Server Motherboards questions

Which Server Motherboards brands does Memory Clearance carry?

The most listed brands in Server Motherboards are Supermicro, Dell, HP, IBM, Asus and Intel. Every listing names its manufacturer and part number, so you can search by either.

Are these Server Motherboards products new or refurbished?

Both. Of the 8,789 listings, 4,454 state a condition: 4,388 are refurbished and 66 are new. The other 4,335 do not record one, so ask for it when you request a quote. The condition shown on a listing is the condition you receive.

How do I get a price on a Server Motherboards part?

1,219 Server Motherboards listings show a price you can order at. Items marked "Call for Price" have a Request for Quote button; send the part number and quantity and the sales team replies weekdays between 8:00 am and 5:00 pm PST.

How to choose a server motherboard

The decision here is not which motherboard to buy. It is finding the exact OEM part number that shipped in your chassis. A server motherboard is cut to its chassis: mounting holes, power headers, and I/O cutouts follow that system, not a general spec sheet. Read the part number off the failed board's label and match it, or its OEM cross-reference. This category holds 8,789 listings across 26 brands, led by Supermicro, Dell, HP, and IBM. See how to identify a part by OEM number if you only have the server model.

The board carries the socket, chipset, memory generation, and DIMM slot count, and those four decide what else in the server can be reused. Listings are named for that information: Socket LGA1200 Intel C256, Socket LGA4189 Intel C621A, Socket LGA2011 Intel C612. Processor count matters too: this category carries single-socket, dual-socket, and quad-socket boards, and a dual-socket replacement will not run in a single-socket chassis.

A board swap is rarely just the board. Processors, heatsinks, memory, and risers usually move from the failed board to the replacement, since a bare system board ships without them. Firmware on the replacement also starts without whatever service tag or licences lived on the old board, so budget time to reprovision those through your OEM's management tools.

A server generation is rarely one board. The same chassis line typically ships several system board revisions over its production run, and listing names here reflect that: Dell 35YY8 System Board (Motherboard) for EMC PowerEdge Server, HP 501024-001 System Board (MotherBoard) for ProLiant DL580 G5 Server, Sun 375-3187 System Board (Motherboard) for SunBlade 1500. Match the exact part number you pulled, not just the chassis family; the right server line with the wrong revision is still the wrong part.

The part number is stated on every listing; condition is not. Of the 8,789 listings, 4,320 state a condition, 4,270 refurbished and 50 new; the remaining 4,469 do not state one. A refurbished board is not a lesser spec: the spec is fixed by the part number, not the item's history. See what each condition grade means if that's unfamiliar. This category also carries desktop and workstation boards alongside server boards, so check the listing title against your chassis type before ordering. Only 1,229 of the 8,789 listings carry an online price; the rest carry a Request for Quote button, answered weekdays 8:00 am to 5:00 pm PST on (800) 733-1169.

Server motherboard buying questions

How do I find the right replacement for a failed server motherboard?

Read the part number off the label on the failed board, or pull it from your server's asset or service record. Order that exact number, or the OEM's listed cross-reference for it. Socket and chipset alone do not confirm fit: an OEM server board is cut to its chassis, with mounting holes, power headers, and I/O cutouts specific to that system, unlike a retail board built to a general spec.

What else do I need to move over when I replace a server motherboard?

Plan on moving the processors, heatsinks, memory, and risers from the old board to the new one; a bare system board ships without any of them. Set each part aside in the order you remove it so reseating goes smoothly, and check that the heatsink's mounting pattern matches the new board's socket before you reinstall it.

Does replacing a server motherboard affect the service tag or licences?

It can. Service tags and some licences are held in firmware on the board itself, not elsewhere in the chassis, so a replacement board can come up without the identity the old one had. Budget time after the swap to reprovision the service tag and any board-held licences through your OEM's management tools.

Why are there several part numbers for what looks like the same server motherboard?

A server generation is rarely built on one board revision. Manufacturers update the system board during a chassis's production run, and later revisions are not always interchangeable with earlier ones even though the chassis and model name are identical. Match the exact part number pulled from your server, not just the model family, when you order a replacement.