Dell PowerEdge R350 Review — Gen 15 1U Single-Socket SMB Server
Engineered for SMB, ROBO, and Edge Environments
File & Print Services — Up to 128 GB DDR4 ECC memory and four 3.5-inch LFF bays or eight 2.5-inch SFF bays deliver the capacity and reliability needed for Windows Server file sharing, SMB print queues, and backup targets in small-to-midsize office environments
Web & Application Hosting — Single-socket Xeon E-2300 processors with up to 8 cores and ECC memory protection keep CMS platforms (WordPress, Drupal), lightweight application tiers, and API backends running reliably under continuous production load
Virtualization — VMware vSphere Essentials, Microsoft Hyper-V, and KVM host deployments with ECC-protected DDR4 isolating VM memory faults; dual PSU redundancy keeps hypervisors online through a power supply failure
Database Servers (SMB Scale) — SQL Server, MySQL, and PostgreSQL instances benefit from the R350's fast single-core clock speeds (up to 3.7 GHz base, higher turbo), hardware RAID with NV cache (PERC H755), and hot-swap SAS SSD support for critical database workloads
Remote Office / Branch Office (ROBO) — 1U form factor fits shallow racks and wiring closets; ReadyRails II sliding mounts and optional CMA enable field-replaceable drive and PSU swaps; iDRAC9 provides full remote management without on-site IT staff
Mail, Messaging & Directory Services — Infrastructure services (Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, Exchange) demand ECC memory and enterprise firmware quality; the R350 delivers both in a compact, redundant-PSU chassis suitable for always-on service requirements
Point-of-Sale & Retail Infrastructure — POS transaction servers, inventory management, and retail analytics benefit from consistent single-core performance and hot-swap storage availability in a 1U chassis that handles noise and vibration in varied deployment environments
Cloud Infrastructure & Data Analytics — Edge cloud nodes, Kubernetes worker nodes, and data analytics preprocessing pipelines leverage the R350's PCIe Gen 4 expansion and optional 10 GbE networking for bandwidth-intensive distributed workloads
File & Print
Web & App Hosting
Virtualization
Databases
Branch Office / ROBO
Messaging & Mail
POS & Retail
Data Analytics
Intel Xeon E-2300 — Up to 8 Cores at 95 W on LGA1200
Socket Platform — LGA1200 socket with Intel C256 chipset; single-processor design optimized for SMB and edge workloads where a single high-clock-speed socket outperforms multi-socket configurations in per-thread latency-sensitive applications
Top Processor — E-2388G — 8 cores / 16 threads (Hyper-Threading), 3.2 GHz base, 5.1 GHz max turbo, 16 MB L3 cache, 95 W TDP; Intel Turbo Boost 2.0 automatically raises frequency above base on lightly loaded cores for burst workloads
6-Core Options — E-2386G (3.5 GHz base, 12 MB cache, 95 W) and E-2356G (3.2 GHz base, 12 MB cache, 80 W) provide 6 physical cores with 12 threads for mid-range compute density; E-2336 (2.9 GHz base, 65 W) offers a lower-TDP 6-core option
4-Core Options — E-2374G (3.7 GHz base, 80 W), E-2334 (3.4 GHz base, 65 W), E-2324G (3.1 GHz base, 65 W), and E-2314 (2.8 GHz base, 65 W) cover a wide TDP and cost range; right-size core count to match actual workload thread saturation rather than over-provisioning
8-Core Lower TDP — E-2378 / E-2378G — E-2378 offers 8 cores at 2.6 GHz base and 65 W TDP for thermally constrained environments; E-2378G runs 8 cores at 2.8 GHz with 80 W TDP — both carry the same 16 MB L3 cache as the flagship E-2388G
Hyper-Threading — All Xeon E-2300 processors present two logical threads per physical core; the E-2388G delivers 16 logical threads for multithreaded server workloads; Intel Pentium G6505T and G6505 offer 2-core configurations without Turbo Boost for minimal-compute scenarios
Memory Speed by CPU — All Xeon E-2300 processors support DDR4 at 3200 MT/s on the C256 chipset; the Pentium G-series CPUs are limited to 2666 MT/s — select a Xeon E-2300 when maximizing memory bandwidth for database or caching workloads
Intel UHD Graphics Note — Dell disables integrated graphics on R350 for all processor SKUs including "G" suffix variants; the integrated GPU is not available for output on Dell's E77S platform regardless of CPU chosen
DDR4 ECC UDIMM — Up to 128 GB at 3200 MT/s
Memory Type — DDR4 Unregistered ECC (UDIMM) only; RDIMM and LRDIMM are not supported; ECC detects and corrects single-bit errors in real time — critical for database, directory service, and hypervisor deployments where memory faults cause data corruption or downtime
DIMM Slots — 4 total DIMM slots in a dual-channel configuration; Channel A uses slots A1 and A3; Channel B uses slots A2 and A4; populate in matching pairs to activate dual-channel mode and maximize memory bandwidth for database and virtualization workloads
Maximum Capacity — Up to 128 GB total when all four slots are populated with 32 GB DDR4 UDIMMs; sufficient for large in-memory SMB databases, hypervisors hosting multiple virtual machines, and memory-intensive analytics workloads
Supported Speeds — DDR4 3200 MT/s (with Xeon E-2300 CPUs), 2933 MT/s, and 2666 MT/s; Pentium G-series CPUs are capped at 2666 MT/s; mixing dual-rank and single-rank DIMMs in the same memory channel reduces operating speed to 2933 MT/s — use matched pairs for full 3200 MT/s throughput
DIMM Configurations Available — 8 GB single-rank, 16 GB single-rank, and 32 GB dual-rank UDIMMs at 3200 MT/s; all are rated for 1.2 V operation at standard server voltages
Population Order — Install first DIMM in slot A1 (white release tab), second in A2, third in A3, fourth in A4; dual-channel mode activates when at least two DIMMs are installed in matching slots across both channels — even minimum configurations benefit from dual-channel bandwidth versus single-stick single-channel
Upgrade from R340 — R350 supports 32 GB UDIMMs for 128 GB max; the predecessor R340 was limited to 8 GB and 16 GB DIMM sizes only — the R350 memory platform delivers both greater maximum capacity and higher operating frequency (3200 MT/s vs 2666 MT/s)
4 × LFF or 8 × SFF — Hot-Swap SAS and SATA Up to 128 TB
4 × 3.5-inch LFF Hot-Plug — Four Large Form Factor bays support hot-swap SAS or SATA HDDs and SSDs; replace a failed drive without powering down; maximum raw capacity with four 20 TB SATA HDDs reaches 80 TB — ideal for file servers, backup targets, and archive storage deployments
8 × 2.5-inch SFF Hot-Plug — Eight Small Form Factor bays increase drive density for IOPS-sensitive workloads; supports SAS 12 Gb/s HDDs (10K and 15K RPM), SAS SSDs (up to 7.68 TB), and SATA SSDs (up to 3.84 TB) — configure for high-throughput database, analytics, or virtualization storage pools
3.5-inch LFF Drive Options — SATA HDDs at 7.2K RPM in 2 TB, 4 TB, 8 TB, 12 TB, 16 TB, and 20 TB capacities; SAS HDDs at 7.2K RPM in 2 TB through 20 TB; mix capacity tiers across bays to balance cost and performance per workload
2.5-inch SFF Drive Options — SAS 10K RPM HDDs (600 GB, 1.2 TB, 2.4 TB); SAS 15K RPM HDDs (600 GB, 900 GB); SAS SSDs (400 GB, 800 GB, 960 GB, 1.92 TB, 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB); SATA SSDs (480 GB, 960 GB, 1.92 TB, 3.84 TB) — right-size the storage tier to the application's latency and endurance requirements
M.2 SATA Internal — 240 GB and 480 GB M.2 SATA SSDs available for internal cache or secondary OS storage; not as boot device (reserved for the BOSS-S2 module)
External JBOD Expansion — HBA355e external SAS host bus adapter enables connectivity to MD-Series 12 Gb JBODs; up to 240 drives per HBA through SAS expander topology for data center scale-out storage configurations
PERC H755 to S150 — Full RAID Stack on PCIe Gen 4
PERC H755 (Premium Hardware RAID) — 12 Gb/s SAS controller with 8 GB NV Flash-Backed write cache on PCIe Gen 4; supports RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, and 60 for up to 16 drives per controller (50 with expander); the NV cache absorbs burst writes and persists data across power loss — critical for database transaction logs and write-intensive applications
PERC H355 (Entry Hardware RAID) — 12 Gb/s SAS controller on PCIe Gen 4 without write cache; supports RAID 0, 1, and 10 for up to 32 drives; suitable for read-intensive workloads and configurations where RAID 5/6/50/60 parity protection is not required — replaces the H345 from December 2021 as the entry RAID controller
HBA355i (SAS Host Bus Adapter) — 12 Gb/s SAS pass-through adapter on PCIe Gen 4; no RAID functionality; connects directly to OS-managed software RAID or storage virtualization layers; up to 16 drives per controller with expander support — use when RAID is managed at the hypervisor or OS level
PERC S150 (Software RAID) — SATA-only software RAID implemented in firmware; supports RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 with no additional PCIe slot consumption; lowest-cost option for non-critical workloads; RAID computation runs on the Xeon E-2300 CPU — avoid for RAID 5/10 rebuilds on processor-intensive workloads
HBA355e External SAS — 12 Gb/s SAS external adapter on PCIe Gen 4 for JBOD expansion; 16 internal ports, up to 240 drives through SAS expander topology; enables scale-out storage architecture beyond the R350's internal bay count
RAID Levels Summary — PERC H755 covers RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, 60; PERC H355 covers RAID 0, 1, 10; S150 covers RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 (SATA only); HBA355i/355e pass-through only — choose the controller based on redundancy tier, drive interface (SAS vs SATA), and budget for the specific workload
BOSS-S2 — Mirrored M.2 SATA Boot with IDSDM Backup Option
BOSS-S2 Module (Primary Boot Option) — Boot Optimized Storage Solution using dual 80 mm M.2 SATA SSDs in hardware RAID 1 (mirrored) configuration; the Marvell 88SE9230 SATA RAID controller maintains a real-time mirror of the OS partition — a single M.2 SSD failure does not impact server availability
BOSS-S2 Drive Capacities — Standard M.2 SATA SSDs available in 240 GB and 480 GB; QNS (Quote and Non-Standard) options extend to 960 GB and 1.9 TB for larger OS + application footprints; drives are rated Read-Intensive (1 DWPD) — appropriate for OS boot workloads with minimal write activity
BOSS-S2 Design Details — Rear-facing hot-plug module accessible from the back of the chassis; UEFI and Legacy boot supported; firmware updates managed through iDRAC with cryptographic digital signature verification; independent per-M.2 device LED indicates drive health status
IDSDM (Internal Dual SD Module) — Alternative boot option using dual microSD cards in hardware RAID 1 mirror (primary + secondary via I2C monitoring); intended for hypervisor boot images where the hypervisor vendor recommends SD-based deployment and write activity is minimal; onboard LEDs indicate individual card health
Internal USB — Optional internal USB 3.0 card adds one internal USB 3.0 port for persistent local storage, out-of-band access tools, or supplemental boot media; does not consume a PCIe expansion slot
Boot Device Recommendation — BOSS-S2 is the preferred boot device for production workloads; it dedicates dedicated M.2 SATA bandwidth to OS I/O without competing with data drives; IDSDM is suitable for read-heavy hypervisor boot images only — SD cards are not rated for sustained data write workloads
3 × PCIe Gen 4 Slots — Butterfly Riser + Dedicated PERC Slot
Config 0 — Butterfly Riser — Two low-profile half-length PCIe Gen 4 slots via the butterfly riser card: Slot 1 is x8 (x16 physical connector) and Slot 2 is x8 (x8 physical connector); both supplied by the processor for maximum bandwidth per lane
Dedicated PERC Slot — A third internal x4 PCIe Gen 4 slot is dedicated exclusively to PERC storage controllers; this slot keeps the storage controller from consuming a user-accessible expansion slot — both PCIe slots remain available for networking and other add-in cards
Config 1 — No Riser (Integrated PERC) — Alternative configuration without a riser card; a single integrated half-height half-length x8 PCIe Gen 3.1 slot connects through the processor for PERC controllers only; use when riser card clearance is a concern
Supported Add-in Cards — Intel and Broadcom 1 GbE and 10 GbE NIC cards (up to 2 cards total across both PCIe slots); Dell External Adapters (HBA355e) for SAS JBOD expansion; after-market PCIe cards require Dell qualification — non-validated cards may trigger thermal alerts or compatibility warnings
Card Form Factor — Both expansion slots accommodate low-profile, half-length cards only; full-height and full-length cards are not supported in the R350's 1U chassis — verify add-in card form factor before ordering
PCIe Gen 4 Bandwidth — Gen 4 doubles available bandwidth per lane versus Gen 3; each x8 Gen 4 slot provides 16 GB/s bidirectional throughput — sufficient for dual-port 25 GbE NICs and high-speed storage adapters without bandwidth contention
Dual 1 GbE Broadcom LOM + 10 GbE PCIe Expansion
Embedded Dual-Port 1 GbE LOM — Broadcom BCM5720 integrated dual-port 1 GbE NIC (10/100/1000 Mbps); both ports are available on the rear panel and support Wake-on-LAN, PXE network boot, and iDRAC Shared LOM for out-of-band management sharing a physical port
Dedicated iDRAC Ethernet Port — A dedicated iDRAC9 RJ-45 management port on the rear panel provides separate out-of-band connectivity for full remote management independent of the data LOM ports; use dedicated iDRAC port in iDRAC Enterprise/Datacenter configurations to isolate management traffic from production data traffic
10 GbE PCIe Add-in NICs — Intel and Broadcom 10 GbE NICs supported in PCIe slots 1 and 2 (up to 2 NIC cards total); 10 GbE connectivity eliminates bandwidth bottlenecks for virtualization, SMB file server, iSCSI, and NFS workloads that saturate standard 1 GbE links
iDRAC Shared LOM Mode — When a dedicated iDRAC port is not required, the embedded Broadcom LOM supports iDRAC Shared LOM to share one physical 1 GbE port between host OS traffic and iDRAC management traffic; reduces cabling requirements in environments where separate management network segments are not available
PXE Boot Support — Both embedded LOM ports support network boot (PXE/iPXE); enables OS provisioning, deployment automation, and diskless boot scenarios over the network without additional hardware; iDRAC Lifecycle Controller can orchestrate PXE-based deployments directly
Network Expansion Planning — The R350's two PCIe expansion slots allow for one or two add-in NIC cards; plan slot allocation carefully between storage controllers and NICs — the dedicated PERC slot keeps PERC from consuming user slots, leaving both PCIe slots available for dual 10 GbE cards if needed
600 W Platinum or 700 W Titanium — Hot-Swap Redundant PSUs
600 W AC 80 PLUS Platinum — Dual hot-swap PSU bays; 600 W per unit; 80 PLUS Platinum efficiency; auto-ranging 100–240 V AC input at 50/60 Hz; 2,250 BTU/hr heat dissipation; suitable for standard configurations with Xeon E-2300 processors and mixed HDD/SSD storage
700 W AC 80 PLUS Titanium — Dual hot-swap PSU bays; 700 W per unit; 80 PLUS Titanium efficiency — the highest efficiency rating in the 80 PLUS program; auto-ranging 100–240 V AC input; 2,625 BTU/hr heat dissipation; recommended for maximum-configuration deployments or environments with strict power efficiency requirements
DC Input Options — 600 W DC (240 V DC) and 700 W Mixed Mode HVDC versions available for data center environments using DC power distribution; same form factor as AC units enabling standardized hot-swap service across AC and DC configurations
Redundant Hot-Swap Design — Both PSU bays are active simultaneously in a 1+1 redundant configuration; the remaining PSU takes full load instantly on failure without server interruption; replace the failed unit while the server continues running — no downtime window required
Hot Spare Mode — The redundant PSU supports a Hot Spare mode where it operates at reduced power until the primary PSU fails; Hot Spare reduces idle-state power consumption while maintaining full failover protection — enabled and monitored through iDRAC
Upgrade from R340 — R350 PSU wattage increases from R340's maximum 550 W Platinum to 700 W Titanium, enabling higher thermal headroom for more storage drives and optional 10 GbE add-in cards under full load without sacrificing PSU redundancy
N+1 Fan Redundancy — ASHRAE A2/A3/A4 with Dynamic Thermal Control
Fan Configuration — Four 40×56 mm (4056) system fans in both LFF and SFF chassis configurations; N+1 fan redundancy means the server remains in operation if one fan fails — the remaining three fans increase speed to compensate; failed fans can be replaced during operation without server shutdown
Dynamic Thermal Control — Closed-loop feedback continuously adjusts fan speeds based on real-time sensor data from processors, DIMMs, chipset, inlet air temperature, and storage drives; open-loop configuration-based control operates in parallel — the more aggressive of the two determines actual fan speed at any moment
ASHRAE A2 Operation — Standard operating envelope: 10–35°C (50–95°F) ambient with derating of –1°C per 300 m above 900 m altitude; maximum operational altitude 3,048 m (10,000 ft); for most office, wiring closet, and standard data center environments
ASHRAE A3 and A4 Fresh Air Cooling — Extended operating envelopes to 40°C (A3) and 45°C (A4) for telco and equipment room deployments without precision air conditioning; A3 and A4 require redundant PSUs, restrict BOSS-S2 module use, and limit 8×SFF HDDs to <1 TB capacity drives — verify configuration compatibility before deployment
Thermal Monitoring Sensors — iDRAC9 monitors inlet air temperature, CPU temperatures, DIMM thermal margins, chipset temperatures, and individual HDD/SSD temperatures continuously; automatic throttling and alerts activate before any component reaches its thermal ceiling
Air Cooling Only — The R350 does not support direct liquid cooling or rear-door heat exchangers; all thermal management is accomplished through forced-air convection; the 1U chassis is optimized for standard data center, rack room, and office closet free-air deployments
iDRAC Direct Front Access + USB 3.0 and VGA Rear Panel
Front Panel — USB 2.0 — One USB 2.0 Type-A port for local keyboard, USB drive, or peripheral access at the front of the chassis; useful during initial provisioning and OS installation without reaching behind a rack-mounted server
Front Panel — iDRAC Direct (Micro-AB USB 2.0) — Dedicated iDRAC Direct management port on the front panel; connect a laptop via USB cable for direct iDRAC access using a web browser at `169.254.0.1`; includes iDRAC Direct status LED indicating active session state — simplifies on-site troubleshooting and BIOS configuration without network access
Rear Panel — USB 3.2 Gen 1 — One rear USB 3.0 (USB 3.2 Gen 1) Type-A port for high-speed peripheral access; data transfer at up to 5 Gb/s — use for external storage, deployment tools, or OS install media requiring sustained read throughput
Rear Panel — USB 2.0 — One rear USB 2.0 Type-A port for legacy peripherals including KVM dongles, security keys, or out-of-band tools that require a persistent always-on USB connection during system operation
Rear Panel — VGA + Serial — One VGA display port for local console access and one DB-9 serial port for serial console logging, BIOS terminal access, and out-of-band serial management — both ports remain independent of iDRAC and function without network connectivity
Internal USB — Optional internal USB 3.0 card adds one internal USB 3.0 port inside the chassis; appropriate for persistent boot media, Trusted Platform Module dongles, or USB-based hardware security keys that must remain physically secured inside the server enclosure
Video Controller — Integrated Matrox G200, 16 MB frame buffer; supports display resolutions from 1024×768 through 1920×1200 at 60–85 Hz refresh; available via rear VGA port and iDRAC virtual console for remote KVM sessions
Silicon Root of Trust — Hardware-Anchored Cyber Resilient Architecture
Silicon Root of Trust — Cryptographic trust anchored directly in hardware; the iDRAC9 boot process is validated against immutable silicon-stored keys before any firmware executes; if firmware tampering is detected the boot sequence halts and an alert is raised — a compromised firmware cannot silently disable the security chain
Signed Firmware — Every firmware package for BIOS, iDRAC, PERC, and peripheral components is digitally signed; the system verifies the cryptographic signature before applying any update; unsigned or tampered firmware is rejected regardless of how it was introduced to the system
UEFI Secure Boot — Validates the OS bootloader signature against an authorized database at startup; prevents unauthorized or unsigned operating systems and bootloaders from loading — critical for environments hosting regulated workloads under PCI-DSS, HIPAA, or DISA STIG policies
System Lockdown — Prevents unauthorized configuration changes, firmware updates, and hardware modifications when enabled; requires iDRAC9 Enterprise or Datacenter license; lockdown violations are logged and alerted through iDRAC; a physical system presence check can override lockdown for authorized recovery
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) — TPM 1.2 and TPM 2.0 supported; FIPS 140-2 certified and CC-TCG (Common Criteria Trusted Computing Group) certified; cryptographically bound to the system board — TPM migration to a different board is blocked by design; TCM 2.0 available for markets requiring Chinese Cryptography Standards
System Erase — Secure wipe capability for HDDs, SSDs, NVDIMM, and system memory through iDRAC; compliant with NIST 800-88 guidelines for media sanitization — use before decommissioning, redeployment, or disposal to prevent data recovery from retired components
Chassis Intrusion Detection — Physical intrusion detection switch with cable-based sensor; chassis opening is logged in iDRAC event log with a timestamp; an alert is raised to OpenManage and any configured SNMP/REST receivers — provides physical access accountability independent of OS-level logging
iDRAC9 Out-of-Band Management — Express, Enterprise, and Datacenter
iDRAC9 License Tiers — iDRAC9 Express is included at no additional cost on every R350 and provides remote access, sensor monitoring, and basic alerting; Enterprise adds dedicated NIC port isolation, virtual console, virtual media, power capping, and System Lockdown; Datacenter adds telemetry streaming, GPU management, and RESTful API scripting extensions
Lifecycle Controller — Embedded OS-agnostic provisioning and management engine; supports bare-metal firmware and driver updates, system inventory, and OS deployment without requiring an operating system or network agent; all actions are version-controlled and logged for audit trail purposes
Redfish RESTful API — Full iDRAC9 Redfish API enables infrastructure-as-code workflows via curl, Python, Ansible, or Terraform; DMTF-standard endpoints support provisioning, firmware management, power control, and sensor polling — integrate with CI/CD pipelines and IaC frameworks without proprietary tooling dependencies
OpenManage Portfolio — Dell OpenManage Enterprise provides centralized multi-server inventory, firmware management, and alerting; OpenManage Mobile (OMM) extends management to smartphones and tablets; OpenManage SupportAssist plugin automates case creation and predictive failure alerts before hardware becomes critical
Automation Integrations — Red Hat Ansible Modules for iDRAC enable idempotent playbook-based server configuration; VMware vCenter (OMIVV) and OpenManage Enterprise extend visibility into virtual machine topology; ServiceNow integration (OMISNOW) enables automated incident creation from iDRAC alerts directly into ITSM workflows
SupportAssist — Dell SupportAssist monitors hardware health using predictive analytics; automatically opens support cases and collects diagnostic bundles on failure detection; reduces mean-time-to-repair (MTTR) for remote ROBO sites where on-site IT response is unavailable
iDRAC Direct & Access Modes — Direct USB access (front panel Micro-AB port) for browser-based management at `169.254.0.1`; RACADM command-line over SSH, local racadm, and remote racadm; LDAP / Active Directory / Single Sign-On / Smart Card authentication supported at Enterprise/Datacenter tier
Broad OS Compatibility — Windows Server, Linux, and VMware
Microsoft Windows Server with Hyper-V — Certified for Windows Server production workloads; Hyper-V guest support enables consolidated multi-VM hosting on a single R350 chassis; Windows WSSD (Windows Server Software-Defined) storage configurations supported with iSCSI and SMB traffic over 10 GbE add-in NICs
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) — Full RHEL certification with driver repository support through the Lifecycle Controller; Ansible automation modules for iDRAC integrate directly into RHEL-based management frameworks; RHEL software RAID (mdRAID) supported alongside hardware PERC RAID controllers
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) — Certified SLES support for enterprise Linux workloads; HAE (High Availability Extension) and GEO clustering with SLES-compatible driver stack available through Dell's OS support matrix
Canonical Ubuntu Server LTS — Ubuntu LTS certification for DevOps, container (Docker/Kubernetes), and cloud infrastructure deployments; community Ansible roles and Terraform providers for iDRAC align with Ubuntu-based IaC workflows
VMware ESXi — VMware ESXi certified for vSphere Essentials, vSphere Standard, and vSphere Enterprise Plus licensing tiers; OMIVV (OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter) provides Dell firmware and lifecycle management from within vCenter without leaving the hypervisor management plane
Citrix Hypervisor — Citrix Hypervisor (formerly Citrix XenServer) certified for virtual desktop and application delivery workloads; appropriate for ROBO VDI deployments where Citrix is the preferred hypervisor platform
Lifecycle Controller OS Deployment — The embedded Lifecycle Controller supports bare-metal OS installation without network-mounted ISO images; driver packs for all supported OSes are embedded in firmware and applied automatically as part of the guided deployment wizard — simplifies provisioning at remote sites without PXE infrastructure
ReadyRails II Sliding Rails — Tool-Less in 4-Post Racks with Optional CMA
ReadyRails II Sliding Rails (A12) — Primary rack mounting option for both LFF and SFF chassis; tool-less installation in square-hole and round-hole open-frame racks; tooled installation in threaded-hole racks; adjustable rail depth covers 631–868 mm (square), 617–861 mm (round), or 631–883 mm (threaded) — fits the full range of standard server rack depths
ReadyRails Static Rails (A8) — Fixed static rail option supporting 2-post relay racks in addition to all standard 4-post configurations; tool-less in square and round-hole racks; tooled in threaded-hole racks; adjustable depth 608–879 mm — choose static rails when server slide-out access is not required and a simpler mounting solution is preferred
Cable Management Arm (CMA) — Optional CMA compatible with sliding rails only; tool-less side mounting on either left or right side (opposite from PSU bay recommended); large U-shaped baskets with open vent pattern and hook-and-loop straps maintain cable organization during server slide-out for drive or PSU service without disconnecting rear cables
Rail Depth with CMA — LFF chassis: 770 mm (without CMA), 895 mm (with CMA); SFF chassis: 720 mm (without CMA), 845 mm (with CMA); verify rack depth plus cable dressing space before ordering CMA — allow a minimum of 100–200 mm rear cable dressing space beyond the CMA depth
Compact Chassis Depth Advantage — SFF chassis depth to rear wall: 483.82 mm (19.04 in); LFF chassis: 534.59 mm (21.04 in); both configurations fit standard mid-depth server racks and are suitable for ROBO wiring closet environments where full-depth server clearance is limited
2-Post Rack Support — ReadyRails A8 static rails support 2-post relay racks for telco and branch office open-frame deployments; ReadyRails II sliding rails are 4-post only — verify rack type before ordering sliding rail kits for 2-post environments
R350 vs R340 — Gen 15 Upgrades Across Memory, PCIe, and PSU
Processor Platform Upgrade — R350 moves from the R340's Intel Xeon E-2100/E-2200 (Coffee Lake-S LGA-1151 platform) to the Intel Xeon E-2300 series (Rocket Lake-E / Ice Lake-E LGA-1200 platform); the new platform delivers improved IPC, higher core frequencies, and PCIe Gen 4 connectivity not available on the R340
Memory Speed — 3200 MT/s vs 2666 MT/s — R350 DDR4 operates at 3200 MT/s with Xeon E-2300 CPUs versus the R340's 2666 MT/s ceiling; the 20% memory bandwidth increase directly benefits database query performance, ERP transaction throughput, and virtualization memory-intensive guest workloads
Memory Capacity — 128 GB vs Limited DIMM Sizes — R350 supports 32 GB DDR4 UDIMM modules enabling 128 GB maximum; R340 was limited to 8 GB and 16 GB DIMM sizes — R350 doubles to quadruples the available RAM capacity in the same 1U footprint, enabling larger VM counts and bigger in-memory workloads
PCIe Generation — Gen 4 vs Gen 3 — R350 provides 3 × PCIe Gen 4 slots (including dedicated PERC slot) versus the R340's 2 × PCIe Gen 3 slots; Gen 4 doubles per-lane bandwidth and enables future NVMe SSDs and 25 GbE NICs that require Gen 4 throughput to operate at rated speed
Storage Controllers — PERC H355/H755 vs H330/H730p — R350 introduces the PERC H355 (Gen 4, 12 Gb/s) and H755 (8 GB NV cache, Gen 4) replacing the R340's H330 and H730p; the H755's PCIe Gen 4 interface eliminates controller-side bandwidth bottlenecks on NVMe-backed RAID volumes
PSU Wattage — 700 W Titanium vs 550 W Platinum — R350 offers 700 W 80 PLUS Titanium PSUs versus the R340's 550 W 80 PLUS Platinum maximum; the higher-wattage, higher-efficiency PSUs provide headroom for denser storage configurations and 10 GbE NIC add-in cards under full-load conditions without approaching PSU capacity limits
Front Panel — iDRAC Direct Added — R350 adds a Micro-AB USB 2.0 iDRAC Direct port on the front panel for direct laptop-based iDRAC access; the R340 had only two standard USB 2.0 front ports — iDRAC Direct on the R350 eliminates the need to cable around to the rear dedicated iDRAC port for on-site troubleshooting tasks
| Feature | PowerEdge R350 (Gen 15) | PowerEdge R340 (Gen 14) |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Platform | LGA1200 — Xeon E-2300 (Rocket Lake-E) | LGA1151 — Xeon E-2200 / E-2100 (Coffee Lake-S) |
| Max Cores | 8 (E-2388G) | 6 (E-2288G) |
| Memory Speed | DDR4 3200 MT/s | DDR4 2666 MT/s |
| Max Memory | 128 GB (4 × 32 GB UDIMM) | 64 GB (limited DIMM sizes) |
| PCIe Generation | 3 × PCIe Gen 4 | 2 × PCIe Gen 3 |
| Entry RAID | PERC H355 (12 Gb/s, Gen 4) | PERC H330 (12 Gb/s, Gen 3) |
| Premium RAID | PERC H755 (8 GB NV cache, Gen 4) | PERC H730p (2 GB cache, Gen 3) |
| Max PSU Wattage | 700 W 80 PLUS Titanium | 550 W 80 PLUS Platinum |
| Front USB | USB 2.0 + iDRAC Direct (Micro-AB) | 2 × USB 2.0 (no iDRAC Direct) |
| BOSS Boot Module | BOSS-S2 (M.2 SATA RAID 1) | BOSS (first gen M.2) |
Frequently Asked Questions — Dell PowerEdge R350
The Dell PowerEdge R350 supports up to 128 GB of DDR4 ECC memory across 4 DIMM slots at up to 3200 MT/s. The single-socket Xeon E-2300 platform covers general business workloads, web hosting, and small database applications without requiring a dual-socket chassis.
The R350 supports up to 4 × 3.5-inch LFF drives or 8 × 2.5-inch SFF drives. An optional BOSS-S2 bootflash module keeps all data bays free from OS duties.
The R350 is a single-socket server supporting the Intel Xeon E-2300 series (3rd Gen Xeon E, LGA1200) with up to 8 cores and 16 threads. PCIe Gen 4.0 slots double the bandwidth versus the E-2200 generation, benefiting NVMe storage and high-speed NICs.
Yes. Express Computer Systems stocks professionally reconditioned Dell PowerEdge R350 rack servers ready to deploy. Configure a refurbished Dell R350 at ECS.
The R350 (Gen 15) replaces the R340 (Gen 14) with Intel Xeon E-2300 vs E-2200, PCIe Gen 4.0 vs Gen 3.0 (doubling PCIe bandwidth), DDR4 at 3200 MT/s, and iDRAC9 System Lockdown for enhanced firmware security — a meaningful upgrade for top-of-rack and edge deployments.
Ready to Deploy the Dell PowerEdge R350?
Express Computer Systems stocks professionally reconditioned Dell PowerEdge R350 rack servers configured to your workload. Every unit is tested, cleaned, and ready to ship — build your custom R350 configuration today.
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