A working reference to the HPE ProLiant DL rack line from Gen9 to Gen12: what changed each generation, which CPU and memory platform each one takes, and how to pull the official QuickSpecs for any model in under a minute.
Most enquiries we take start with a model name and a workload, not a part number. This guide maps the ProLiant DL rack line by generation so you can work out quickly whether the platform in front of you takes DDR4 or DDR5, PCIe Gen3, Gen4 or Gen5, and what it will realistically hold.
How the naming works
- DL = rack-mount ProLiant. ML = tower, MicroServer = small form factor, Apollo and DL a-suffix models (DL380a) are the accelerator-optimised variants.
- The first digit of the three-digit number is the family tier: 300 series (DL360, DL380) is the volume dual-socket line, 500 series is scale-up.
- A DL3x5 number means AMD EPYC (DL325, DL345, DL385). A DL3x0 number means Intel Xeon (DL360, DL380).
- Gen number is the platform generation, and it is the single most important thing in a used-hardware quote: it fixes the CPU socket, the memory generation and the PCIe generation.
- From Gen12, HPE brands the line HPE ProLiant Compute.
Generation map
| Generation | CPU platform | Memory | PCIe | Typical models |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gen9 | Intel Xeon E5-2600 v3 / v4 | DDR4 (2133-2400) | Gen3 | DL360 Gen9, DL380 Gen9 |
| Gen10 | Intel Xeon Scalable 1st / 2nd gen (LGA3647) | DDR4 (2666-2933) | Gen3 | DL360 Gen10, DL380 Gen10 |
| Gen10 Plus | Intel Xeon Scalable 3rd gen (LGA4189) | DDR4 (3200) | Gen4 | DL360 Gen10 Plus, DL380 Gen10 Plus |
| Gen10 (AMD) | AMD EPYC 7002 / 7003 (SP3) | DDR4 (3200) | Gen4 | DL325 Gen10 Plus, DL385 Gen10 Plus v2 |
| Gen11 (Intel) | Intel Xeon Scalable 4th / 5th gen (LGA4677) | DDR5 (4800-5600) | Gen5 | DL360 Gen11, DL380 Gen11 |
| Gen11 (AMD) | AMD EPYC 9004 / 9005 (SP5) | DDR5 | Gen5 | DL325 Gen11, DL345 Gen11, DL385 Gen11 |
| Gen12 | Intel Xeon 6 | DDR5 (up to 6400 MT/s) | Gen5 | DL360 Gen12, DL380 Gen12, DL380a Gen12 |
Numbers worth knowing before you spec
- DL380 Gen11: 32 DIMM slots, 16 per processor, 8 channels per processor, 2 DIMMs per channel; up to 8 TB with 256 GB RDIMMs.
- DL380 Gen11 memory runs at 4800 MT/s with 4th Gen Xeon and up to 5600 MT/s with 5th Gen Xeon; 2 DIMMs per channel drops the speed, so a full-populated box is not the fastest box.
- DL380 Gen11 I/O: up to 2 x16 PCIe Gen5 plus 2 OCP slots; up to 20 EDSFF drives on the right chassis.
- DL385 Gen11 is the 2U dual-socket AMD platform, 4th and 5th Gen EPYC, up to 160 cores, PCIe Gen5 and EDSFF support.
- DL360 Gen12 supports DDR5 at 6400 MT/s and iLO 7.
Chassis choice constrains everything else. On several Gen11 configurations the full 32 DIMM slots are only available with the 8SFF or 16SFF front, and 16 DIMMs is the maximum on other drive configurations. Check the drive cage before you promise the memory ceiling.
How to get the official specification
- HPE QuickSpecs is the authoritative document for every ProLiant: models, supported CPUs, memory rules, controller options, power supplies and part numbers.
- Search the HPE Product Bulletin at prodbulletin-pro.it.hpe.com/quickspecs, or search the model name plus QuickSpecs.
- QuickSpecs are versioned and updated often. Note the version and date on the document you quote from, especially for CPU support tables.
- For a specific serial number use HPE PartSurfer to see the parts actually fitted to that unit.
The ETON view
Generation, not model name, is what decides whether a server is a fit. A DL380 Gen10 and a DL380 Gen11 share a name and almost nothing else: different socket, different memory generation, different PCIe budget, and a completely separate parts pool for drives, risers and controllers. When we quote, the first question is which generation the estate is already standardised on, because a Gen10 or Gen10 Plus estate can usually be grown at a fraction of current-generation cost with parts we hold, while a mixed estate carries a hidden cost in spares and firmware baselines.
The second question is power and cooling. Gen11 and Gen12 platforms consume the same rack unit but a lot more watts, and a large share of the UK colo space we source into is still provisioned around 6 to 12 kW per rack. Getting the current-generation box and discovering the hall cannot feed it is an expensive way to learn that.
If you send us a model name and a workload, we will come back with what is available now, what the lead time is on the current-generation equivalent, and the honest cost gap between the two.
Related infrastructure
Category: Servers · Vendor: HPE · Technology: ProLiant DL360 / DL380 / DL385, Gen9 to Gen12 · Last verified: 09 Sep 2026 · ~4 min read
Sourcing this kind of infrastructure? Talk to ETON about availability, lead time and pricing.
