ 47
Supported virtualization ................................................................................................................................................. 48
11 Dell OpenManage systems management .................................................................................................................... 49
Systems management solutions ................................................................................................................................... 49
OpenManage systems management ........................................................................................................................... 50
Dell server management operations ............................................................................................................................ 54
Appendix A. Additional specifications .......................................................................................................................... 57
Chassis dimensions ......................................................................................................................................................... 57
Chassis weight.................................................................................................................................................................. 57
Environmental specifications ........................................................................................................................................ 58
Power supply specifications .......................................................................................................................................... 59
Video specifications ........................................................................................................................................................ 59
Rack rail specifications ................................................................................................................................................... 60
USB peripherals ................................................................................................................................................................ 60
iii PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Appendix B. Standards compliance ..............................................................................................................................61
Appendix C. Additional resources................................................................................................................................. 63
Appendix D. System board block diagram .................................................................................................................. 65
Tables
Table 1. New technologies ................................................................................................................................................. 7
Table 2. Comparison of PowerEdge R710, R720 and R720xd .................................................................................... 9
Table 3. Technical specifications .................................................................................................................................... 10
Table 4. Chassis features ...................................................................................................................................................16
Table 5. Security features ..................................................................................................................................................19
Table 6. Supported processors ........................................................................................................................................ 21
Table 7. Memory technologies supported .................................................................................................................... 24
Table 8. DIMMs supported ............................................................................................................................................... 25
Table 9. Memory speed capabilities ............................................................................................................................... 26
Table 10. Memory RAS features ........................................................................................................................................ 27
Table 11. Chassis options ................................................................................................................................................... 29
Table 12. Supported hard drives ....................................................................................................................................... 30
Table 13. Supported external storage device types........................................................................................................ 31
Table 14. RAID controllers ................................................................................................................................................. 32
Table 15. Supported Select Network Adapter options and features .......................................................................... 35
Table 16. PCIe expansion slots .......................................................................................................................................... 36
Table 17. Supported NICs and HBAs ................................................................................................................................ 36
Table 18. Additional supported PCIe expansion cards ................................................................................................. 37
Table 19. Power tools and technologies ......................................................................................................................... 39
Table 20. Power supply efficiency .....................................................................................................................................41
Table 21. R720 acoustical performance (2.5-inch chassis) ......................................................................................... 43
Table 22. R720xd acoustical performance (2.5-inch chassis) ..................................................................................... 43
Table 23. Supported rack rail system ............................................................................................................................... 45
Table 24. Primary operating system support .................................................................................................................. 47
Table 25. Virtual guest operating system support ......................................................................................................... 48
Table 26. Virtualization support ........................................................................................................................................ 48
Table 27. iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller functions and benefits ........................................................................... 50
Table 28. Feature comparison for iDRAC7 Express and Enterprise ............................................................................. 51
Table 29. One-to-one and one-to-many operations .................................................................................................. 55
Table 30. Chassis weight .................................................................................................................................................... 57
Table 31. Environmental specifications ........................................................................................................................... 58
Table 32. Power supply specifications ............................................................................................................................. 59
Table 33. Supported video modes .................................................................................................................................... 60
Table 34. Rail adjustability ranges ..................................................................................................................................... 60
Table 35. Industry standard documents ...........................................................................................................................61
Table 36. Additional resources .......................................................................................................................................... 63
Figures
Figure 1. R720 front view (2.5” chassis with bezel) ........................................................................................................ 13
Figure 2. R720 front view (2.5” chassis without bezel) .................................................................................................. 13
Figure 3. R720xd front view (with bezel) .........................................................................................................................14
Figure 4. R720xd front view (2.5-inch chassis without bezel) .....................................................................................14
Figure 5. R720 back view ....................................................................................................................................................14
Figure 6. R720xd back view................................................................................................................................................ 15
Figure 7. R720 internal chassis view ................................................................................................................................. 15
Figure 8. R720xd internal chassis view .............................................................................................................................16
Figure 9. R720 LCD control panel..................................................................................................................................... 17
Figure 10. R720xd LED panel ...............................................................................................................................................18
Figure 11. QRL code inside chassis.....................................................................................................................................18
iv PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Figure 12. Rack network daughter card (NDC) ................................................................................................................ 34
Figure 13. 750W power supply unit ....................................................................................................................................41
Figure 14. Sliding rails with optional CMA ........................................................................................................................ 44
Figure 15. Static rails ............................................................................................................................................................. 45
Figure 16. Dell systems management solutions .............................................................................................................. 49
Figure 17. Systems management server lifecycle ........................................................................................................... 55
Figure 18. Chassis dimensions ............................................................................................................................................ 57
Figure 19. R720 system board block diagram.................................................................................................................. 65
Figure 20. R720xd system board block diagram ............................................................................................................. 66
.
v PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

1 System overview
Introduction
The Dell™ PowerEdge™ R720 and R720xd are Dell’s latest two-socket, 2U rack servers that are
designed to run complex workloads using highly scalable memory, I/O capacity, and flexible
network options. Both systems feature the Intel® Xeon® processor E5-2600 and E5-2600v2 product
families which offer up to 24 DIMMS, PCI Express® (PCIe) 3.0-enabled expansion slots and a choice
of network interface card (NIC) technologies.
The PowerEdge R720 is a general-purpose platform with highly expandable memory (up to 768GB)
and impressive I/O capabilities to match. The R720 can readily handle very demanding workloads,
such as data warehouses, e-commerce, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), databases and
high-performance computing (HPC).
In addition to the R720’s capabilities, the R720xd offers extraordinary storage capacity, making it well
suited for data-intensive applications that require storage and I/O performance, like medical imaging
and email servers.
Manage data overload

Keep pace with the explosion of data in the virtual age with the flexible I/O and storage capabilities
of the R720 and R720xd. The R720 supports up to 16 internal hard drives to increase your capacity,
while optional hot-plug, front-access Express Flash PCIe solid-state drives (up to four) enable
performance-enhancing, in-box storage tiering.
The PowerEdge R720xd allows you to quickly access and process vast amounts of data with up to
26 internal hot-plug hard disks. The R720xd is a great solution for any midsize or large business that
requires scalability in storage capacity.
Tailor your network fabric

The R720 and R720xd allow you to tailor your network throughput to match your application needs,
enabling added I/O performance. Dell’s Select Network Adapter options let you choose the right
network fabric without using up a valuable PCI slot. You can pick speed, technology, vendor and
other options, like switch independent partitioning, which lets you share and manage bandwidth on
10GbE connections.
Virtualize more
Maximize your data center’s application capacity by expanding your virtual environment using the
large memory footprint of the R720 and R720xd. Choose an industry-leading hypervisor and take
advantage of our system management capability to manage both physical and virtual assets.
Redundant failsafe hypervisors can also help maximize your virtual machines’ uptime.
Dell OpenManage™ Integration Suite for Microsoft System Center and VMware vCenter for ESXi can
help you easily manage complex virtual environments.
Simplified systems management, without compromise

The Dell OpenManage systems management portfolio includes Integrated Dell Remote Access
Controller 7 (iDRAC7) with Lifecycle Controller. This embedded feature helps IT administrators
manage Dell servers in physical, virtual, local and remote environments, operating in-band or out-
of-band, with or without a systems management software agent installed.
6 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

OpenManage iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller integrates and connects to leading third-party
systems management solutions (such as those from Microsoft, VMware and BMC Software), so users
can maintain a single point of control and capitalize on an existing systems management investment.
OpenManage simplifies the lifecycle of deploying, updating, monitoring, and maintaining Dell
PowerEdge servers.
New technologies
New technologies featured on the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd systems are detailed in Table 1.
Table 1. New technologies
New technologies Detailed descriptions
Intel Xeon processor

E5-2600 or E5- Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 and E-2600v2 product families have advanced features
2600v2 that deliver exceptional performance and value. See the Processors section for details.
product families
Intel C600 series

The R720 and R720xd servers use the Intel Platform Controller Hub (PCH) chip.
chipset
Intel Xeon E5-2600v2 processors support 1866MT/s memory. The R720 and R720xd
1866MT/s DDR3
support two DIMMs per channel at 1866MT/s with these processors. See the Memory
memory
section for details.
This new memory option, load-reduced DIMM (LRDIMM), is designed with a buffer
chip (or chips) to replace the register to help minimize loading. LRDIMMs can increase
LRDIMM
overall server system memory capacity and speed. See the Memory section for more
information.
Dell’s Select Network Adapter options allow you to customize your LAN port
Flexible LOM combinations from your choice of controller vendors. See the Networking and PCIe
section for details.
Next-generation The R720 and R720xd support new PERC controller cards with improved functionality
PERC options and faster performance. See the Storage section for details.
This new software RAID solution supports RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10 and supports a
PERC S110 software
maximum of four hot-plug SATA hard disk drives (HDD) or solid-state drives (SSD). See
RAID solution
the Storage section for details.
Dell Express Flash PCIe SSDs provide fast performance without requiring processor
Express Flash drives resources or capturing DRAM. The R720 supports up to four Express Flash drives. The
R720xd does not support Express Flash drives.
The new embedded system management solution for Dell servers features hardware
iDRAC7 with and firmware inventory and alerting, in-depth memory alerting, faster performance, a
Lifecycle Controller dedicated gigabit port and many more features. See the Dell OpenManage systems
management section for details.
The R720 supports internal graphics processing units (GPUs) for extreme computing
Internal GPU
power to solve high performance computing (HPC) needs. The R720xd does not
support
support internal GPUs. See the Processors section for details.
Advanced power The R720 and R720xd support advanced power monitoring and power capping tools
management that can help manage power consumption.

New technologies Detailed descriptions
DC power supply A new 1100W DC power supply option is available for the R720 and R720xd.
The internal dual SD module enables Dell's unique Failsafe Virtualization architecture,
Failsafe hypervisors ensuring uptime by providing failover capability for embedded hypervisors, such as
® ®
VMware vSphere ESXi™.
Dell has tested and validated an integrated data center solution that enables you to
Fresh Air cooling operate at higher temperatures or even chiller-less. See the Power, thermal and
acoustics section for details.

2 System features
Compared to the previous generation of Dell PowerEdge servers, the R720 and R720xd have more
drive bay options, more PCIe slots, a larger memory footprint, flexible I/O, Express Flash PCIe
solid-state drives, and advanced system management. The R720 also supports optional dual internal
RAID controllers and up to four optional internal GPUs.
Comparison of PowerEdge systems

The PowerEdge R720 and R720xd are replacements for the predecessor R710 system, three systems
which are compared in Table 2. For the latest information on supported features, visit
Dell.com/PowerEdge.
Table 2. Comparison of PowerEdge R710, R720 and R720xd
Feature PowerEdge R710 PowerEdge R720 PowerEdge R720xd
Chassis 2U rack 2U rack 2U rack

Intel Xeon processor Intel Xeon processor
Intel Xeon processors
Processors E5-2600 or E5-2600v2 E5-2600 or E5-2600v2
5500 and 5600 series
product families product families
Intel QuickPath Intel QuickPath Intel QuickPath
Internal interconnect
Interconnect Interconnect Interconnect
18 DDR3 RDIMM and 24 x DDR3 RDIMM, 24 x DDR3 RDIMM,
1
Memory UDIMM UDIMM and LRDIMM UDIMM and LRDIMM
Up to 288GB Up to 768GB Up to 768GB
Hard drive bays Up to eight 2.5” or six Up to 16 2.5“ or eight Up to 24 2.5“+ two 2.5”
(hot plug) 3.5” 3.5” or 12 3.5” + two 2.5”
PERC S110, H310, H710,
PERC 6/i, SAS 6/iR, PERC H310, H710,
H710P, H810 (external);
RAID controllers PERC 6/E, H710P,
supports multiple (2)
H200, H700, H800 H810 (external)
internal RAID controllers
PCI slots 4 PCIe 2.0 7 PCIe 3.0 6 PCIe 3.0
Express Flash drives Not supported Up to 4 Not supported
Select Network Adapter: Select Network Adapter:
4 1GbE with optional minimum configuration minimum configuration
Embedded NICs of 4 1Gb of 4 1Gb
TOE
Optional: 2 x 10GbE Optional: 2 x 10GbE
Hot-plug, redundant Hot-plug, redundant
Hot-plug, redundant
power supply units: power supply units:
Power supplies power supply units:
495W, 750W, 1100W, 495W, 750W, 1100W, or
570W or 870W
1100W DC 1100W DC
Power efficiency Gold Titanium Titanium

Feature PowerEdge R710 PowerEdge R720 PowerEdge R720xd
OpenManage Essentials OpenManage Essentials

OMSA Agent OMSA Agent
OpenManage Power OpenManage Power
Dell OpenManage Center (requires iDRAC7 Center (requires iDRAC7
Enterprise with Lifecycle Enterprise with Lifecycle
Dell OpenManage Lifecycle Controller 1.x
Controller) Controller)
systems management iDRAC6 (Express or
OpenManage OpenManage
Enterprise) with
Integrations and Integrations and
Lifecycle Controller 1.x
Connections Connections
iDRAC7 Express with iDRAC7 Express with
Lifecycle Controller Lifecycle Controller
(standard option) (standard option)
2 x 300W (double wide)
Internal GPU Not supported or Not supported
4 x 150W (single wide)
Hot-plug drives Hot-plug drives
Hot-plug drives
Hot-plug redundant Hot-plug redundant
Hot-plug redundant
cooling cooling
Availability cooling
Hot-plug redundant Hot-plug redundant
Hot-plug redundant PSUs PSUs
PSUs
Internal dual SD module Internal dual SD module
1
GB means 1 billion bytes and TB means 1 trillion bytes; actual capacity varies with preloaded material and operating
environment and will be less.
Specifications
Table 3 lists the technical specifications for the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd systems. For the latest
information on supported features, visit Dell.com/PowerEdge.
Table 3. Technical specifications
Feature Specification
Form factor 2U rack
Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 or E5-2600v2

Processors
product families
Processor sockets 2 sockets
Internal interconnect 2 Intel QuickPath Interconnect (QPI) links; 6.4GT/s; 7.2GT/s; 8.0GT/s
Cache 2.5MB per core; core options: 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
Chipset Intel C602

1
Memory Up to 768GB (24 DIMM slots): 2GB/4GB/8GB/16GB/32GB DDR3 up to 1866MT/s
R720: R720xd:
7 PCIe slots: 6 PCIe slots:
PCIe slots
One x16 full-length, full-height Two x16 full-length, full-height
Three x8 full-length, full-height One x8 full-length, full-height

Three x8 half-length, half-height Three x8 half-length, half-height
Internal controllers: External HBAs (RAID):

PERC S110 (software RAID; R720 only) PERC H810
RAID controller PERC H310 External HBAs (non-RAID):
PERC H710 6Gbps SAS HBA
PERC H710P
R720 drive bay options:

 Up to 16 x 2.5“
 Up to 8 x 2.5” + 8 x 2.5” (with dual RAID controllers)
 Up to 8 x 2.5”
 Up to 8 x 2.5” + 4 x 2.5” Express Flash
 Up to 8 x 3.5”
Hard drives R720xd drive bay options:
(hot-plug)  Up to 24 x 2.5” (front) + 2 x 2.5” (back)
 Up to 12 x 3.5” (front) + 2 x 2.5” (back)
Hard drive options:
 2.5” SAS SSD, SATA SSD, SAS (15K, 10K), nearline SAS (7.2K), SATA (7.2K)
 2.5” Express Flash PCIe SSD (R720 only)
 3.5” SAS (15K), nearline SAS (7.2K), SATA (7.2K)
Self-encrypting drives (SEDs) available
Select Network Adapter options:

®
Broadcom 5720 4x1Gb Base-T
Intel I350 4x1Gb Base-T
Embedded NIC Intel X540 2x1Gb + 2x10Gb Base-T
Broadcom 57800S 2x1Gb + 2x10Gb Base-T
Broadcom 57800S 2x1Gb + 2x10Gb SFP+
Broadcom 57840S 4x10Gb SFP+
Auto-ranging Titanium efficiency 750W AC power supply

Power supply Auto-ranging Platinum efficiency 495W, 750W or 1100W AC power supply
1100W DC power supply
High-efficiency, hot-plug, redundant power supplies; hot-plug drive bays; TPM; dual
internal SD support; hot-plug redundant fan; optional bezel; information tag; ECC
Availability
memory, interactive LCD screen (R720 only); extended thermal support; ENERGY
®
STAR compliant configuration; switch independent partitioning
 OpenManage Essentials
 OMSA Agent
Dell OpenManage
 OpenManage Power Center (requires iDRAC7 Enterprise with Lifecycle
systems management
Controller)
(Agent-free or with  OpenManage Integrations and Connections:
OpenManage Server ®
- OpenManage Integration Suite for Microsoft System Center
Administrator [OMSA]
- OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter
Agent) ® ® ® ®
- Connections for HP Operations Manager, IBM Tivoli Netcool and CA
Network and Systems Management

 iDRAC7 Express with Lifecycle Controller (standard option)

- Upgrade to iDRAC7 Enterprise with Lifecycle Controller
- Upgrade to 8GB vFlash media or 16GB vFlash media for iDRAC7 Enterprise
with Lifecycle Controller
- Trial evaluation available for IDRAC7 Enterprise with Lifecycle Controller
ReadyRails™ sliding rails for tool-less mounting in 4-post racks with square or
unthreaded round holes or tooled mounting in 4-post threaded hole racks with
support for optional tool-less cable management arm
Rack support ReadyRails static rails for tool-less mounting in 4-post racks with square or
unthreaded round holes or tooled mounting in 4-post threaded and 2-post (Telco)
racks
®
Microsoft Windows Server 2012
®
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, x64 (includes Hyper-V )
®
Microsoft Windows HPC Server 2008
Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2011
® ® ®
Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
®
Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Operating systems
Virtualization options:
® ®
Citrix XenServer
VMware vSphere ESXi
®
Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization
For more information on the specific versions and additions, visit
Dell.com/OSsupport.
1
GB means 1 billion bytes and TB means 1 trillion bytes; actual capacity varies with preloaded material and operating
environment and will be less.

3 Chassis views and features
The Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd implement a new chassis design which supports an increased
number of DIMMs, PCIe slots and hard drives, relative to their predecessor servers. The following
sections provide external and internal views of the systems and describe the chassis features.
For information on features and descriptions for these systems, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and
R720xd Owner's Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.
Chassis views
The R720 and R720xd are available in several chassis options with varying numbers of drive bays.
Note: A chassis cannot be reconfigured or upgraded after point of purchase.
R720 front views

The R720 supports up to 16 2.5-inch or up to 8 3.5-inch front-accessible, hot-plug hard drives that
are secured by a removable front bezel. Other front-panel features include an interactive LCD
control panel, 2 USB connectors, a video connector and a vFlash media card slot.
Figure 1. R720 front view (2.5” chassis with bezel)
Figure 2. R720 front view (2.5” chassis without bezel)

R720xd front views
The R720xd supports up to 24 2.5-inch or up to 12 3.5-inch front-accessible, hot-plug hard drives
that are secured by a removable front bezel. Other front-panel features include an LED control
panel, a USB connector and a video connector.
Figure 3. R720xd front view (with bezel)
Figure 4. R720xd front view (2.5-inch chassis without bezel)
R720 back view

The R720 back panel includes features such as redundant hot-plug power supply units (PSUs), four
Ethernet connectors, PCI expansion slots and many other features that are described in the rest of
this guide.
Figure 5. R720 back view

R720xd back view
In addition to the R720 back-panel features, the R720xd also includes two optional 2.5-inch
hot-plug drives in the back of the system.
Figure 6. R720xd back view
Internal chassis views

The chassis design of the R720 and R720xd is optimized for easy access to components and for
airflow for effective and efficient cooling. The R720 and R720xd support up to 24 DIMMs,
two processors, hot-plug redundant fans, and many other components and features that are
described in this guide.
Figure 7. R720 internal chassis view

Figure 8. R720xd internal chassis view
For additional system views, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Owner’s Manual on
Dell.com/Support/Manuals.
Chassis features
Table 4 lists the chassis features for the R720 and R720xd systems. For additional information on
these features, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Owner’s Manual on
Dell.com/Support/Manuals.
Table 4. Chassis features
Feature Description
Power button and indicator ACPI-complaint power button with an integrated green power LED
Recessed non-maskable interrupt (NMI) button used to troubleshoot

software and device driver errors; use only if directed to do so by
NMI button
qualified support personnel or by the operating system's
documentation
Buttons on the back and front of a system to help identify the unit in a
System identification button
data center environment
Hard drive activity LEDs Indicate the status and activity of the hard drives
Two (R720) or one (R720xd) front, two back, and one internal USB
USB connectors
connector
Supports one vFlash media card (the R720 slot is located in the front of
vFlash media reader the system and the R720x slot is located in the back); functionality is
activated only when iDRAC7 Enterprise is enabled

Feature Description
Video connector Connects a monitor to the system
LCD control panel Provides user access to buttons, display and I/O interfaces (R720 only)
LED panel Indicates the status of system conditions (R720xd only)
Front-accessible, hot-plug hard drives plus two optional

Hard drives
back-accessible hot-plug hard drives (R720xd only)
The R720 supports one optional slimline SATA DVD-ROM drive or

Optical drive (optional)
DVD+/-RW drive; R720xd does not support an internal optical drive
System identification panel Slide-out label panel for system information
Serial connector Connects a serial device to the system and for console redirect
iDRAC7 Enterprise port Dedicated management port for optional iDRAC7 Enterprise
The R720 supports up to seven PCIe expansion cards; R720xd supports

PCIe expansion card slots
up to six PCIe expansion cards
Ethernet connectors Choice of network connectors through Select Network Adapter family
Power supply units Up to two back-accessible, hot-plug power supplies
Power supply indicators Indicate whether system has power
NIC indicators Indicate network activity and status
This code on the chassis can be scanned by a phone application to

Quick Resource Locator (QRL)
access information about the server
LCD control panel (R720)

The R720 system control panel is located on the front of the chassis to provide user access to
buttons, display, and I/O interfaces. For more information on the R720 LCD control panel, see the
Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Owner's Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.
Figure 9. R720 LCD control panel

LED panel (R720xd)
The R720xd LED panel is located on the front of the chassis to indicate the status of system
conditions. For more information on the R720xd LED panel, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and
R720xd Owner's Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.
Figure 10. R720xd LED panel
Quick Resource Locator

A useful feature included with Dell PowerEdge 12th generation servers is the Quick Resource Locator
(QRL) — a model-specific Quick Response (QR) code that is located on the server (shown in Figure
11). Just use your smartphone to access the Dell QRL application to learn more about the server.
Figure 11. QRL code inside chassis
This QRL code allows you to:

 View step-by-step videos, including overviews of system internals and externals, as well as
detailed, concise task-oriented videos and installation wizards
 Locate reference materials, including searchable owner’s manual content, LCD diagnostics and
an electrical overview

 Look up your service tag so you can quickly gain access to your specific hardware configuration
info and warranty information
 Contact Dell directly (by link) to get in touch with technical support and sales teams and provide
feedback to Dell
These codes provide an easy way to retrieve the critical support information you need when you
need it, making you more efficient and effective in managing your hardware.
Security features
The latest generation of PowerEdge servers has the features listed in Table 5 to help ensure the
security of your data center.
Table 5. Security features
Security feature Description
A tooled latch is integrated in the top cover to secure it to the

Cover latch
rack chassis.
An optional metal bezel is mounted to the chassis front to provide

the Dell ID. A lock on the bezel is used to protect un-authorized
Front bezel
access to hard drives. System status is viewable on the LCD or
LED panel when the bezel is installed.
The Trusted Platform Module (TPM) is used to generate/store

keys, protect/authenticate passwords, and create/store digital
certificates. It also supports the Intel Xeon TXT functionality. TPM
TPM
can also be used to enable the BitLocker™ hard drive encryption
feature in Windows Server 2008. TPM 1.2 is supported. No TPM
version is available for China or Russia.
Power-off security BIOS has the ability to disable the power button function.
Intrusion alert An internal switch is used to detect chassis intrusion.
BIOS has the ability to enter a secure boot mode through system
Secure mode setup. This mode includes the option to lock out the power and
NMI switches on the control panel or set up a system password.

4 Processors
Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd servers feature the exceptional performance, value and power
efficiency of the Intel Xeon processor E5-2600v2 product family. With up to 12 cores and 30MB
cache, E5-2600v2 processors have the capacity to deliver performance gains of up to 40% over
previous-generation E5-2600 processors. No matter your constraint — floor space, power or
budget — E5-2600v2 processors can help you achieve more computational horsepower, in the
same footprint, with better security and power efficiency.
Processor features
The Intel Xeon processor E5-2600v2 product family has powerful new features and improves upon
many of the capabilities of the predecessor Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 series:
 With up to four additional cores, 10MB more cache and a 17% increase in memory speeds,
E5-2600v2 processors may boost performance by up to 40% in Dell PowerEdge server
platforms.
 Support for DDR3 1866MT/s memory provides faster connections throughout the system.
 Up to 24 DIMM slots and support for up to 32GB DIMMs enable memory capacity of 768GB.
Dell’s exclusive Fault Resilient Memory technology provides a protected memory zone for a
hypervisor without consuming half of the total RAM in the system.
 In combination with Fault Resilient Memory, E5-2600v2 processors offer Failsafe Virtualization
for unsurpassed industry protection for virtual machines.
 Intel Secure Key and Intel OS Guard deliver faster and more secure encryption.
 Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller virtualization (APICv) improves virtualization
performance by reducing virtual machine (VM) exits, thereby reducing overhead required to
service every APIC interrupt.
 Intel Integrated PCI Express 3.0 provides up to 40 lanes per socket.
 Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 delivers up to double the boost of the previous-generation
turbo technology.
 Dell Processor Acceleration Technology (DPAT), enabled through the BIOS, minimizes transition
duration when the processor functions in turbo mode, thereby decreasing jitter and allowing for
lesser latency.
 Intel Data Direct I/O (DDIO) allows I/O traffic to skip the main system memory and be directed
straight to the processor cache, which can provide a significant reduction in latency as well as
allowing memory to remain in a low-power state.
 Intel Advanced Vector Extensions offer up to double the floating point operations per clock
cycle by doubling the length of registers, which can be useful in the large-number calculations
that are integral to many technical, financial and scientific computing problems.
For more information on Intel Xeon processor E5-2600v2 product family, visit Intel.com.
Supported processors
The R720 and R720xd support up to two processors with up to 12 cores per processor. Table 6 lists
the Intel Xeon E5-2600 and E5-2600v2 processors supported by the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd.
For the latest information on supported processors, visit Dell.com/PowerEdge.

Table 6. Supported processors
Model Speed Cache QPI Cores Turbo TDP
E5-2697v2 2.7Ghz 30M 8.0GT/s 12 Yes 130W
E5-2695v2 2.4Ghz 30M 8.0GT/s 12 Yes 115W
E5-26901 2.9GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 135W
E5-2690v21 3.0GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 10 Yes 130W
E5-2680 2.7GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 130W
E5-2680v2 2.8GHz 25M 8.0GT/s 10 Yes 115W

2
E5-2670 2.6GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 115W
E5-2670v2 2.5GHz 25M 8.0GT/s 10 Yes 115W
E5-2665 2.4GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 115W
E5-2667 2.6GHz 15M 8.0GT/s 6 Yes 130W
E5-2667v2 3.0GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 130W

2
E5-2660 2.2GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 95W
E5-2660v2 2.2GHz 25M 8.0GT/s 10 Yes 95W
E5-2650L 1.8GHz 20M 7.2GT/s 8 Yes 70W
E5-2650Lv2 1.7GHz 25M 8.0GT/s 10 Yes 60W
E5-2650 2.0GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 95W
E5-2650v2 2.6GHz 20M 8.0GT/s 8 Yes 95W
E5-2643 3.3Ghz 10M 8.0GT/s 4 Yes 130W
E5-2643v2 3.3GHz 15M 8.0GT/s 6 Yes 130W

2
E5-2640 2.5GHz 15M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 95W
E5-2640v2 2.0GHz 20M 7.2GT/s 8 Yes 95W
E5-2637 3.0GHz 5M 8.0GT/s 2 Yes 80W
E5-2637v2 3.5GHz 10M 8.0GT/s 4 Yes 130W
E5-2630 2.3GHz 15M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 95W
E5-2630v2 2.6GHz 20M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 80W

2
E5-2630L 2.0GHz 15M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 60W
E5-2630Lv2 2.4GHz 15M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 60W

2
E5-2620 2.0GHz 15M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 95W
E5-2620v2 2.1GHz 15M 7.2GT/s 6 Yes 80W

2
E5-2609 2.4GHz 10M 6.4GT/s 4 No 80W
E5-2609v2 2.5GHz 10M 6.4GT/s 4 No 80W

Model Speed Cache QPI Cores Turbo TDP
E5-2603 1.8GHz 10M 6.4GT/s 4 No 80W
E5-2603v2 1.8GHz 10M 6.4GT/s 4 No 80W

1
Not supported on the R720xd 3.5-inch chassis.
2
Model available for the life of the system.
For information on processor installation and configuration, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and
R720xd Owner’s Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.
GPU support
The R720 supports GPU technology, which can provide accelerated performance for a variety of
applications, including virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) and HPC implementations. The R720xd
does not support internal or external GPUs.
Internal GPU support

The R720 can support two 300W, full-length, double-wide GPU cards or up to four 150W,
full-length, single-wide GPU cards. Each GPU can support up to 6GB of dedicated GDDR5 memory
and is either actively or passively cooled. The GPUs are installed on the PCIe x16 2.0 interfaces
available on riser 2 and GPU-optional riser 3. A system must have the optional riser 3 with a single
x16 slot to support more than two GPUs.
Because GPUs demand high power, each GPU has up to two power connectors for power delivery.
The GPU enablement kit is required for internal GPU installation. The kit contains the power cables
and other items to enable GPU support on the R720 chassis.
Internal CPU cooling restriction

Due to the high power consumption of GPUs, there is an ambient temperature restriction of 30oC
maximum system inlet temperature to ensure adequate system cooling the R720 has one or more
GPUs installed. Note that this temperature is less than the standard environmental specification of
35oC.
Other GPU restrictions

The following GPU restrictions for the R720 are enforced by the order validator:
 Requires two processors
 Processors must be 115W or less
 Maximum of two double-wide GPUs (since they take up two slots)
 Maximum of four single-wide GPUs
 All GPUs must be same type and model
 GPUs require a redundant 1100W power supply and GPU enablement kit
 Two double-wide GPUs require the optional riser 3 with a single x16 slot
 Four single-wide GPUs cannot occupy optional riser 3 with a single x16 slot
 Dell PowerVault™ RD1000 backup unit not supported

External GPU support
For external GPU support, the R720 connects to the PowerEdge C410x through a host interface
card (HIC) and an iPass cable. Both the NVIDIA® and Dell x16 HIC require one x16 PCIe slot. Each
HIC supports up to four GPUs maximum due to internal memory allocation for the PCIe subsystem.
More than four GPUs per HIC attached to the server will impact performance of other PCIe
devices. The R720 supports up to eight GPUs in the PowerEdge C410x external chassis. For a list of
supported GPU HICs, see Table 18. For more information about the PowerEdge C410x, see
Dell.com/PowerEdgeC.
Supported GPU cards

For a list of supported GPUs, see Table 18 and Dell.com/PowerEdge/GPU.
Operating system support for GPUs

Some operating systems have not been validated to support GPUs. See Table 24 and Table 25 for
more information on operating system support of GPUs.
Chipset
The PowerEdge R720 and R720xd servers use the Intel C602 chipset. For more information, visit
Intel.com.

5 Memory
More memory options are available than ever before with the Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd —
greater capacities, higher frequencies and more flexibility. The R720 and R720xd support up to
768GB of memory (24 DIMMs) and speeds up to 1866MT/s, providing high performance in a variety
of applications. High memory density means there is no compromise when it comes to virtualization.
Increase your uptime and reduce data loss due to Dell’s focus on reliability, availability and
serviceability (RAS) features. RAS aids in the rapid and accurate diagnosis of faults that require service,
increasing your memory reliability. System uptime is reinforced with RAS features like memory
mirroring, sparing and many others.
In addition to supporting existing unbuffered DIMMs (UDIMMs) and registered DIMMs (RDIMMs), the
R720 and R720xd support load-reduced DIMMs (LRDIMMs), which use a buffer to reduce memory
loading and provide greater density, allowing for the maximum platform memory capacity.
Supported memory
Table 7 lists the memory technologies supported by the R720 and R720xd.
Table 7. Memory technologies supported
Feature UDIMM RDIMM LRDIMM
Register No Yes Yes
Buffer No No Yes
800, 1066, 1333, 800, 1066, 1333, 1066, 1333, 1600 or

Frequencies*
1600 or 1866MT/s 1600 or 1866MT/s 1866MT/s
Ranks supported 1 or 2 1, 2, or 4 4
Capacity per DIMM 2 or 4GB 2, 4, 8, 16 or 32GB 32GB
Maximum DIMMs per

2 3 3
channel
DRAM technology x8 x4 or x8 x4
Temperature sensor Yes Yes Yes
Error Correction Code

Yes Yes Yes
(ECC)
Single Device Disable Yes (with advanced

Yes Yes
Code (SDDC) ECC mode)
Address parity Yes Yes Yes

*Although the R720 and R720xd support DIMM speeds of 800MT/s and 1066MT/s, you can only purchase these
systems with DIMM speeds of 1333MT/s, 1600MT/s and 1866MT/s on Dell.com/PowerEdge.

Table 8 lists the DIMMs supported on the R720 and R720xd. For the latest information on supported
memory, visit Dell.com/PowerEdge.
Table 8. DIMMs supported
Only
Ranks
Capacity Speed Data
Type per SDDC support Voltage
(GB) (MT/s) width
DIMM
2 1600 RDIMM 1 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35

2 1600 UDIMM 1 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35
4 1333 RDIMM 1 x4 All modes 1.35
4 1600 UDIMM 2 x8 Advanced ECC 1.35
32 1866 LRDIMM 4 x4 All modes 1.5
Memory configurations
The R720 and R720xd servers support flexible memory configurations ranging from capacities of
2GB (minimum) to 768GB (maximum). The R720 and R720xd support up to 12 DIMMs per processor
(up to 24 DIMMs in a dual-processor configuration). Each server has four memory channels per
processor, with each channel supporting up to three DIMMs.
Both systems support a flexible memory configuration, according to the following basic rules:
 Speed: If DIMMs of different speeds are mixed, all channels across all processors operate at the
slowest DIMM’s common frequency.
 DIMM type: Only one type of DIMM is allowed per system: UDIMM, RDIMM, or LRDIMM. These
types cannot be mixed.
The following additional memory-population guidelines apply to the R720 and R720xd:

 Up to two quad-rank (QR) DIMMs and up to three dual-rank (DR) or single-rank (SR) DIMMs may
be populated per channel. Although an LRDIMM is physically a QR DIMM, logic on the LRDIMM
can make it appear as a DR DIMM to the system, allowing up to three LDRIMMs per channel.
 DIMMs must be installed in each channel, starting with the DIMM farthest from the processor.
 DIMMs should be installed with largest rank count to smallest. For example, if DR DIMMS are
mixed with SR DIMMs, DR DIMMS should be placed in the lowest DIMM slots, followed by the SR
DIMMs.
For more information on memory configuration and population, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and
Memory speed
The R720 and R720xd support memory speeds of up to 1866MT/s, depending on DIMM types
installed and configuration. Memory on processors and channels run at the same speed and voltage.
By default, the systems run at the highest speed for the channel with the lowest DIMM voltage and
speed. The operating speed of the memory is also determined by the maximum speed supported by
the processor, the speed settings in the BIOS and the operating voltage of the system.
Table 9 lists the memory configuration and performance details for the R720 and R720xd, based on
the population of the number and type of DIMMs per memory channel.
Table 9. Memory speed capabilities
Number Speed (MT/s)

DIMM
DIMM 0 DIMM 1 DIMM 2 of
type
DIMMs 800* 1066* 1333 1600 1866
SR 1 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
DR 1 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
UDIMM SR SR 2 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
SR DR 2 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
DR DR 2 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
SR 1 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
DR 1 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
QR 1 ∞ ∞ ∞
SR SR 2 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
SR DR 2 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
RDIMM DR DR 2 ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
QR SR 2 ∞ ∞
QR DR 2 ∞ ∞
QR QR 2 ∞ ∞
SR SR SR 3 ∞ ∞ ∞
SR SR DR 3 ∞ ∞ ∞

Number Speed (MT/s)
DIMM
DIMM 0 DIMM 1 DIMM 2 of
type
DIMMs 800* 1066* 1333 1600 1866
SR DR DR 3 ∞ ∞ ∞
DR DR DR 3 ∞ ∞ ∞
QR 1 ∞ ∞ ∞
LRDIMM QR QR 2 ∞ ∞
QR QR QR 3 ∞
*Although the R720 and R720xd support DIMM speeds of 800MT/s and 1066MT/s, you can only purchase these systems
with DIMM speeds of 1333MT/s, 1600MT/s and 1866MT/s at Dell.com/PowerEdge.
Memory RAS features

Reliability, availability and serviceability (RAS) features help keep the system online and operational
without significant impact to performance, and can decrease data loss and crashing due to errors.
RAS aids in rapid, accurate diagnosis of faults which require service. Table 10 describes the memory
RAS features supported on the R720 and R720xd.
Table 10. Memory RAS features
Feature Description
Increased memory reliability can result from this selectable platform profile, which
Dense configuration
adjusts parameters to reduce faults regarding refresh rates, speed, temperature
optimized profile
and voltage
Demand scrubbing is the ability to write corrected data back to the memory once
Memory demand and
a correctable error is detected on a read transaction. Patrol scrubbing proactively
patrol scrubbing
searches the system memory, repairing correctable errors.
Recovery from single Recovery from Single DRAM Device Failure (SDDC) provides error checking and
DRAM device failure correction that protects against any single memory chip failure as well as multi-bit
(SDDC) errors from any portion of a single memory chip.
This feature provides the ability to identify a specific failing DIMM channel pair,
Failed DIMM isolation
thereby enabling the user to replace only the failed DIMM pair.
Memory mirroring is a method of keeping a duplicate (secondary or mirrored)

Memory mirroring: copy of the contents of memory as a redundant backup for use if the primary
intra-socket memory fails. The mirrored copy of the memory is stored in memory of the same
processor socket.
Memory address parity This feature provides the ability to detect transient errors on the address lines of
protection the DDR channel.
Memory sparing allocates one rank per channel as a spare. If excessive correctable
errors occur in a rank or channel, they are moved to the spare area while the
Memory sparing (rank)
operating system is running to prevent the errors from causing an uncorrectable
failure.

Feature Description
Memory thermal This feature helps to optimize power/performance and can also be used to
throttling prevent DIMMs from overheating.
For information on memory mirroring and sparing configurations, see the Dell PowerEdge R720 and
R720xd Owner’s Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals. Memory RAID is not supported.

6 Storage
The Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd provide storage expandability that allows you to adapt to
your workload and operational demands. With comprehensive storage options, the R720 and
R720xd offer various drive types, internal and external storage controllers, and different chassis and
backplanes for varied numbers of drives.
Due to their massive internal storage capacities, the R720 and R720xd are optimized for a variety of
implementations, including virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) environments and collaboration
solutions. The R720 supports up to 16 and the R720xd supports up to 26 internal 2.5-inch drives.
Features such as Express Flash PCIe solid-state drives and CacheCade provide vastly accelerated
performance over previous technologies. Dell Express Flash drives use PCIe lanes to connect
directly to the processor and chipset and are easily accessible through a hot-plug drive bay.
CacheCade uses Dell PERC storage controllers to accelerate performance over hard drives or
traditional solid-state drives.
Internal storage
The R720 and R720xd are available in several hot-plug, hard-drive chassis options, as detailed in
Table 11. Note that the chassis option must be selected at the point of purchase and cannot be
changed or upgraded later.
Table 11. Chassis options
PowerEdge server Chassis option
16 x 2.5” drives
8 x 2.5” + 8 x 2.5” drives

(with dual RAID controllers)
R720 8 x 2.5” drives
8 x 2.5” + 4 x Express Flash drives
8 x 3.5” drives
24 x 2.5” drives (front) +

1
2 x 2.5” drives (back)
R720xd
12 x 3.5” drives (front) +
1
2 x 2.5” drives (back)
1
Back-accessible 2.5” drives are optional

Supported hard drives
Table 12 lists the internal hard drives supported by the R720 and R720xd. For the latest information
on supported hard drives, visit Dell.com/PowerEdge.
Table 12. Supported hard drives
Form Speed
Type Capacities
factor (rpm)
SATA (3Gb) 7.2K 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB
3.5” Nearline SAS (6Gb) 7.2K 1TB, 2TB, 3TB, 4TB
SAS (6Gb) 15K 300GB, 600GB
SATA (3Gb) 7.2K 250GB, 500GB, 1TB
Nearline SAS (6Gb) 7.2K 500GB, 1TB, 1TB (SED)
300GB, 600GB, 900GB, 900GB

SAS (6Gb) 10K
(SED)
2.5” SAS (6Gb) 15K 146GB, 300GB, 300GB (SED)
SAS SSD (SLC, 6Gb) N/A 200GB, 400GB
SATA SSD (eMLC,

N/A 100GB, 200GB, 400GB, 800GB
3Gb)
Express Flash
N/A 175GB, 350GB
PCIe SSD (SLC)
Express Flash drives

Express Flash drives use PCIe and SSD technologies to provide performance, scalability and optimal
serviceability. Accelerated performance with high IOPs is made possible without requiring processor
resources or capturing DRAM. Express Flash drives also use a standardized, 2.5-inch hot-plug form
factor, which saves critical PCIe slot space by moving drives from the back to the front of the system
and allows a common management process for all drives.
The PowerEdge R720 has an option to support up to four hot-plug Express Flash PCIe SSDs in the
2.5-inch chassis. The R720xd does not support Express Flash drives.

External storage
The R720 and R720xd support the external storage devices types listed in Table 13. For more storage
information, see Dell.com/Storage.
Table 13. Supported external storage device types
Device type Description

Supports connection to external USB tape products (supports boot
from Dell PowerVault RD1000)
Supports connection to external SAS tape products
External tape Supports connection to external FC tape products
Supports connection to external SCSI tape products (legacy support

only)
Supports connection to external iSCSI tape products
NAS / IDM appliance software Supports NAS software stack
Supports connection to current PowerVault NAS (Network Attached

Dell PowerVault NAS Storage) products
Supports connection to current PowerVault direct-attach storage

PowerVault DAS (DAS) (including JBOD and RBOD enclosures) products
Supports connection to current PowerVault storage area network

PowerVault SAN (SAN) (including Dell EqualLogic™, iSCSI, Dell-EMC arrays, and JBOD
disk enclosures) products
Supports connection to current PowerVault intelligent data

PowerVault IDM management (IDM) (archive solutions, de-duplication, B2D, and
data-protection appliances) products
Storage controllers
Dell provides highly capable RAID options for you to ensure that your data remains safe. Dell’s RAID
controller options offer impressive performance improvements, including the following features:
 FastPath™ I/O: This feature can help accelerate performance when operating on SSDs.
 Split mirror: This function allows you to break mirrored disk connection in order to quickly
replace a drive.
 Physical disk power management (Dimmer Switch™): This feature allows for power control of
spare or idle drives, which can save energy and operating expenses.
Supported RAID controllers

The newest line of PowerEdge RAID Controllers (PERCs) offer high I/O performance for a variety of
uses, including database applications and streaming digital media environments. The internal RAID
controllers have a dedicated connection to the system board. The PERC S110 is supported on the
R720 (3.5-inch chassis only) and is not supported on the R720xd.

Table 14 lists the RAID controllers supported on the R720 and R720xd.
Table 14. RAID controllers
RAID
Controller Description Features Form factor Usage model
modes
Eight-port, external, Includes 1GB NV DDR3

PERC 6Gb/s PCIe RAID cache, premium
0, 1, 10, 5, Premium
H810 controller that supports performance and feature Adapter
50, 6, 60 performance
External up to 192 SATA and SAS set, security SED/EKMS,
HDDs or SSDs and SSD as cache
Eight-port, internal, Includes 1GB NV DDR3

PERC 6Gb/s PCIe RAID cache, premium
0, 1, 10, 5, Premium
H710P controller that supports performance and feature Adapter
50, 6, 60 performance
Internal up to 32 SATA and SAS set, security SED/EKMS,
HDDs or SSDs and SSD as cache
Eight-port, internal,
6Gb/s PCIe RAID Includes 512MB DDR3
0, 1, 10, 5,
PERC H710 controller that supports cache, advanced feature Adapter Performance
50, 6, 60
up to 32 SATA and SAS set, security SED/EKMS
HDDs or SSDs
Eight-port, internal,
6Gb/s PCIe RAID
controller that is a
PERC Supports hot-plug drives, 0, 1, 10, 5,
low-cost, entry-level Adapter Value
H310 expansion, pass-through 50
solution supporting up
to 32 SATA and SAS
HDDs or SSDs
3Gb/s SATA software

PERC S110 RAID controller that is a Supports up to 4 System
Software low-cost, entry-level hot-plug SATA drives, no board-
0, 1, 5, 10 Entry-level
RAID solution, supporting up expansion, Microsoft embedded
(R720 only) to 4 physical disks or Windows only SATA
eight virtual disks
For more information about the latest PERC offerings, see Dell.com/PERC.
CacheCade
CacheCade is a technology that provides automated storage tiering on SSDs with the PERC H810
and H710P. It works by detecting the most-often accessed data and copying it over time to the
CacheCade SSD(s) where that cached data is accessed directly, instead of accessing the hard disk
drives. This can dramatically increase how your applications respond when they are under peak
traffic times and how they perform when response time is critical.
CacheCade provides cost-effective performance scaling for database-type applications that
perform lots of random reads, and saves the cost of adding extra drives.

Optical drives
The PowerEdge R720 supports one of the following internal optical drive options:
 DVD-ROM
 DVD+RW
The R720xd does not support an internal optical drive.
Tape drives
The R720 supports the Dell PowerVault RD1000 internal backup device on the 2.5-inch chassis only.
Internal tape drives are not supported on the R720, and the R720xd does not support any internal
backup device.

7 Networking and PCIe
The Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd offer balanced, scalable I/O capabilities, including integrated
PCIe 3.0-capable expansion slots. Dell Select Network Adapters, Dell’s network daughtercards, let
you choose the right network fabric without using up a valuable PCI slot. Pick the speed, technology,
vendor and other options, such as switch independent partitioning, which lets you share and
manage bandwidth on 10GbE connections.
Select Network Adapters

The Select Network Adapter family is purpose-built and includes flexible LAN on motherboard (LOM)
card options for Dell PowerEdge 12th generation servers. The Select Network Adapter form factor
delivers the value of LOM integration with the system, including BIOS integration and shared port for
manageability, while providing the flexibility of a modular card.
The PowerEdge R720 and R720xd support one custom network daughtercard (NDC), as part of
Select Network Adapters family, to house the complete LOM subsystem. There are two form factors
of Select Network Adapters — one for blade servers and one for rack servers (shown in Figure 12).
The rack NDC options supported on the R720 and R720xd include a selection of 1GbE and 10GbE
port cards, such as 1000 Base-T, 10Gb Base-T, and 10Gb SFP+.
Figure 12. Rack network daughter card (NDC)

Table 15 lists the available Select Network Adapter options and supported features for the R720 and
R720xd.
Table 15. Supported Select Network Adapter options and features
Broadcom Broadcom
Broadcom Intel I350 1 Broadcom Intel X540
Features 57800 SFP+ 1 57840S 1
5720 Base-T Base-T 57800 Base-T Base-T
SPF+
Ports x link 2 x 1Gb + 2 x 1Gb + 2 x 1Gb +

4 x 1Gb 4 x 1Gb 4 x 10Gb
speed 2 x 10Gb 2 x 10Gb 2 x 10Gb
Supported 1Gb and

1Gb 1Gb 1Gb and 10Gb 1Gb and 10Gb 10Gb
speed 10Gb
Supported
Not Not Not Not
SR-IOV Supported (10Gb
supported supported supported supported
only)
Not Not 2 2 2 Not

ISCSI HBA Supported Supported Supported
supported supported supported
Not Not Not Not

EEE Supported Supported
supported supported supported supported
Not Not 3 3 3 3
FCoE Supported Supported Supported Supported
supported supported
Switch
independent Not Not 4 4 4 Not
Supported Supported Supported
partitioning supported supported supported
Not Not 5 5 5 5
DCB Supported Supported Supported Supported
supported supported
Not Not 6 6 6 6
iSCSI TLV Supported Supported Supported Supported
supported supported
1
These cards have two chipsets that offer the choice of either 10GbE or 1GbE.
2
Only 10Gb ports have iSCSI HBA support.
3
Only 10Gb ports have FCoE support.
4
Only 10Gb ports have switch independent partitioning support. The maximum number of partitions supported is four
(two partitions per 10Gb port). 1Gb ports do not support switch independent partitioning.
5
Only 10Gb ports have DCB support.
6
Only 10Gb ports have ISCSI TLV support.
System management integration

With R720 and R720xd, the job of deploying, updating, monitoring and maintaining the Select
Network Adapters is fast and easy. System management integration features include the following:
 Pre-boot: Using the Dell Lifecycle Controller graphical user interface (GUI) to set configuration
such as bandwidth allocation or firmware revision level
 Post-boot: Agent-free out-of-band or high-speed in-band connection over LOM through the
Operating System/BMC pass-through feature for sensory information

 Automation of firmware and driver version deployment upon component replacement
 Automatic monitoring of NIC status and notification on SNMP traps
 Local or remote reconfiguration of any NIC, physical or virtual
 PXE boot enabled on all LOM and NDCs for ease of use
 Boot from SAN (iSCSI, FCoE) configuration for networking devices through the Lifecycle
Controller GUI
PCIe expansion
For information on card installation, requirements, and slot priorities, see the PowerEdge R720 and
PCIe slots
The R720 and R720xd provide greatly expanded PCIe slot capability over their predecessor servers.
This is made possible by the 40 PCIe lanes available from each processor in the system. Two
processors are required in the system to enable all PCIe slots. The R720 and R720xd have been
designed to be PCIe 3.0 compliant in order to take full advantage of the processor capabilities. Table
16 details the R720 and R720xd PCIe slots.
Table 16. PCIe expansion slots
System R720 R720xd
1
Slots 7 6
Slot types One x16 full-length, full-height Two x16 full-length, full-height
Three x8 full-length, full-height One x8 full-length, full-height
Three x8 half-length, half-height Three x8 half-length, half-height
1
In a single-processor configuration, slots 1–4 are not usable.
PCIe expansion cards

The R720 and R720xd support a variety of PCIe expansion cards. Table 17 lists the supported add-in
NICs and HBAs for the R720 and R720xd.
Table 17. Supported NICs and HBAs
Type Adapter
Intel I350 2x1Gb Base-T
1Gb/10Gb NICs Intel I350 4x1Gb Base-T
Broadcom 57810S 2x10Gb SFP+
Broadcom 57810S 2x10Gb Base-T
Intel X520 2x10Gb SFP+

Type Adapter
Intel X540 2x10Gb Base-T

®
QLogic QLE8262 2x10Gb SFP+
®
Brocade BR1020 2x10Gb SFP+
QLogic QLE2460 4Gb
QLogic QLE2462 4Gb
QLogic QLE2560 8Gb
QLogic QLE2562 8Gb
QLogic QLE2660 16Gb

FC4/FC8/F16 HBAs
QLogic QLE2662 16Gb
®
Emulex LPe12000 8Gb
Emulex LPe12002 8Gb
Brocade BR815 8Gb
Brocade BR825 8Gb
Table 18 lists the supported PCIe expansion cards for the R720 and R720xd.
Table 18. Additional supported PCIe expansion cards
Type Adapter
Intel Xeon Phi™ 5110P coprocessor
Intel Xeon Phi 7120P coprocessor
NVIDIA M2090 (double wide)
NVIDIA M2075 (double wide)
NVIDIA M2070Q (double wide)
NVIDIA Tesla K10 (double wide)

GPUs
(R720 only)
NVIDIA Tesla K20 (double wide)
NVIDIA GRID™ (VGX) K1 (double wide)
NVIDIA GRID (VGX) K2 (double wide)
AMD V7800P FirePro™ (single wide)
AMD S7000 FirePro (single wide)
AMD S9000 FirePro (double wide)

Type Adapter
NVIDIA HIC
GPU HICs
(R720 only)
Dell PLX HIC
® ®
Fusion-io IoDrive 640GB V1
PCIe SSDs
Fusion-io PCIe SSD V2
PCIe bridge adapter for front-accessible, hot-plug

PCIe bridge
Express Flash PCIe SSDs
For the latest information on supported PCIe expansion cards for the R720 and R720xd, visit
Dell.com/PowerEdge.

8 Power, thermal and acoustics
Lower overall system-level power draw is a result of Dell’s breakthrough system design. PowerEdge
servers maximize performance per watt through a combination of power and cooling, energy
efficient technologies, and tools. Additionally, PowerEdge servers have an extensive collection of
sensors that automatically track thermal activity, which helps regulate temperature thereby reducing
server noise and power consumption.
Power consumption and energy efficiency

With the rise in the cost of energy coupled with increasing data center density, Dell provides tools
and technologies to help you realize greater performance with less energy cost and waste. More
efficient data center usage can reduce costs by slowing the need for additional data center space.
Table 19 lists the tools and technologies Dell offers to help you achieve your data center goals by
lowering power consumption and increasing energy efficiency.
Table 19. Power tools and technologies
Feature Description
Dell’s PSU portfolio includes intelligent features such as dynamically

Power supply units (PSU)
optimizing efficiency while maintaining availability and redundancy. Find
portfolio
additional information in the Power supply units section.
Energy Smart Solution Advisor (ESSA) is a tool that can help you determine
the most efficient configuration possible. With Dell’s ESSA, you can calculate
the power consumption of your hardware, power infrastructure, and storage.
Tools for right-sizing ESSA can help you determine exactly how much power your server will use
at a given workload, and the PSU Advisor can help you choose the best,
most efficient PSU for your workload. Learn more at Dell.com/ESSA.
Dell’s servers are compliant with all relevant industry certifications and
Industry compliance
guidelines, including 80 PLUS, Climate Savers, and ENERGY STAR.
PSU power monitoring improvements include:

Power monitoring  Power monitoring accuracy of 1%, whereas the industry standard is 5%
accuracy  More accurate reporting of power
 Better performance under a power cap
Use Dell’s systems management to set the power cap limit for your systems
to limit the output of a PSU and reduce system power consumption. Dell is
Power capping
the first hardware vendor to leverage Intel Node Manager for circuit-breaker
fast capping.
iDRAC7 Enterprise provides server-level management that monitors, reports

and controls power consumption at the processor, memory and system
level.
Systems management
Dell OpenManage Power Center delivers group power management at the
rack, row, and data center level for servers, power distribution units, and
uninterruptible power supplies.
Active power management Intel Node Manager is an embedded technology that provides individual

Feature Description
server-level power reporting and power limiting functionality. Dell offers a

complete power management solution comprised of Intel Node Manager
accessed through Dell iDRAC7 Enterprise and OpenManage Power Center
that allows policy-based management of power and thermals at the
individual server, rack and data center level.
Hot spare reduces power consumption of redundant power supplies.
Thermal control of fan speed optimizes the thermal settings for your
environment to reduce fan consumption and lower system power
consumption.
Idle power enables Dell servers to run as efficiently when idle as when at full
workload.
With the thermal design and reliability of Dell products, you can have the
capability to operate at excursion-based temperatures beyond the industry
Dell Fresh Air cooling
standard of 35°C (95°F) without impacting your availability model. This
solution takes into account servers, networking, storage, and other
infrastructure. Find additional information at Dell.com/FreshAir.
Dell offers some of the industry’s highest-efficiency power infrastructure

solutions, including:
 Power distribution units
Rack infrastructure  Uninterruptible power supplies

 Energy Smart containment rack enclosures
Find additional information at: http://content.dell.com/us/en/enterprise/
power-and-cooling-technologies-components-rack-infrastructure.aspx.
Find additional information at Dell.com/PowerAndCooling and Power.com/PowerCenter.
Power supply units

Energy Smart power supplies have intelligent features, such as the ability to dynamically optimize
efficiency while maintaining availability and redundancy. Also featured are enhanced
power-consumption reduction technologies, such as high-efficiency power conversion and
advanced thermal-management techniques, and embedded power-management features,
including high-accuracy power monitoring.
The following power supply unit options are available for the R720 and R720xd:
 495W AC
 750W AC
 1100W AC
 1100W DC

Figure 13 shows a 750W power supply unit extended from an R720 system.
Figure 13. 750W power supply unit
The PowerEdge R720 and R720xd support up to two AC or DC power supplies with 1 + 1
redundancy, auto sensing, and auto-switching capability. For additional power supply specifications,
see Table 32.
Dell power supplies have achieved Platinum and Titanium efficiency levels, as shown in Table 20.
Table 20. Power supply efficiency
Efficiency targets by load

Form factor Output Class
10% 20% 50% 100%
495W AC Platinum 82.0% 90.0% 94.0% 91.0%
750W AC Titanium 90.0% 94.0% 96.0% 91.0%
Redundant 86mm 750W AC Platinum 82.0% 90.0% 94.0% 91.0%
1100W AC Platinum 89.0% 93.0% 94.5% 92.0%
1100W DC N/A 80.0% 88.0% 91.0% 88.0%
Thermal and acoustics

Thermal management of PowerEdge R720 and R720xd delivers high performance for the right
amount of cooling to components, at the lowest fan speeds, across a wide range of ambient
temperatures from 10°C to 35°C (50°F to 95°F), and to extended ambient temperature ranges (see
Table 31). The benefits to you are lower fan power consumption (lower server system power and
data center power consumption) and greater acoustical versatility. In typical and minimum
configurations the PowerEdge R720 is quiet enough to be used in an office environment, and the
R720xd can also operate at a similar level in certain configurations.
Thermal design
The thermal design of the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd reflect the following:
 Optimized thermal design: The system layout is architected for optimum thermal design. System
component placement and layout are designed to provide maximum airflow coverage to critical
components with minimum expense of fan power.
 Comprehensive thermal management: The thermal control system regulates the fan speed based on
several different responses from all system-component temperature sensors, as well as inventory for

system configurations. Temperature monitoring includes components such as processors, DIMMs,
chipset, the inlet air ambient, hard disk drives, NDC and GPU.
 Open and closed loop thermal fan speed control: Open loop thermal control uses system configuration
to determine fan speed based on inlet air ambient temperature. The closed-loop thermal control method
uses feedback temperatures to dynamically determine proper fan speeds.
 User-configurable settings: With the understanding and realization that every customer has a unique set
of circumstances or expectations from the system, in this generation of servers, we have introduced
limited user-configurable settings residing in the iDRAC7 BIOS setup screen. For more information, see the
PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Owner’s Manual on Dell.com/Support/Manuals and “Advanced Thermal
Control: Optimizing across Environments and Power Goals” on Dell.com.
 Cooling redundancy: The R720 and R720xd allow N+1 fan redundancy, allowing continuous operation
with one fan failure in the system.
 Environmental specifications: The optimized thermal management makes the R720 and R720xd reliable
under a wide range of operating environments as shown in Table 31.
Acoustical design
The acoustical design of the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd reflect the following:
 Versatility: The R720 and R720xd save you power draw in the data center but are also quiet
enough for office environment in typical and minimum configurations. Compare the values for
LpA in Table 21 and Table 22 for these configurations, and note that they are lower than ambient
measurements of typical office environments. You may find that the system is sufficiently quiet
where the sound it emits blends into the environment.
 Adherence to Dell’s high sound quality standards: Sound quality is different from sound power
level and sound pressure level in that it describes how humans respond to annoyances in sound,
like whistles and hums. One of the sound quality metrics in the Dell specification is prominence
ratio of a tone, which is listed in Table 21 and Table 22.
 Noise ramp and descent at bootup from power off: Fan speeds and noise levels ramp during
the boot process (from power-off to power-on) in order to add a layer of protection for
component cooling in the event that the system were not to boot properly. In order to keep the
bootup process as quiet as possible, the fan speed reached during bootup is limited to about half
of full speed.
 Noise level dependencies: If acoustics is important to you, several configuration choices and
settings are important to consider:
– For lower acoustical output, use a small number of lower rotational-speed SATA hard
drives, nearline SAS hard drives, or non-rotational devices like SSDs. 15k hard drives
generate more acoustic noise than that of lower rotational-speed hard drives, and noise
increases with number of hard drives.
– Fan speeds and noise may increase from baseline factory configurations if certain profiles
are changed by the user or the system configurations are updated. The following is a list
of items that impact fan speeds and acoustical output:
> iDRAC7 BIOS settings: Performance Per Watt (DAPC or OS) may be quieter than
Performance or Dense Configuration (iDRAC Settings > Thermal > Max. Exhaust
Temperature or Fan speed offset).
> The quantity and type of PCIe cards installed: This affects overall system acoustics.
Installation of more than two PCIe cards results in an increase in overall system
acoustics.
> Using a GPU card: This results in an increase in overall system acoustics.
> PCIe controller-based SSD drives: Drives such as Express flash drives and Fusion-io
cards require greater airflow for cooling, and result in significantly higher noise levels.

> Systems with an H310 PERC: This configuration may be quieter than those with an
H710 PERC with battery backup. However, higher noise levels result when a system is
configured as non-RAID.
> Hot spare feature of power supply unit: In the system default setting, the Hot Spare
Feature is disabled; acoustical output from the power supplies is lowest in this setting.
>
Table 21 and Table 22 detail the acoustical performance for the R720 and R720xd.
Table 21. R720 acoustical performance (2.5-inch chassis)
Configuration Power PCI LWA-

Operating LpA2 Prominent
(23 ± 2°C CPUs Hard drives supply Memory card/HDD UL1
mode (dBA) tones3
ambient) unit controller (bels)
1 x 250GB 1x 1x 1 x PERC Idle 4.0 20 None

Minimum 1
SATA (7.2k) 495W 8GB H310 Stressed
4
4.1 20 None
1 x PERC Idle 4.4 25 None
6 x 300GB 2x 8x H710,
Typical 2
SAS (10K) 750W 8GB 1 x GbE Stressed
4
4.5 26 None
NIC
Table 22. R720xd acoustical performance (2.5-inch chassis)
Configuration Power PCI LWA-UL

1 2
LpA
Operating Prominent
(23 ± 2°C CPUs Hard drives supply Memory card/HDD 3
mode (bels) (dBA) tones
ambient) unit controller
4
1 x 250GB 1x 1x 1 x PERC Idle 4.7 28 None
Minimum 1
SATA (7.2k) 495W 8GB H310 Stressed
5
4.8 28 None
4
1 x PERC Idle 4.8 28 None
14 x 300GB 2x 8x H710,
Typical 2
SAS (10K) 750W 8GB 1 x GbE Stressed
5
5.0 30 None
NIC
1
LwA – UL is the upper limit sound power levels (LwA) calculated per section 4.4.1 of ISO 9296 (1988) and measured in
accordance to ISO 7779 (2010).
2
LpA is the average A-weighted sound pressure level from the four bystander positions calculated per section 4.3 of
ISO9296 (1988) and measured in accordance with ISO 7779 (2010). The system is placed in a half rack enclosure (base of
system is 25 cm above reflective floor).
3
Prominent tone: Criteria of D.6 and D.11 of ECMA-74 11th ed. (2010) are followed to determine if discrete tones are
prominent. The system is placed in a half rack enclosure (base of system is 75 cm above reflective floor) and acoustic
transducer is at front bystander position, ref ISO 7779 (2010 Section 8.6.2).
4
Idle: Reference ISO 7779 (2010) definition 3.1.7; system is running in its OS but no other specific activity.
5
Stressed processor: An operating mode per ISO 7779 (2010) definition 3.1.6. The software SPECPower at 50% loading is
activated to stress the processors.
For more information on Dell’s acoustical design, see the Dell Enterprise Acoustics white paper.

9 Rack rails and cable management
The rack rail systems for the Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd provide tool-less support for
4-post racks with square or unthreaded round mounting holes, including all generations of Dell
racks. Compared to the predecessor R710 sliding rails, which required the use of adapter brackets,
the sliding rails for the R720 and R720xd now offer native support for threaded-hole racks with the
new ReadyRails II mounting interface.
The optional cable management arm (CMA) can be mounted on either the left or right side of the
sliding rails without the use of tools for fast and easy deployment.
Sliding and static rail systems

The R720 and R720xd support both sliding rails and static rails. Both rails have a new slim-rail design
that supports the wide system chassis.
The sliding rails (shown in Figure 14) allow the system to be fully extended out of the rack for service
and are available with or without the optional CMA.
Figure 14. Sliding rails with optional CMA

The static rails (shown in Figure 15) support a wider variety of racks than the sliding rails but do not
support serviceability in the rack and are not compatible with the CMA.
Figure 15. Static rails
One key factor in selecting the proper rails is identifying the type of rack in which they will be
installed. Both the sliding rails and the static rails support tool-less mounting in 19”-wide, EIA-310-E
compliant square hole and unthreaded round-hole 4-post racks. Both also support tooled mounting
in threaded-hole 4-post racks, but only the static rails, as the more universal solution, support
mounting in 2-post (Telco) racks.
Table 23 lists the rack rail systems that the R720 and R720xd support.
Table 23. Supported rack rail system
Rack types supported
Rail Rail
System Mounting interface 4-post 2-post
identifier type
Square Round Thread Flush Center
B6 ReadyRails II Sliding    X X
R720/R720xd
B4 ReadyRails Static     
For detailed information about rail dimensions, see the
Rack rail specifications section in Appendix A. For more information on installing the R720 in a rack,
see the Rack Installation Instructions on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.

Cable management arm
The optional cable management arm (CMA) for the R720 and R720xd organizes and secures the
cords and cables exiting the back of the server and unfolds to allow the server to extend out of the
rack without having to detach the cables. Some key features of the CMA include:
 Large U-shaped baskets to support dense cable loads
 Open vent pattern for optimal airflow
 Ability to be mounted on either side
 Use of hook-and-loop straps rather than plastic tie wraps to eliminate the risk of cable damage
during cycling
 Low-profile fixed tray to both support and retain the CMA in its fully closed position
 Ability to mount the CMA and tray without the use of tools, due to snap-in designs
For more information on installing the R720 and R720xd in a rack, see the Rack Installation
Instructions on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.

10 Operating systems and virtualization
The Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd support a wide range of industry-standard operating systems
and virtualization software.
Supported operating systems

Table 24 lists the primary operating systems supported on the R720 and R720xd. For the latest
information on supported operating systems, see Dell.com/OSsupport.
Table 24. Primary operating system support
Operating System Platform Edition
1 x32
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.8 N/A
x64
2
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.3 x64 N/A
Red Hat Enterprise Linux for HPC x64 N/A
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP2 x64 N/A
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 SP4 x64 N/A
Standard
Microsoft Windows Server 2012 x64
Data center
3 Standard
Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2011 x64
Premium add-on
Web
x86 Standard
Enterprise
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 with SP2 Web
x64 Standard
(with Microsoft
Enterprise
Hyper-V role enabled)
Data center
Web
x64 Standard
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1 (with Hyper-V role Enterprise
enabled) Data center
HPC
1
RHEL 5.7 is the minimum supported version. Current drop in box option is RHEL 5.8.
2
RHEL 6.1 is the minimum supported version. Current factory install is RHEL 6.3.
3
Not validated for use with GPUs.

Support of the operating systems listed in Table 25 is limited to a virtual environment as a guest
operating system. Please contact the software vendor for additional support or questions about
running the operating system in a virtualized environment.
Table 25. Virtual guest operating system support
Operating System Platform Edition

1
Microsoft Windows 2003 x86 Web
Standard
x86
Enterprise
1
Microsoft Windows 2003 R2 with SP2 Standard
x64 Enterprise
Data center
1
Not validated for use with AMD GPUs
Supported virtualization
One of the key features for virtualization on the R720 and R720xd is the support for a failsafe
hypervisor. By running the hypervisor on an optional SD card and installing a backup copy on the
other mirrored SD card, you can protect against hardware failure and maximize virtualization uptime.
Table 26 highlights the virtualization support for the R720 and R720xd.
Table 26. Virtualization support
Internal dual SD
Factory
Operating systems Install version module install
options
support
vSphere v5.0 U1 ESXi (one version) DIB Yes
VMware vSphere v5.1 ESXi (one version) DIB Yes
vSphere v5.1 U1 ESXi (one version) DIB Yes
1
Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization 3.1 N/A DIB Yes
Citrix XenServer v6.1 N/A DIB No
FI = factory install; DIB = drop in box

1
No OpenManage support; drop-in-box license registration card only

11 Dell OpenManage systems management
Whether your IT environment consists of a few servers or a few thousand servers,
Dell OpenManage systems management solutions provide comprehensive management for
evolving IT environments. OpenManage is based on open standards and provides agent-based and
agent-free server lifecycle management functionality for Dell PowerEdge servers. OpenManage
solutions help you automate and streamline essential hardware management tasks.
The advanced management capabilities of Dell OpenManage also integrates into offerings from
other popular systems management solutions that you may already use, making Dell platforms easy
to manage and deploy in any IT environment. This ensures your IT services are available when your
business needs them. If you have already standardized on offerings from industry leaders, such as
BMC Software, Microsoft, Symantec™, VMware, or other vendors, you can leverage OpenManage
integration and connections developed for use with your existing systems management framework
to efficiently manage Dell servers, storage, business-client PCs, and network devices.
Start with a firm foundation for efficient hardware management using OpenManage tools, utilities,
and management consoles. OpenManage systems management solutions consist of a combination
of embedded management features and software products that help you automate and simplify the
entire server lifecycle: deploy, update, monitor, and maintain. OpenManage solutions are
innovatively designed for simplicity and ease of use to help you reduce complexity, save time,
achieve efficiency, control costs, and empower productivity.
Systems management solutions

Dell systems management solutions include a wide variety of tools, products and services that
enable you to leverage an existing systems management framework. As shown in Figure 16, Dell
systems management solutions are centered around OpenManage server management, featuring
iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller.
Figure 16. Dell systems management solutions

OpenManage systems management
The Dell OpenManage systems management portfolio includes powerful hardware and software
management tools and consoles. OpenManage simplifies the lifecycle of deploying, updating,
monitoring and maintaining your Dell PowerEdge servers.
iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller

The Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller 7 (iDRAC7) with Lifecycle Controller is the heart of the
second generation of Dell PowerEdge server embedded management functionality. In addition to
enabling agent-free management, iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller provides remote access to the
system — whether or not there is a functioning operating system running on the server. These
embedded features improve all aspects of a typical server lifecycle. Table 27 describes the functions
and benefits of iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller.
Table 27. iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller functions and benefits
Feature Function Benefit
iDRAC7 offers real-time OOB

Out-of-band discovery, inventory, deployment Manage servers independent of the OS type
(OOB) monitoring, alerting and updates for or status, even if an OS is not installed
servers and internal storage
All server types have the same

Simplified and consistent maintenance
Single code base embedded management hardware
across server platforms
and firmware
Dedicated
GigE port
Gigabit Ethernet replaces 10/100 on Fast throughput for better performance;
(PowerEdge
predecessor iDRAC6 compatibility with setup for switches
rack and tower
systems)
More detail allows IT administrators to be

Simplified, more informative, and more efficient in diagnosing and remediating
Email alerts expanded coverage than previous an issue; alerts include a direct, embedded
versions of iDRAC URL in the email notification to further speed
resolution
vFlash media Enabled with iDRAC7 Enterprise Allows for use of a non-Dell SD card
Integration with Intel Node Manager Fine tune data center power policies,
Enhanced power provides data center level power capping, and usage; report on historical
management monitoring and capping power usage by rack, row or room using
(requires iDRAC7 Enterprise) Power Center Manager (new)

Feature Function Benefit
Digital license installed in factory; free 30-

day trial versions are available; uses a license
Upgrades to iDRAC7 Express or management portal versus paper-based
iDRAC7 Enterprise by software licenses and simplifies license management.
Electronic
licensing key and license portal (may For most server models, embedded server
licensing
require installation of hardware option management and electronic licensing
for 300-500 series servers) enables feature enhancements that do not
require installation of additional hardware or
system downtime.
iDRAC7 feature comparison

iDRAC7 Enterprise is available for the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd, and Dell also offers an option of
iDRAC7 Express. Table 28 shows a detailed feature comparison for iDRAC7 Enterprise and iDRAC7
Express.
Table 28. Feature comparison for iDRAC7 Express and Enterprise
iDRAC7 iDRAC7
Feature (function)
Enterprise Express
Local configuration with Lifecycle Controller GUI ∞ ∞

IPMI 2.0 ∞ ∞
Embedded diagnostics ∞ ∞
Local OS install ∞ ∞
Local updates ∞ ∞
Driver pack ∞ ∞
Shared NIC (LOM) ∞ ∞
Remote update ∞ ∞
Power control ∞ ∞
Encryption ∞ ∞
1
Crash screen capture ∞ ∞
IPv6 ∞ ∞
Auto-discovery ∞ ∞
Auto-recovery ∞ ∞
Web GUI ∞ ∞
Remote CLI ∞ ∞
Local/SSH CLI ∞ ∞
Serial redirection ∞ ∞
Remote configuration ∞ ∞
Email alerts ∞ ∞
SNMP alerts ∞ ∞

iDRAC7 iDRAC7
Feature (function)
Enterprise Express
Power monitoring ∞ ∞
Comprehensive monitoring ∞ ∞
Dedicated NIC 1Gbps (100MB in iDRAC6) ∞
Part replacement ∞
Backup and restore configurations ∞
Virtual console (4 user) ∞
Virtual console chat ∞
Support for customer-supplied SD cards for vFlash media ∞
Virtual flash partitions ∞
Virtual media ∞
Virtual folders ∞
Remote file share ∞
Crash video playback ∞
Boot record/playback ∞
Power capping ∞
Enterprise group power management ∞
Directory services (AD, LDAP) ∞
PK authentication ∞
2
Two-factor authentication ∞
1
Requires OMSA agent on target server
2 ® ®
Uses Microsoft ActiveX on Internet Explorer only
Agent-based management
Most systems management solutions require pieces of software, called agents, to be installed on
each node in order to be managed within the IT environment. Additionally, the same agent is often
used as a local interface into the hardware health and may be accessed remotely as a management
interface, typically referred to as a one-to-one interface. For customers that continue to use
agent-based solutions, Dell provides OpenManage Server Administrator.
OpenManage Server Administrator
The Dell OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) agent gives you a comprehensive, one-to-one
systems management solution for both local and remote servers and their storage. OMSA can help
simplify single-server monitoring with a secure command-line interface (CLI) or Web-based
management graphical user interface (GUI). It can also be used to view system configuration,
inventory, health and performance.
Agent-free management
Because Dell PowerEdge servers have embedded server lifecycle management, in many cases there
is no need to install an OpenManage systems management software agent into the operating
system of a Dell PowerEdge server. This greatly simplifies and streamlines the management footprint.

Dell consoles
The central console in a systems management solution is often referred to as the one-to-many
console. The central console provides a rapid view and insight into the overall health of all systems
in the IT environment. The Dell systems management portfolio includes several powerful consoles,
depending upon your needs, including the following:
 Dell OpenManage Essentials: OpenManage Essentials (OME) is a recently released systems
management console that provides a comprehensive view of Dell systems, devices and
components in an enterprise network. It is used to monitor Dell PowerEdge servers, EqualLogic
and PowerVault storage, and PowerConnect™ switches; to update and configure Dell servers;
and to create asset reports. OpenManage Essentials also communicates health-status alerts for
Dell servers, storage and network devices to the Dell KACE™ K1000 service desk. OpenManage
Essentials is available as a no-charge software download from Dell.com/Support.
OpenManage systems management tools and utilities

Dell OpenManage systems management tools and utilities consist of the following:
 Dell Repository Manager:The Dell Repository Manager (RM) is a standalone GUI-based
productivity tool that helps simplify the process of managing downloads and baseline BIOS,
firmware and driver updates. Repository Manager can create deployment disks as well as create
and manage customized repositories.
 Dell OpenManage Server Update Utility:The Dell Server Update Utility (SUU) is a DVD-based
application for identifying and applying BIOS and firmware updates to your Dell PowerEdge
servers.
 Dell OpenManage Systems Build and Update Utility:The Dell System Build and Update Utility
(SBUU) provides one-to-one and one-to-many deployment and single-server update
capabilities in the pre-operating system environment.
 Dell Update Packages: The Dell Update Packages (DUP) is a self-contained executable in a
standard package format that updates a software element on a Dell server such as the BIOS, a
driver, firmware and other software updates.
 Dell OpenManage Deployment Toolkit: The Dell OpenManage Deployment Toolkit (DTK) is a
CLI-based tool that includes a set of utilities for configuring and deploying Dell PowerEdge
systems, and can be used to build scripted, unattended OS installations to deploy large numbers
of servers in a reliable fashion.
 RACADM: The RACADM command-line utility provides a scriptable interface that allows you to
locally or remotely configure iDRAC7.
 IPMITool: IPMITool includes scriptable console application programs used to control and
manage remote systems using the IPMI version 1.5 and later protocol.
Integration with third-party consoles

Dell OpenManage easily integrates with several leading third-party consoles, including:
 Dell Server Management Pack Suite for Microsoft System Center Operations
Manager (SCOM): This suite of server management packs enables several functions through
System Center Operations Manager, including in-band discovery and monitoring of racks and
towers, out-of-band discovery and monitoring through iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Controller, as well
as performance and advanced monitoring.
 Dell Lifecycle Controller Integration (DLCI) for Microsoft System Center Configuration
Manager (SCCM): This pack contains Dell Lifecycle Controller Integration (DLCI), which

integrates OpenManage functions in SCCM to manage the Dell PowerEdge servers, including
auto-discovery, operating system deployment and configuration of hardware elements, (RAID,
NIC, BIOS, iDRAC), OS and hypervisor agnostic updates, firmware management, and system
viewer utilities.
 Dell Server PRO Management Pack for Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine
Manager (SCVMM): This pack manages Dell physical servers and hosts of virtual machines (VMs)
by using Microsoft System Center Operations Manager/System Center Essentials (SCOM/SCE)
and System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM). It provides guidance for remedial actions
based on alerts to best manage virtual machines and handle the impacts appropriately.
 OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter: This plug-in allows IT administrators to monitor,
provision and manage the physical PowerEdge server hardware and firmware from a dedicated
Dell menu accessed through the VMware vCenter console using the same role-based access
control model as vCenter, combining physical server management.
 BMC Software: Dell and BMC Software work together to simplify IT by ensuring tight integration
between Dell server, storage, and network management functionality and the BMC Software
process and data center automation products.
OpenManage connections with third-party consoles

Dell OpenManage Connections are designed specifically for monitoring Dell server and storage
platforms within infrastructures managed by HP Operations Manager, IBM Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus
or Computer Associates (CA) Network and Systems Management (NSM). OpenManage Connections
improve operational efficiency and flexibility in managing Dell hardware in large heterogeneous data
center environments.
 Dell OpenManage Connection for Computer Associates Network and
Systems Management: This connection allows you to monitor PowerEdge servers and
PowerVault storage arrays from within the Computer Associates Network and Systems
Management (CANSM) console.
 Dell OpenManage Connection for HP Operations Manager: This connection enables several
functions through HP Operations Manager, including auto-grouping, SNMP trap reception,
global health monitoring and a context-sensitive launch of OpenManage Server Administrator.
 Dell OpenManage Connection for IBM Tivoli Netcool/OMNIBus: This connection provides
event monitoring capabilities to monitor Dell PowerEdge servers and Dell EqualLogic systems. It
allows event monitoring, automatic event correlation and launching device consoles from the
Netcool/OMNIbus console.
Dell server management operations

Dell OpenManage systems management is centered on automating the server management
lifecycle — deploy, update, monitor and maintain. To manage an infrastructure properly and
efficiently, you must perform all of these functions easily and quickly. iDRAC7 with Lifecycle
Controller technology provides you with these intelligent capabilities embedded within the server
infrastructure. This allows you to invest more time and energy on business improvements and less
on maintenance. Figure 17 illustrates the various operations that can be performed during the
server’s lifecycle.

Figure 17. Systems management server lifecycle
Table 29 lists the products that are available for one-to-one and one-to-many operations, and
when they are used in the server’s lifecycle:
Table 29. One-to-one and one-to-many operations
Operation One-to-one One-to-many

 iDRAC with Lifecycle  Symantec Deployment  Dell Server Deployment Pack
Controller GUI Server (DSDP) for Microsoft System
 DTK  OpenManage Integration for Center Configuration Manager
 SBUU VMware vCenter and Dell Lifecycle Controller
Deploy  KACE K1000 Appliance Integration (DLCI) for Microsoft
 Lifecycle Controller Remote System Center Configuration
Services Manager
 BMC BladeLogic Integration
with Lifecycle Controller
 iDRAC7 with LifeCycle  Dell OpenManage Essentials  Dell Update Catalogs for
Controller GUI  Lifecycle Controller Remote Microsoft System Center
 Repository Manager Services Configuration Manager
 DUP  Dell Lifecycle Controller
 SUU Integration (DLCI) for Microsoft
Update
 SBUU System Center Configuration
 OpenManage Manager
Integration for VMware
vCenter

Operation One-to-one One-to-many
 iDRAC7 with Lifecycle  Dell OpenManage Essentials  OpenManage Integration for
Controller  BMC ProactiveNet VMware vCenter
 OMSA Performance Management  BMC ProactiveNet Performance
Integration with Lifecycle Management Integration with
Monitor Controller Lifecycle Controller
 Dell OpenManage Power  Dell Server Management Pack
Center Suite for Microsoft System Center
Operations Manager (SCOM)
 IPMI  Lifecycle Controller Remote Remediate:

 iDRAC7 with Lifecycle Services  Dell Server PRO Management
Controller GUI Pack for Microsoft System Center
Virtual Machine Manager
(SCVMM)
Maintain Replace parts:
 Dell Lifecycle Controller
Integration (DLCI) for Microsoft
System Center Configuration
Manager

For additional detailed information on Dell’s systems management portfolio, see the Dell
OpenManage Systems Management Overview Guide on Dell.com/Support/Manuals.

Appendix A. Additional specifications
Chassis dimensions
Figure 18 details the dimensions of the Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd chassis.
Figure 18. Chassis dimensions
Za Za
Xa Xb Y Zb Zc
(with bezel) (without bezel)
482.4mm 444.0mm 87.3mm 32.0mm 18.0mm 684.0mm 723.0mm
Chassis weight
Table 30 lists the weight of the R720 and R720xd chassis at maximum configuration as well as
empty of any hardware.
Table 30. Chassis weight
R720 R720 R720xd R720xd
Configuration
(2.5” chassis) (3.5” chassis) (2.5” chassis) (3.5” chassis)
Maximum 29.5kg (64.9lbs) 29.2kg (64.3lbs) 29.5kg (64.9lbs) 32.5kg (71.5lbs)
Empty chassis 11.7kg (25.7lbs) 10.3kg (22.7lbs) 11.7kg (25.7 lbs) 10.3kg (22.7lbs)

Environmental specifications
Table 31 details the environmental specifications for the R720 and R720xd. For additional
information about environmental measurements for specific system configurations, see
Dell.com/environmental_datasheets.
Table 31. Environmental specifications
Dell Fresh Air: temperature, humidity, altitude de-rating
Continuous 10°C to 35°C (50°F to 95°F) at 10% to 80% relative humidity with 26°C (78.8°F) maximum
operation dew point (maximum wet bulb temperature). De-rate maximum allowable dry bulb
temperature at 1°C per 300m above 950m (1°F per 547 ft above 3117 ft).
Expanded When operating in the expanded temperature range, system performance may be impacted,
operation and ambient temperature warnings may be reported on the LCD and in the System Event
Log.
≤ 10% of annual operating hours: 5°C to 10°C and 35°C to 40°C (with no direct sunlight on
the equipment) at 5% to 85% relative humidity with 26°C dew point (maximum wet bulb
temperature). Outside the standard operating temperature (10°C to 35°C), the system can
operate down to 5°C or up to 40°C for a maximum of 10% of its annual operating hours. For
temperatures between 35°C and 40°C (95°F to 104°F), de-rate maximum allowable dry bulb
temperature by 1°C per 175m above 950m (1°F per 319 ft above 3117 ft).
≤ 1% of annual operating hours: –5°C to 5°C and 40°C to 45°C (with no direct sunlight on
the equipment) at 5% to 90% relative humidity with 26°C dew point (maximum wet bulb
temperature). Outside the standard operating temperature (10°C to 35°C), the system can
operate down to –5°C or up to 45°C for a maximum of 1% of its annual operating hours. For
temperatures between 40°C and 45°C (104°F to 113°F), de-rate maximum allowable dry bulb
temperature by 1°C per 125m above 950m (1°F per 228 ft above 3117 ft).
Expanded operation restrictions:
 No cold startup below 5°C
 Maximum altitude for the operating temperature must be 3050m (10,000ft)
 Redundant power supplies are required
 Not supported:
- Express Flash PCIe SSD
- GPU
- LRDIMM
- 130W 4-core processors
- Non-redundant power supplies
- Peripheral cards not qualified by Dell
- Peripheral cards greater than 25W
 For the PowerEdge R720, a maximum 130W processor is supported in either the 8-drive
bay or 16-drive bay chassis.
 The following additional restrictions apply to PowerEdge R720xd:
- Maximum 95W processor is supported on 3.5-inch hard drive chassis
- Maximum 115 W processor is supported on 2.5-inch hard drive chassis
- Only SSDs are supported in the hard drive slots on the back of the 3.5-inch hard
drive chassis.
Temperature
Operating See Dell Fresh Air for temperature information
o o o o o
Storage –40 C to 65 C (-40 F to 149 F) with a maximum temperature gradation of 20 C per hour

Relative humidity
Operating See Dell Fresh Air for relative humidity information
Storage 5% to 95% at a maximum wet bulb temperature of 33°C (91°F); atmosphere must be
non-condensing at all times
Maximum vibration
Operating 0.26 Grms at 5Hz to 350Hz in all orientations
Storage 1.87 Grms at 10Hz to 500Hz for 15 minutes (all six sides tested)
Maximum shock
Operating Half sine shock in all operational orientations of 31G +/– 5% with a pulse duration of 2.6ms
+/– 10%
Storage Half sine shock on all six sides of 71G +/– 5% with a pulse duration of 2ms +/–10%; square
wave shock on all six sides of 27G with velocity change at 235 in/sec or greater
Altitude
Operating –15.2m to 3048m (–50 ft to 10,000 ft)
Storage –15.2m to 12,000m (–50 ft to 39,370 ft)
Airborne contaminant level
Class G1 or lower as defined by ISA-S71.04-1985
Power supply specifications

Table 32 lists power supply specifications for the PowerEdge R720 and R720xd.
Table 32. Power supply specifications
750W AC 750W AC 495W AC
Specification 1100W DC 1100W AC
Titanium Platinum
Current 6.5A–3A
32A 12A–6.5A 10A–5A 10A–5A
consumption
1 1 1
Supply voltage -48V to -60V DC 100–240VAC 200–240VAC 100–240VAC 100–240VAC
Frequency N/A 50/60Hz 50/60Hz 50/60Hz 50/60Hz
Heat dissipation 1908
4416 4100 2843 2891
(BTU/hr max)
Maximum inrush 55A 55A 55A 55A 55A
2
current
1
Auto-ranging
2
Under typical line conditions and over the entire system ambient operating range, the inrush current may reach 55A per power supply for
10ms or less.
Video specifications
The Dell PowerEdge R720 and R720xd iDRAC7 incorporates an integrated video subsystem. The
graphics controller is the 2D Matrox® G200. The video frame buffer (16 MB) is contained within the
iDRAC RAM (256 MB) device. The R720 and R720xd systems support the 2D graphics video modes
listed in Table 33.

Table 33. Supported video modes
Resolution Refresh rate (Hz) Color depth (bit)
640 x 480 60, 70 8, 16, 32

800 x 600 60, 75, 85 8, 16, 32
1024 x 768 60, 75, 85 8, 16, 32
1152 x 864 60, 75, 85 8, 16, 32
1280 x 800 (UI) — —
1280 x 1024 60, 75 8, 16, 32
1440 x 900 60 8, 16, 32
Rack rail specifications

The rack rail adjustability ranges are listed in Table 34.
Table 34. Rail adjustability ranges
Rail adjustability range (mm) Rail depth (mm)
Rail Rail
Server Square Round Threaded without with
identifier type
Min Max Min Max Min Max CMA CMA
B6 Sliding 676 868 662 861 676 883 714 845

R720/R720xd
B4 Static 608 879 594 872 604 890 622 —
The adjustment range of the rails is a function of the type of rack in which they are being mounted.
The minimum and maximum values listed above represent the allowable distance between the front
and rear mounting flanges in the rack. Rail depth without the CMA represents the minimum depth
of the rail with the outer CMA brackets removed (if applicable) as measured from the front mounting
flanges of the rack.
USB peripherals
USB peripherals are supported through the front, back and internal USB ports. They are USB 2.0
compliant.

Appendix B. Standards compliance
The R720 and R720xd systems conform to the industry standards in Table 35.
Table 35. Industry standard documents
Standard URL for information and specifications
ACPI
Advance Configuration and Power acpi.info
Interface Specification, v2.0c
Ethernet
standards.ieee.org/getieee802/802.3.html
IEEE 802.3-2005
HDG
Hardware Design Guide Version microsoft.com/whdc/system/platform/pcdesign/desguide/serverdg.mspx
3.0 for Microsoft Windows Server
IPMI
Intelligent Platform Management intel.com/design/servers/ipmi
Interface, v2.0
DDR3 Memory
DDR3 SDRAM Specification, jedec.org/download/search/JESD79-3C.pdf
Rev. 3A
LPC
Low Pin Count Interface developer.intel.com/design/chipsets/industry/lpc.htm
Specification, Rev. 1.1
PCI Express
PCI Express Base Specification pcisig.com/specifications/pciexpress
Rev. 2.0 and 3.0
PMBus
Power System Management pmbus.info/specs.html
Protocol Specification, v1.2
SAS
www.t10.org
Serial Attached SCSI, v1.1
SATA
Serial ATA Rev. 2.6; SATA II, SATA sata-io.org
1.0a Extensions, Rev. 1.2
SMBIOS
System Management BIOS dmtf.org/standards/smbios
Reference Specification, v2.7
TPM
Trusted Platform Module trustedcomputinggroup.org
Specification, v1.2
UEFI
Unified Extensible Firmware uefi.org/specs
Interface Specification, v2.1
USB
Universal Serial Bus Specification, usb.org/developers/docs
Rev. 2.0

Standard URL for information and specifications
Windows Logo
Windows Logo Program System microsoft.com/whdc/winlogo/hwrequirements.mspx
and Device Requirements, v3.10

Appendix C. Additional resources
Table 36 provides a list of documents and websites that provide for more information on the Dell
PowerEdge R720 and R720xd.
Table 36. Additional resources
Resource Description of contents Location
PowerEdge R720 This manual, available in PDF format, provides the Dell.com/Support/Manuals
and R720xd following information:
Owner’s Manual  Chassis features
 System Setup program
 System messages
 System codes and indicators
 System BIOS
 Remove and replace procedures
 Troubleshooting
 Diagnostics
 Jumpers and connectors
PowerEdge R720 This guide ships with the system, and is also available in Dell.com/Support/Manuals
and R720xd PDF format on the Dell support site. This guide provides
Getting Started the following information:
Guide  Initial setup steps
 Key system features
 Technical specifications
Rack Installation This document ships with the rack kits, and provides Dell.com/Support/Manuals
Instructions instructions for installing a server in a rack.
Cable This document ships with the rack kits, and provides Dell.com/Support/Manuals
Management Arm instructions for installing the cable management arm on
Installation the rack.
Instructions
System The system information label documents the system Inside the system chassis
Information Label board layout and system jumper settings.
Quick Resource This code can be scanned by a phone application to Inside the system chassis
Locator (QRL) access additional information and resources for the
code server, including videos, reference materials, service tag
information, and Dell contact information.
Information This document provides updated system information and Dell.com/Support/Manuals

Update is printed and shipped with the system. It is also available
in PDF format on the Dell support site.
Dell Energy Smart This tool uses infrastructure and thermal analysis to help Dell.com/EnergySmart
Data Center maximize system efficiency.
Assessment

Resource Description of contents Location
Energy Smart The Dell online advisor console enables easier and more Dell.com/ESSA
Solution Advisor meaningful estimates to help you determine the most
(ESSA) efficient configuration possible. Use ESSA to calculate the
power consumption of your hardware, power
infrastructure, and storage.
Power and Provides details for improving energy efficiency in the Dell.com/PNC
cooling data center.
technologies
Energy Provides information on Dell’s Fresh Air solutions. Dell.com/FreshAir

management
Operating system Provides updated information on which operating Dell.com/OSsupport

matrix for Dell systems are available on which PowerEdge systems.
PowerEdge
systems
Processor and Provides more information about the R720 processors Intel.com
chipset and chipset.
Dell PowerEdge Provides more information on Dell PERC cards. Dell.com/PERC

RAID controllers
Power distribution Provides help selecting a PDU. DellPDU.com

unit
Uninterruptible Provides help selecting a UPS model. DellUPS.com

power supply
Dell Enterprise White paper that explores the mechanisms of, people’s Dell.com/downloads/global/
Acoustics reaction to, language of, and Dell’s work to control noise products/pedge/en/acoustic
from Enterprise products. al-education-dell-
enterprise-white-paper.pdf
Volatility Contact your Dell Sales Representative.

information

Appendix D. System board block diagram
Figure 19. R720 system board block diagram

Figure 20. R720xd system board block diagram
DELL Select RJ45 USB2.0 Two Rear

Network Key USB2.0
Adapter Ports DIMM3 DIMM3 DIMM3 DIMM3 DIMM3 DIMM3 DIMM3 DIMM3
USB2.0
IDSDM DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2 DIMM2
Front Video Rear Video Serial Port One Front
USB2.0 DIMM1 DIMM1 DIMM1 DIMM1 DIMM1 DIMM1 DIMM1 DIMM1
Ports
DDR3 DDR3 DDR3 DDR3 DDR3 DDR3 DDR3 DDR3

To Front
Panel
2x30 TPM
Video UART MGMT USB SATA Coin
MAC Cell CH0 CH1 CH2 CH3 CH0 CH1 CH2 CH3
SPI
MiniSAS
LPC
USB USB Conn
iDRAC QPI0
MAC
PCIe PCIe PCIe
South QPI1 QPI 1.1
DMI 2GB/s Port 0(DMI) CPU1 CPU2
LPC LPC LPC
Bridge SAS A/B (To QPI0
QPI 1.1 QPI1
SD ) ) )
TPM Backplane) (Port 2C, 2D) , 2B 2D , 3B
) 2A , 3A )
PCIe x1 port 3
x8 1B
) B) 1B o rt 2C o rt 3D
+ port 4 A, A,
2 B) D) 1 A, (P o rt (P 3C
,
rt 2 ,3 ,3 o rt (P o rt
o rt 1 o 3A 3C (P x8 (P
PC
Ie (P (P o rt o rt x8 x8 x8 x8
Ge x8 x8 (Px8 (Px8
n2
x2
SAS x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
PCIe Gen3 x8
Rear Storage
External Connector
SD
Center Riser
DELL Select Center Riser Right Riser
Storage X16 Left Riser Right Riser PCIe x16
Network (Slot 5) (Slot 6) (Slot 2) &
(Slot 1) Connector
Connector Adapter Slot
(Slot 4)
(Slot 3)
Internal
PERC
GPGPU
System Power BP Power Power BP Signal
Connectors Conns. 4X Conn. Conns. 4X
Power Power
Supply 1 Supply 2
(495W /750W/ (495W /750W/
1100W ) 1100W )

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PowerEdge R720

ii PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

iii PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

iv PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

v PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Manage data overload

Tailor your network fabric

Simplified systems management, without compromise

6 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

New technologies Detailed descriptions

Intel Xeon processor

Intel C600 series

7 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

8 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Comparison of PowerEdge systems

Chassis 2U rack 2U rack 2U rack

9 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

OpenManage Essentials OpenManage Essentials

Form factor 2U rack

Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 or E5-2600v2

Processor sockets 2 sockets

Cache 2.5MB per core; core options: 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

Chipset Intel C602

10 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Three x8 half-length, half-height Three x8 half-length, half-height

Internal controllers: External HBAs (RAID):

R720 drive bay options:

Select Network Adapter options:

Auto-ranging Titanium efficiency 750W AC power supply

11 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

 iDRAC7 Express with Lifecycle Controller (standard option)

12 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

R720 front views

Figure 1. R720 front view (2.5” chassis with bezel)

Figure 2. R720 front view (2.5” chassis without bezel)

13 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Figure 3. R720xd front view (with bezel)

Figure 4. R720xd front view (2.5-inch chassis without bezel)

R720 back view

Figure 5. R720 back view

14 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Figure 6. R720xd back view

Internal chassis views

Figure 7. R720 internal chassis view

15 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Recessed non-maskable interrupt (NMI) button used to troubleshoot

16 PowerEdge R720 and R720xd Technical Guide

Video connector Connects a monitor to the system

LED panel Indicates the status of system conditions (R720xd only)

Front-accessible, hot-plug hard drives plus two optional

The R720 supports one optional slimline SATA DVD-ROM drive or

System identification panel Slide-out label panel for system information

The R720 supports up to seven PCIe expansion cards; R720xd supports

Power supply units Up to two back-accessible, hot-plug power supplies

Power supply indicators Indicate whether system has power

NIC indicators Indicate network activity and status

This code on the chassis can be scanned by a phone application to

LCD control panel (R720)

Figure 9. R720 LCD control panel