HPE has named its first four AMD EPYC 9006 ProLiant Gen13 servers, but none of them is the mainstream 2U two-socket box most buyers run. Here is what ships when, the part numbers so far, and what that means for anyone specifying a DL385, DL365 or DL325 Gen11 this quarter.
HPE put its first ProLiant Gen13 servers on the table on 7 October, built on AMD's 6th Gen EPYC 9006 processors, and the launch has been all over vendor and trade feeds since. The question buyers are asking straight away is simple: do I wait? We have spent the last fortnight fielding the other half of that conversation, from buyers who cannot get Dell PowerEdge AMD platforms quickly and are mapping their spec across to HPE. The short answer is that Gen13 starts at the top of the range, not the middle, and the mainstream AMD workhorse for the next few quarters is still Gen11.
The first four Gen13 servers
| Model | What it is | Key specs | HPE availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| ProLiant DL525 Gen13 | 1U, single socket | 1x EPYC 9006 (SP7) up to 256 cores, 16 memory channels at 1DPC, up to 4 TB DDR5-8000 or 2 TB MRDIMM-12800, up to 20 E3.S NVMe, PCIe Gen6, up to 2 double-wide GPUs at the front | Later in 2026 (HPE has indicated November) |
| ProLiant DL585a Gen13 | 10U, two socket, GPU dense | 2x EPYC 9006, 32 DIMM slots (up to 8 TB with 256 GB RDIMMs), up to 8 double-wide PCIe GPUs, up to 16 E3.S, air cooled, 2x 3200 W system plus 8 or 12x 3200 W GPU supplies | Early 2027 |
| ProLiant XD245 Gen13 | 2U, four nodes, OCP ORV3 | 2x EPYC 9006 per node, 32 DIMM slots per node, direct liquid cooled only | 2027 |
| ProLiant XD285 Gen13 | 2U, two nodes, OCP ORV3 | Same two-socket node as XD245, air cooled | 2027 |
- All four use HPE iLO 8, which adds automatic activation of self-encrypting drives on first boot, two-person approval for destructive actions such as secure erase, and wider post-quantum cryptography across management traffic.
- The DL585a launch configuration list names the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell Server Edition 96 GB as an orderable GPU in sets of one, two, four or eight. Its CTO base is reported as P97048-B21, with factory configurations P96669-B21, P96672-B21, P96675-B21 and P96678-B21 that differ in rear slots, drive count and controller kits.
- The XD245 and XD285 replace HPE's Apollo 2000 / XD2000 dense-compute line and move to a 21-inch Open Rack V3 rack, so they are not a drop-in for a standard 19-inch row.
What is missing: the mainstream 2U
- There is no Gen13 successor to the DL385, DL365 or DL325 yet. HPE says Gen13 will extend to mainstream enterprise, virtualisation, database and software-defined systems after these four, but has not given a date for a two-socket 2U.
- Gen13 uses AMD's new SP7 socket. EPYC 9004 and 9005 processors (SP5) do not move across, and the platform is built around DDR5-8000 RDIMM and MRDIMM, so a Gen13 move is a full platform change, not a CPU swap.
- AMD has published 1kU pricing for the EPYC 9006 range. On SP7 the 64-core EPYC 9556 lists at US$8,008 and the 256-core EPYC 9996 at US$14,904, with a default CPU power of 600 W (configurable 400 W to 600 W) at the top. AMD's 8-channel SP8 parts, the ones aimed at mainstream enterprise servers, follow in the first half of 2027.
- Dense 256-core, 600 W sockets suit new-build halls. In a typical UK colocation rack of 6 to 12 kW, the power budget, not the CPU, is usually what limits the build.
Gen11 AMD platforms you can specify today
| Role | HPE ProLiant Gen11 | CTO base (part number) | Closest Dell PowerEdge 16G |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1U, 1 socket | DL325 Gen11 | P54199-B21 (8SFF CTO) | R6615 |
| 1U, 2 socket | DL365 Gen11 | P53933-B21 (8SFF CTO) | R6625 |
| 2U, 1 socket | DL345 Gen11 | P54204-B21 (8LFF CTO) | R7615 |
| 2U, 2 socket | DL385 Gen11 | P53921-B21 (8SFF CTO), P53925-B21 (8LFF CTO) | R7625 |
- HPE's Gen11 AMD QuickSpecs list support for both 4th Gen EPYC 9004 and 5th Gen EPYC 9005 processors, up to 160 cores, with DDR5 up to 6400 MT/s and PCIe Gen5.
- Because the platform takes both generations, a Gen11 server bought now can start on a cost-effective 9004 part and move to a 9005 part later on the same chassis, memory type and drive cages.
Gen13 specifications and dates above are from HPE's 7 October 2026 announcement and launch QuickSpecs as reported at launch. HPE marks early Gen13 details as subject to change.
The ETON view
Do not stall a live project waiting for Gen13. The first four systems are a performance tier: a 256-core 1U, a 10U eight-GPU box and two Open Rack nodes. The mainstream two-socket 2U that most virtualisation, hosting and database estates run on has no announced date, and AMD's own SP8 enterprise parts do not land until the first half of 2027. Allow for first-wave allocation and the usual new-platform firmware cycle on top, and realistically the Gen13 equivalent of a DL385 is a 2027 purchase.
In the meantime Gen11 is the sensible AMD buy. The DL325, DL345, DL365 and DL385 Gen11 take EPYC 9004 and 9005, DDR5 and PCIe Gen5, and they line up one for one with the Dell R6615, R7615, R6625 and R7625 that buyers keep telling us are on long lead times. We hold Gen11 CTO bases in stock and typically configure and dispatch within days rather than weeks, depending on components, and we price HPE and Dell side by side without a vendor preference.
If the DL525 is the right fit, for example a memory-bandwidth-bound trading, simulation or inference node, we can quote it now for delivery as stock arrives. Plan the rack around 600 W sockets and up to 3200 W supplies, not the CPU price. Also expect the launch to soften values on outgoing platforms over time: if you are refreshing Gen10 Plus or older Dell AMD estates, ask us for a buyback figure alongside the new quote so the trade-in is priced before the market moves.
Related infrastructure
Category: Servers · Vendor: HPE, AMD · Technology: ProLiant Gen13, AMD EPYC 9006 (Venice), SP7, PCIe Gen6, MRDIMM, ProLiant Gen11, EPYC 9005 · Last verified: 08 Oct 2026 · ~5 min read
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