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My current daily driver is very similar: Re: What is your everyday driver ?

I went with the X5687 instead of a six-core CPU because speed is more important than multitasking capability (and this mobo doesn't support overclocking)

And yes, it runs Windows XP very well.

Yes, paired with a GTX 960 makes for a very good WinXP Gaming computer.

4 modules per CPU is not optimal and will hurt the performance, you should be filled 3 modules per CPU for single channel mode (slower) or 6 per CPU to get dual channel mode working correctly.

Cheers,

Another machine with similar specs is the Dell PowerEdge T710

The HP and Dell machines both use the Intel 5520 chipset, while my Supermicro uses the 5500.

http://www1.la.dell.com/content/products/prod … rp1&l=en&s=corp

My Supermicro X8DTi uses the 5520. My favorite XP build ever!

Some things I did not like about this HP z800 computer.

1) You have to use a PS2 keyboard to enter the bios.
2) Limited Sata 3.0 ports
3) Does not support Nvme drives
4) Only supports Sata and ACHI ssd drives.
5) To get Sata 6.0 you have to use a PCIe ssd adapter and plug into the PCIe slot.

Well yes, it's from 2009. (Same year that SATA 3 became a thing.) You have lots of PCIe slots though, so no problem.

I put a SAS controller in mine because the case hard drive backplane supports both SATA and SAS, and there are lots of ex-server SAS HDDs available on fleabay for cheap.

I have a proliant ML350 G6 which is similar and I just used a pci-3 adapter and have nvme drives that way not a big deal considering the sheer number of slots. The ps2 keyboard thing is kinda of a pain so I just keep one connected and stored on the rest shelf of my desk.

Those'd also make nice Hac Pros, if you're so inclined.

pentiumspeed wrote on 2022-07-14, 23:32:

4 modules per CPU is not optimal and will hurt the performance, you should be filled 3 modules per CPU for single channel mode (slower) or 6 per CPU to get dual channel mode working correctly.

Cheers,

Wouldn't that be 3 or 6 per cpu to get tripple channel mode?

Or I wonder if these specifications apply here as well https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/suppo … -kits.html#flex

I don’t remember how many memory sticks are installed but it was a total of 48gb. ( HP ECC RAM ).
And this computer was very stable. Never had any memory problems.
I wanted to add more RAM but never had the need to.
This computer Hardly ever used more than 24gb of RAM.
It idles at 0%-to-3% CPU utilization and only uses 4gb RAM on Idle.
With the PCIe Sata SSD this really helps the computer use less RAM and Disk caching.
Even today in Modern computers 8gb. thru 16gb. is enough for 95% of the software you will run on the computer.
16gb. Of RAM is Still the Sweetspot for the Amount of RAM a New computer should have.

I have been tempted to buy this exact system with 96gb, sadly the seller seems to want $250 with a 128gb ssd and a meh 960 gpu

Something this old I normally wouldn’t consider but my 2014 era i5 is getting flakey and isn’t gaming ready with a useless integrated gpu

Yes, I think this computers time has passed.
Today I use the HP z440 at home as workstations and servers.
They were a good deal before the prices of ram and hard drives went up.

But I will have to upgrade again when Win-10 extended support ends in Oct 2026
I will probably go with mini pc’s.
Just need to find the right ones.

Yeah, it’s not like I play anything close to modern games but it’s amazing that the old HP Z series and the similar Dell models are all more expensive than before for what amounts to 2009-2015 era hardware.

10-15 years old didn’t use to get antique pricing this soon but machines in that vintage in my area at least turn up quite rarely and are overpriced like I’m buying an IBM 5150 PC

The most common semi-modern machines here on the used market are all dual core Celeron / Pentium based and usually netbook/laptop/all in one form factors, which even if 5 years old are pretty useless

Do you run XP64 or standard XP32? That always concerned me with doing an XP build like that - either wasting a ridiculous amount of ram or risky compatibility issues with drivers/software.

BinaryDemon wrote on 2026-03-27, 12:37:

Do you run XP64 or standard XP32? That always concerned me with doing an XP build like that - either wasting a ridiculous amount of ram or risky compatibility issues with drivers/software.

There is a 3rd option PAE which is XP32 but with risky compatibility issues.

The HP z800 ran windows XP Pro great. Very stable and reliable . HP provides driver support
I used a 6gb PCI Sata SSD adapter from OWC
Worked great
64gb ECC RAM

The only reason I got rid of it was because the fans were too loud.
But I read you can adjust the fan speed in bios.

Other than that it was a very good computer.