P02875-B21 HPE DL560 Gen10 24-Core 3.9 GHz Rack-mountable RPS Server

Product Overview of P02875-B21 HPE DL560 Gen10 Server

The HPE P02875-B21 ProLiant DL560 Gen10 Server is a powerful, enterprise-grade rack server designed for mission-critical workloads, virtualization, databases, and in-memory applications. With advanced 4-socket scalability, high-speed networking, and premium reliability features, this 2U rack-mount system delivers exceptional performance and efficiency for modern data centers.

General Specifications

• Brand: Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
• Model Number: P02875-B21
• Server Series: ProLiant DL560 Gen10
• Form Factor: 2U Rack-mountable
• Scalability: 4-way server architecture

Processor and Chipset Details

CPU Configuration

• Processor Family: 2nd Gen Intel Xeon Platinum
• Processor Model: Xeon Platinum 8268
• Base Clock Speed: 2.9 GHz
• Max Turbo Frequency: Up to 3.9 GHz
• Total Cores: 24-core per processor
• Maximum CPUs Supported: 4

Processor Technologies

• Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0
• Hyper-Threading Technology
• Intel Smart Cache
• Upgradeable CPU design

Chipset and Socket

• Chipset: Intel C621
• Socket Type: FCLGA3647

Cache Memory Performance

• Total L3 Cache: 143 MB
• Cache per CPU: 35.75 MB

System Memory (RAM)

Memory Specifications

• Memory Type: DDR4 SDRAM
• Speed: 2933 MHz
• Form Factor: 288-pin DIMM
• Total Slots: 48
• Available Slots: 32

Advanced Memory Features

• Registered HPE SmartMemory
• 6-channel memory architecture
• Supports registered and load-reduced DIMMs
• Slots 25–48 available in four-processor configuration only
• Configured as 16 × 32 GB modules

Storage Controller and RAID Capabilities

• Controller: HPE Smart Array P816i-a SR
• Interface: SATA 6Gb/s & SAS 12Gb/s
• Channels: 16
• Cache Buffer: 4 GB

Supported RAID Levels

• RAID 0, 1, 5, 6
• RAID 10, 50, 60
• Advanced Data Mirroring (ADM)

Graphics Controller

• Video Memory: 16 MB
• Display Output: VGA

Networking and Communication

• Ethernet Ports: 2 × 10 Gigabit Ethernet
• Network Controller: HPE 640FLR
• Protocols Supported: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit, 10GbE

Networking Features

• Wake-on-LAN (WoL)
• PXE boot support
• IEEE 802.3, 802.3u, 802.3ab compliance

Expansion Bays and Connectivity

Drive Bays

• 1 × External bay
• 16 × Hot-swap 2.5-inch SFF bays

Expansion Slots

• 1 × PCIe 3.0 x16 (full-height)
• 2 × PCIe 3.0 x8 (full-height)
• 2 × M.2 card slots
• 1 × Internal microSD slot

Input / Output Interfaces

• 1 × VGA
• 1 × Serial
• 2 × 25GbE LAN (SFP28)
• 1 × HPE iLO RJ-45
• 1 × Front HPE iLO port
• 2 × USB 2.0
• 5 × USB 3.0 (front, rear, and internal)

Included Accessories

• Cable Management Arm
• HPE Easy Install Rail Kit
• 6 × Redundant Hot-plug Cooling Fans

Power Supply and Efficiency

• Power Supply Type: Hot-plug PSU
• Installed Units: 2
• Maximum Supported: 2
• Redundancy: Optional 1+1 configuration
• Output Power: 1600 Watts
• Voltage: AC 120/230V (50/60Hz)
• Certification: 80 PLUS Platinum
• Efficiency: Up to 94%

Physical Dimensions and Weight

• Width: 17.5 inches
• Depth: 29.7 inches
• Height: 3.4 inches
• Weight: 40.67 lbs

Architectural Overview: A Foundation for Mission-Critical Workloads

The HPE DL560 Gen10 is architected around the Intel Xeon Scalable processor family (codenamed Skylake or Cascade Lake), which provides the bedrock for its exceptional performance. The four-socket design is its defining characteristic, allowing it to host up to four high-core-count processors. This "scale-up" architecture provides a unified, high-bandwidth memory and I/O ecosystem, which is often more efficient for large, monolithic applications than scaling out across many two-socket nodes. The platform supports advanced RAS (Reliability, Availability, and Serviceability) features inherent to the Intel Scalable processors and enhanced by HPE's firmware and hardware design, making it suitable for business-critical applications where downtime is not an option.

Deep Dive: The P02875-B21 Configuration Breakdown

This specific SKU is a pre-configured, ready-to-deploy unit that balances high-core count with high clock speeds for versatile performance.

Processing Power: 24-Core 3.9 GHz

The configuration leverages Intel Xeon Gold 6200 or Platinum 8200 series processors to deliver a total of 24 cores per processor. The base frequency of 3.9 GHz indicates the use of processors optimized for high single-thread performance, which is crucial for latency-sensitive applications like financial trading, real-time analytics, and ERP systems. With four sockets, the system can scale to a staggering 96 total cores, providing an immense number of execution threads for massively parallelized workloads when fully populated.

Memory Subsystem: 512GB of Registered DDR4 RAM

Equipped with 512GB of DDR4 memory, this configuration provides a substantial memory pool for hosting hundreds of virtual machines, running large in-memory databases (like SAP HANA, which is certified on this platform), or processing big datasets. The DL560 Gen10 supports memory speeds up to 2933 MT/s and utilizes Load Reduced DIMMs (LRDIMMs) in this high-capacity configuration, which reduce the electrical load on the memory controller, enabling larger total capacities—up to 6TB across 48 DIMM slots. This memory architecture is critical for minimizing latency and maximizing data bandwidth for CPU-intensive tasks.

Storage, Networking, and Power Infrastructure

A server's capabilities are defined not just by its CPU and RAM, but by its ability to feed data to those components. The P02875-B21 configuration is designed with a balanced I/O and storage profile.

Flexible Storage: P816i-a Controller with 16 SFF Bays

This model includes the HPE Smart Array P816i-a Controller, a flagship storage controller embedded in the system board. This hardware RAID controller features 4GB of Flash-backed write cache (FBWC), ensuring data protection during power loss and accelerating write performance. It manages the 16 Small Form Factor (SFF) drive bays, which support both SAS and SATA drives, including high-performance SSDs and high-capacity HDDs. This flexibility allows IT administrators to tailor storage for performance (all-SSD), capacity (all-HDD), or a tiered mix, suitable for everything as a fast virtual machine datastore to a large archival repository.

Networking and Expansion

The server includes a quad-port 1Gb Ethernet NIC (iLO management port is separate) as a standard. Its true expansion potential lies in its six PCIe 3.0 slots. These slots can be populated with additional 10/25/100Gb Ethernet adapters, Fibre Channel or InfiniBand HBAs, or GPU accelerators, allowing the DL560 to serve as a powerful node in a GPU-accelerated AI/ML cluster or a high-throughput data ingestion node.

Power and Cooling: 2x1600W RPS

The inclusion of two 1600W Platinum efficiency power supplies configured in a Redundant Power Supply (RPS) setup is crucial for reliability. In this 1+1 redundancy mode, if one power supply fails, the other immediately takes the full load without interrupting server operation. The 1600W rating provides ample headroom for a fully-populated system with additional PCIe cards and drives, ensuring stable power delivery. The 2U form factor allows for large, efficient fans that can move significant airflow to cool the four high-TDP processors and associated components under full load.

Target Workloads and Use Cases

The HPE DL560 Gen10 P02875-B21 is not a general-purpose server; it is a specialized tool for specific, demanding IT challenges.

Virtualization and Private Cloud Consolidation

This server is a powerhouse for virtualization hypervisors like VMware vSphere, Microsoft Hyper-V, or Red Hat Virtualization. The high core count and massive memory pool allow for extreme virtual machine density, enabling organizations to consolidate dozens or even hundreds of legacy physical servers onto a single, more manageable platform. This reduces data center space, power consumption, and administrative overhead while improving resource utilization.

In-Memory Database

Platforms like SAP HANA, Oracle Database In-Memory, and Microsoft SQL Server with In-Memory OLTP thrive on the DL560's architecture. The combination of ultra-fast processors, vast memory capacity (scalable to 6TB), and the high-bandwidth internal interconnect (Intel Ultra Path Interconnect - UPI) between CPUs ensures that massive datasets can reside entirely in RAM, accelerating query times from hours to seconds and enabling real-time business intelligence.

High-Performance Computing (HPC) and Technical Computing

In clustered environments, the DL560 Gen10 serves as a high-density compute node. Its four-socket design provides more cores and memory bandwidth per node compared to standard two-socket servers, which can lead to more efficient parallel processing for simulations, financial modeling, genomic sequencing, and engineering analysis, especially for applications that scale well across many cores within a single system image.

Business-Critical Applications

Large-scale ERP (e.g., SAP, Oracle E-Business Suite), CRM, and supply chain management applications require consistent, reliable performance. The RAS features of the DL560, combined with HPE's iLO 5 management and proactive failure prevention, make it an ideal platform for these Tier-1 applications where system failure has a direct business revenue impact.

HPE Differentiators and Management

HPE augments the standard server hardware with a suite of value-added technologies that simplify lifecycle management and enhance security.

HPE Integrated Lights-Out 5 (iLO 5)

Every Gen10 server is equipped with the dedicated iLO 5 management processor. It provides secure, remote administration of the server regardless of its power state. Key features include remote console, virtual media, firmware update orchestration, and seamless integration with HPE OneView for infrastructure-wide management. iLO 5 is foundational to HPE's Silicon Root of Trust security, which cryptographically verifies firmware at boot to prevent malware persistence.

HPE InfoSight for ProLiant

This cloud-based AIOps platform represents a paradigm shift in server management. InfoSight uses predictive analytics and a global knowledge corpus drawn from thousands of systems to not only alert on issues but often predict and prevent them before they cause downtime. It can recommend optimal firmware versions, identify misconfigurations, and guide support requests, transforming server management from reactive to proactive.

Security by Design: HPE Silicon Root of Trust

Security is integrated at the hardware level. The Silicon Root of Trust ensures the server firmware has not been tampered with, providing a secure boot foundation. This is complemented by signed firmware updates, secure wipe, and TPM 2.0 support, creating a comprehensive chain of trust from hardware to OS.

Considerations and Configuration Flexibility

The P02875-B21 is a specific snapshot of a highly configurable platform. Understanding its growth paths is key to long-term planning.

Upgrade and Expansion Paths

This server is designed for future growth. The CPU sockets can be populated with higher core-count models. The 48 DIMM slots allow memory to be expanded far beyond the initial 512GB. The 16 drive bays and six PCIe slots offer ample room for storage and I/O expansion. It's crucial to note that populating all four CPUs and maximum memory may require additional power and cooling considerations in the data center.

Comparison with Scale-Out Alternatives

While the DL560 excels at scaling up, organizations should evaluate their application architecture. Some modern, cloud-native applications are designed to scale horizontally across many smaller nodes. The DL560 is optimal for traditional, stateful applications that benefit from large, shared memory and core counts within a single server.