Dell R640 System: A Comprehensive Guide for Fan Requirements

The Dell R640 has multiple fan configuration layouts which will be determined based on the components installed in the system. There are both standard fans and high-performance fans which can be found in these systems which will also be determined based off of the components in the system.

To start the amount of fans in the system will be determined based off of how many CPUs are installed. When only populating one CPU in an R640 only 5 of the 8 fans need to be installed, essentially the left side of the chassis where CPU 2 would be installed will be left with 3 empty fan slots. Once installing a second CPU you then need to add 3 fans to bring the system up to the full 8 fans.

Next, we're going to be looking at instances where you require high-performance fan models. The first thing that can require high-performance fans will be the TDP of the processors installed into the system. If your processors are 150W TDP or less you only need the standard fans for your system. If you upgrade your processor to a higher TDP model being 165W TDP or more will require high-performance fans and even when running a single CPU configuration will still require 8 high-performance fans. So essentially 150W TDP or lower CPUs will require 5 standard fans for 1 CPU configuration and 8 standard fans for 2 CPU configurations. 165W TDP and higher CPUs will require 8 high-performance fans in either 1 or 2 CPU configurations.

Lastly, the last configuration which can require high-performance fans will be when utilizing NVMe SSDs through the backplane. If you end up utilizing NVMe 2.5" drives you will require 8 high-performance fans even if you're using lower TDP processors in 1 or 2 CPU configuration