Will a PCIe 3.0 graphics card work in a HP ProLiant DL160 G6

heil_stalin

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Jun 18, 2014
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I need to know if a PCIe 3.0 graphics card will work in my HP ProLiant DL160 G6. I messaged the seller, and they confirmed PCIe 2.0 is supported on the x16 lane, but unsure if a PCIe 3.0 graphics card would work in it. The BIOS version is 033, and if it is possible, do I need to update my BIOS? (Please include instructions on how to do that too, if I need to)
 
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but the ProLiant that you use is a rack server. Are you a home user?

PCIe 3.0 is backwards compatible with PCIe 2.x, but it will only run at 2.x speed. If you are specifically looking at PCIe 3.x cards because of the extra speed, don't bother paying extra, because it will only run at PCIe 2.x speed.

As for BIOS updates, you should ALWAYS be on the latest BIOS unless there is a known problem that you find on the HP forums. Check what BIOS version your computer has, then check with HP's site to see if there is anything newer. If there is anything newer, research it in the HP community. If they don't say anything bad about it, it's safe to upgrade.

Natos

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Mar 2, 2014
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but the ProLiant that you use is a rack server. Are you a home user?

PCIe 3.0 is backwards compatible with PCIe 2.x, but it will only run at 2.x speed. If you are specifically looking at PCIe 3.x cards because of the extra speed, don't bother paying extra, because it will only run at PCIe 2.x speed.

As for BIOS updates, you should ALWAYS be on the latest BIOS unless there is a known problem that you find on the HP forums. Check what BIOS version your computer has, then check with HP's site to see if there is anything newer. If there is anything newer, research it in the HP community. If they don't say anything bad about it, it's safe to upgrade.
 
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heil_stalin

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Jun 18, 2014
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Yes, the ProLiant is a rack server. Just noticed there was a PCIe 2.0 x16 lane hiding in there, and decided to make use of it.

The reason why I might get a PCIe 3.0 video card is because of the GPU's themselves are faster, newer, and some fit my needs better than a majority of the older PCIe 2.0 cards.

But thanks for the info!