Dell PowerEdge r540: Specs and Rack Compatibility

December 3, 2020
blog

Contrary to the impression you might get from Dell’s naming convention, the PowerEdge R540 was released before the R240 and R340, in late 2017. It’s also quite different as it’s available in a 2U chassis, and comes with 2 sockets for Intel CPUs.

Still, it’s $1000 price tag puts it in the entry level 2U server range, and gives some nice features to those who need a bit of power. Intel’s Scalable Processors provided a 27% increase in cores form the previous generation and a 50% increase in bandwidth.

PowerEdge R540 Mounting Equipment

Slide Rail: 2U Cobra 80 Rail for Dell
4 Post Racks: 19” width, 20”- 30” mounting depth 2 Post Racks: 19” width, 3” – 6” uprights
Universal Rail: Universal Rack Rails
4 Post Sliding Shelf: Rack Mount Sliding Shelves
2 Post Fixed Shelf: 3U Adjustable 2 Post Relay Rack Shelf – 29″ depth

PowerEdge R540 Mounting specifications

Chassis Dimensions:

Length (depth): 27.31” (693.81 mm)
Width: 17.08” (434 mm)
Height: 3.41” (86.8 mm)
Weight: 65.43 lb (29.68 kg) max

Mounting Requirements:

U height: 2U
Rack width: 19”
Mountable depth: 27”-30”

PowerEdge R540 hardware specifications

RAM: Up to 1TB DDR4 DIMM (16 slots)
Storage: 168TB max (12 x 3.5” SAS/SATA HDD)
CPU options: Up to two 2nd gen Intel Xeon Scalable processor (40 cores total)
Power: Dual hot-plug, redundant power supplies
Remote management: iDRAC9 with Lifecycle Controller

Dell PowerEdge R540 dimensions and rack compatibility

The PowerEdge R540 chassis is 2 rack units in height, has a depth of 28 inches and will fit in standard EIA 19 inch racks.

Rails allow for the most efficient use of space when mounting servers. RackSolutions specifically designed a slide rail kit to fit the shoulder screws of the PowerEdge R540.

Universal rails that have a height of 2U and support up to 29 inches of depth will be compatible with the PE R540. A benefit of these is the ability to re-use them for different servers or future upgrades. Plus, it’s easy to slide your server in and out of them for maintenance. You can also use our slam latch accessory kit for your Dell servers to be secured in place when using our universal rails. The retaining plate is only compatible with 1U-2U standard width universal rails.