Are E3-1200 v3 series CPUs interchangeable?

[Robert Trevellyan]

Let's say you have a PowerEdge T20 that shipped with an E3-1225 v3. Is there anything that would prevent installation of any other CPU in that series? I know that BIOS support is required for hyper-threading, so some models would be underutilized unless the T20 BIOS happened to have HT support. I see that some models are designated low power, so maybe that wouldn't turn out well. What else could go wrong?

I found percentage chance of upgrade success listings on cpu-upgrade.com, which appear to be based on reports of compatibility with specific motherboards. Is there no way to know other than by getting a promise from the motherboard maker?

I looked for something in Intel's literature that might indicate whether processors in a series should be interchangeable, but I couldn't find anything. Wikipedia didn't seem to have the answer either. I feel like there's just some fundamental gap in my knowledge here.

 

[Ericloewe]

Is there anything that would prevent installation of any other CPU in that series?

Technically, no. Some OEMs (*cough* Sony *cough*) are known to have whitelists, though. Additionally, newer processors may require a newer BIOS, which may not be made available (Haswell Refresh, Broadwell).
Of course, if the current CPU is a low-TDP version, the motherboard may not be able to handle power distribution for a normal model.

I know that BIOS support is required for hyper-threading,

I highly doubt any OEM would customize the BIOS at that level. Intel provides them with the framework for interfacing with the processor.

 

[Darren Myers]

Of course, if the current CPU is a low-TDP version, the motherboard may not be able to handle power distribution for a normal model.

Touching on this, my HP Micro Server G8 had a pentium in it originally that was rated for 35W with the passive heatsink it comes with, i then installed a full fledged Xeon E3-1265LV2 which is rated for 45W....needless to say i installed a aftermarket heatsink (and good ole HP used a proprietary motherboard socket dimensions that arent exactly 1155...) so the aftermarket heatsink had to be modded a little bit...but it looks lovely!

To answer your question, i dont think it would be an issue...i would google around to see what others have changed the CPU out with especially if the motherboard can only handle a certain TDP

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

newer processors may require a newer BIOS, which may not be made available (Haswell Refresh, Broadwell).

I wasn't even thinking of being able to drop in an E3-1200 v4, but your comment led me to Wikipedia's statement that the LGA 1150 Broadwells were "Announced to be backward compatible with the LGA 1150 motherboards designed for Haswell processors."

I do remember being able to swap Socket 478 and LGA 775 CPUs around without any issues, but it's been a while. If I were an OEM, I would want to be able to ship a machine with whatever CPU made sense for the market at any point in time without having to build a different motherboard.

my HP Micro Server G8 had a pentium in it originally that was rated for 35W with the passive heatsink it comes with, i then installed a full fledged Xeon E3-1265LV2 which is rated for 45W

Good to know.

Thank you both for your input.

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

According to Intel, the 1225 has the equal-highest TDP of all the E3-1200 v3 Xeons, so I guess power and cooling shouldn't be an issue.