The Dell PowerEdge EMC R740xd delivers a perfect balance between storage scalability and performance. The 2U two-socket platform is ideal for software-defined storage, service providers, or as virtual desktop infrastructure.

The R740XD has many configurations. Please read up on the manuals to make sure your configuration is going to work. Below are the Spec and Tech manuals.

The Dell PowerEdge R740xd has 3 Backplanes to choose from.
The 24 x 2.5" SAS/SATA/NVMe with a max of 12 NVMe drives allowed. Supports the mid and rear drive trays.
The 12 x 3.5" SAS/SATA (HDD/SDD) which supports the mid and rear drive trays.
The 24 x (NVMe) does not support a mid or a rear drive tray.

If you're thinking of having NVDIMM's with a battery. You can only install a 3.5" Mid-drive tray or no mid-drive tray. The Mid mid-drive tray for the 2.5" does not support a NVDIMM battery.

The scalable system architecture behind the Dell R740xd Server with up to 24 NVMe drives creates the ideal balance between scalability and performance. The refurbished poweredge R740xd versatility is highlighted with the ability to mix any drive type to create the optimum configuration of NVMe, SSD and HDD for either performance, capacity or both. The PowerEdge R740xd server is the platform of choice for software defined storage and is the foundation for ScaleIO, VSAN or the PowerEdge XC.

• Maximize storage performance with up to 24 NVMe drives and ensure application performance scales to meet demands.
• Free up storage space using internal M.2 SSDs optimized for boot.
• Simplify and accelerate ScaleIO or VMware vSAN deployments with validated, pre-bundled and tailored Ready Nodes.
• Accelerate workloads with up to 3 double-width 300W GPUs, up to 6 single-width 150W GPUs or up to 4 FPGAs.

Dell EMC PowerEdge servers with OpenManage technology work at peak efficiency for PowerEdge servers, delivering intelligent, automated management of routine tasks. Combined with unique agent-free management capabilities, the R740xd is simply managed, freeing up time for high profile projects.

• Simplify management with the New OpenManage Enterprise console, with customized reporting and automatic discovery.
• Take advantage of QuickSync 2 capabilities and gain access to your servers easily through your phone or tablet.

Benefit from scalable storage performance and data set processing with the Dell PowerEdge EMC R740xd server. This 2U, 2-socket platform brings you scalability and performance to adapt to a variety of applications. Choose up to 24 NVMe drives, or a total of 32 x 2.5” or 18 x 3.5” drives. As you scale your deployments, scale your productivity with embedded intelligence and automation from iDRAC9 and the entire OpenManage portfolio designed to simplify the IT lifecycle from deployment to retirement.

Transform your data center for modern applications and operations with the help of the R740xd. Storage performance and flexibility create the perfect balance for software-defined storage or data set processing and analytics.

• Simplify deployment and easily scale from 3 to 1000 nodes for software-defined storage with Dell EMC Ready Node for ScaleIO.
• Maximize storage performance with up to 24 NVMe drives and ensure application performance scales to meet demands.
• Drive demanding workloads with 2nd Generation Intel Xeon Scalable processors and Intel Optane DC Persistent Memory.

If you install a Mid-Drive Tray, the 1U Low-profile Heatsinks will be installed for both sockets. If the NVDIMMs are only supported on the 4x 3.5" Mid Tray. When the NVDIMM is installed, the battery will take the place of (1) Drive in the Mid-Tray. The 4x 2.5" Mid Drive tray does not support the NVDIMM Drives. It has no position for the battery.

The Rear Drive cages take up two sections of PCIe slots and will leave you with only 3 Low Profile slots with Riser 1.

The Rear drive cage takes up two PCIe Sections. If you do not have any rear drives or PCIe risers installed the PCIe blanks will come with your configuration.