Dell PowerEdge R740 vs R730: Specs, NVMe and Which to Buy
The Dell PowerEdge R740 is the 2U successor to the R730, and most buyers looking at one are weighing it against a cheaper R730. This covers what the newer generation gives you and when the older one is still the better buy.
What is the Dell PowerEdge R740?
A dual-socket 2U rack server on socket LGA 3647, supporting Intel Xeon Scalable processors, with DDR4 memory across 24 DIMM slots and iDRAC9 remote management.
Same shape and role as the R730, different platform underneath. Processors, memory rules, controllers and management all differ.
R730 vs R740: what is the difference?
Five things, and one of them decides most purchases.
Different socket and processor family. R740 uses LGA 3647 with Xeon Scalable; R730 uses LGA 2011-3 with Xeon E5-2600 v3/v4. Processors do not transfer.
More memory channels per processor on Xeon Scalable, which matters on memory-intensive work.
Better performance per watt — frequently the strongest argument, because running cost accrues every hour the machine is on. Our TCO guide covers counting it.
Better NVMe and accelerator support. The R740 handles NVMe drives and GPUs more readily, though both still depend on the specific chassis configuration — a bay that physically accepts an NVMe drive may have no PCIe lanes routed to it, as our backplanes guide covers.
Longer support runway from operating systems, hypervisors and the vendor.
The critical point: this is a replacement, not an upgrade. Memory, processors, controllers and drive carriers are all generation-specific. Budgeting an R730-to-R740 move as a component swap is a common and expensive error.
Should I buy an R730 or an R740?
Three questions.
How long will it run? Three years or less and a cheaper R730 frequently wins on total spend. Longer, and the support runway and power cost favour the R740.
Do you need NVMe or GPUs? If yes, the R740 is the sensible starting point rather than fighting an older chassis — our accelerator guide covers what a GPU needs from a server.
Are you matching a fleet? Shared spares and shared skills have real value, and our multi-vendor guide covers why spares multiply rather than add across platforms.
Where you are consolidating several older machines into one, the R740 usually wins on power alone — our consolidation guide covers the arithmetic.
R740 drive bay configurations
As with any PowerEdge, the chassis rather than the model decides this.
Configurations include small form factor and large form factor front bays in different counts, with NVMe-capable bays on some builds. Two rules.
Bay count and size are set by the backplane and cannot be increased by adding drives.
Empty bays need carriers, generation-matched to the chassis. This is the most common omission in a PowerEdge storage order — state how many you need.
And if NVMe matters, confirm which specific bays have lanes routed to them rather than assuming the whole front supports it.
Do I need an iDRAC Enterprise licence?
The question that catches people buying used Dell servers, and it matters more than most specifications.
Basic iDRAC gives health monitoring and hardware inventory. Remote console and virtual media generally require the Enterprise licence — and those are precisely what you need when a machine will not boot and nobody is at the site.
Two practical points. Check whether a licence is included on used equipment rather than assuming, since it does not always transfer. And where the machine is remote or unstaffed, treat the licence as part of the purchase price rather than an optional extra — our out-of-band guide covers why that access is what actually resolves an incident.
Which RAID controller does the R740 use?
Commonly a PERC H730P or H740P, and the same check applies as on any PERC machine.
The cache battery is what to verify. Without it the controller drops to write-through and write performance collapses with nothing reported as a fault — no failed drive, no array warning, just a slow server. Our PERC guide covers this, and it is the first thing to check on any PowerEdge that feels slow.
PERC controllers also validate drive firmware, so Dell-coded drives are the safe choice — our Dell SSD guide covers what happens otherwise.
What is missing from a used R740?
Rails, which stay in the rack. Drive carriers for empty bays. Risers, without which no cards fit. The PERC cache battery, a consumable with limited life. And the iDRAC Enterprise licence.
Ask about each specifically before ordering — our build versus buy guide covers why these decide whether a deployment takes hours or weeks.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between R730 and R740?
Different socket and processor family, more memory channels, better performance per watt, readier NVMe and GPU support, and a longer support runway. Nothing transfers between them — it is a replacement, not an upgrade.
Can I move my R730 processors and memory into an R740?
No. The socket differs, and although both use DDR4 the platforms have different population rules and supported speeds. Controllers and drive carriers do not cross either. Budgeting this as a component swap is a common and expensive error.
Is an R740 worth the extra over an R730?
On three years or less, a cheaper R730 frequently wins on total spend. Choose the R740 where you need NVMe or GPUs, where the machine will run longer, or where you are consolidating several older machines and power cost dominates.
Do I need iDRAC Enterprise on a used R740?
If you want remote console and virtual media, yes — and those are precisely what you need when a machine will not boot and nobody is on site. Basic health monitoring works without it. Check whether a licence is included, since it does not always transfer.
How many drives does an R740 hold?
It depends on the chassis rather than the model. Bay count and size are set by the backplane fitted and cannot be increased by adding drives. If NVMe matters, confirm which specific bays have PCIe lanes routed to them.
Why is my R740 slow with no errors in iDRAC?
Check the PERC cache battery. Without it the controller drops to write-through mode and write performance collapses, with no failed drive and no array warning to point at it.
Tell us how long the machine needs to run and whether you need NVMe or GPUs, and we will quote both generations honestly.
