DELL PowerEdge R740xd 2U rack server 2× Xeon Silver 4116 2.1GHz 12-core 256GB DDR4 12× 4TB SATA H730P

Dense 2U storage server

The Dell PowerEdge R740xd is a 2U rack server built for capacity-intensive workloads. Two Intel Xeon Silver 4116 processors run at 2.1 GHz with 12 cores each, backed by 256 GB of DDR4 memory across 24 slots. Twelve 3.5-inch drive bays hold 4 TB SATA drives managed by a PERC H730P controller with 2 GB cache and battery backup. Dual 750 W platinum supplies, iDRAC9 Enterprise, and a quad-port 1GbE/10Gb SFP+ card complete the platform.

Suited for cold-tier and archive workloads

This configuration fits software-defined storage, backup targets, or virtual desktop infrastructure where raw capacity and RAID flexibility matter more than latency. Buyers who need all-flash performance or higher spindle speeds should look at a different platform. The 2.1 GHz base clock and 12-core count limit single-thread throughput for latency-sensitive databases. Organisations requiring more than two sockets or GPU acceleration will not find those options here.

Twelve 3.5-inch bays with PERC H730P RAID

The single specification that decides fit is the twelve-bay 3.5-inch chassis paired with the H730P controller supporting RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50 and 60. It dictates maximum raw capacity, drive form factor, and the RAID levels available for data protection. If the deployment needs a different bay count, 2.5-inch density, or an HBA-only controller, this server will not match the requirement.