HPE ProLiant SL230s Gen8 Drives
Genuine HPE hard drives and solid state drives for the HPE ProLiant SL230s Gen8, new and refurbished, tested before shipping. Two different carriers serve one tray: quick release carriers inside it and SmartDrive hot-plug carriers in the front bezel, and the cage kit fitted decides how many of each the node will hold.
SL230s Gen8 Drive Specifications
- Inside the tray: four 2.5-inch SFF drives, four solid state drives, or two 3.5-inch LFF drives, all on quick release carriers
- Front bezel: up to two hot-plug SFF drives, each sharing its position with either the PCI Express expansion slot or the FlexibleLOM slot
- Cage kits: a quick release kit for up to four 2.5-inch drives, a quick release kit for two 3.5-inch drives, and single-bay and two-bay hot-plug SFF cage kits for the front
- Maximum quick release capacity: 4.8TB on four 1.2TB SAS SFF drives, 4.0TB on four 1TB SATA SFF, or 8.0TB on two 4TB LFF drives
- Maximum hot-plug capacity: 2.4TB on two 1.2TB SAS SFF drives, or 1.6TB on two 800GB SFF solid state drives
- Interface and supply: 6G SAS and 6G SATA, with 3G SATA multi-level cell solid state drives also listed; no hard drives ship with the tray as standard
Two carriers, and they are not interchangeable. The four SFF or two LFF bays inside the tray take quick release carriers; the two bays in the front bezel take SmartDrive hot-plug carriers. The front pair costs you something as well: each one sits opposite an expansion slot, so a second front drive is a card you will not be fitting.
Quick release or hot plug — which carrier does your tray need?
| Position | Carrier | Bays | Maximum capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inside the tray, SFF | Quick release | 4 | 4.8TB on 1.2TB SAS |
| Inside the tray, LFF | Quick release | 2 | 8.0TB on 4TB drives |
| Front bezel, SFF | SmartDrive hot plug | 2 | 2.4TB on 1.2TB SAS |
The bays inside the tray carry the capacity; the two in the front bezel carry the convenience, and they cost something to use. Each front position is shared with an expansion slot — one with the low-profile PCI Express slot, the other with the FlexibleLOM — so a hot-plug drive there is a card you will not be fitting. Check the cage before ordering: a 2.5-inch drive will not seat in a 3.5-inch carrier, and a quick release drive is not a hot-plug drive.
Choosing the Right SL230s Gen8 Drive
- Count what a front drive costs you. The two front hot-plug positions sit opposite the PCI Express slot and the FlexibleLOM, so front drives and add-in cards come out of the same two places.
- SAS drives on the embedded controller need a licence. HPE requires the B320i SAS licence key where SAS drives run on the embedded controller as the primary controller. SATA drives do not need it.
- Match the whole storage path. HPE notes that the drive, the controller, the firmware and the backplane should run at the same transfer rate, or the system negotiates down to the slowest of them.
- Capacity in the LFF bays comes from drive size, not count. There are only two 3.5-inch positions, so the 8.0TB ceiling needs 4TB drives in both of them.
- Nothing ships fitted. No hard drives are standard on this tray, so an order that assumes a cage is already in place is worth checking against the machine.
Complete Your SL230s Gen8 Build
The controller decides which RAID levels and how many drives — see SL230s Gen8 storage controllers, and the Smart Array enablement kits listed there, before committing to an array. Also available: SL230s Gen8 memory, processors and networking adapters, or the full SL230s Gen8 parts listing and the HPE parts by server model index. Background reading: SAS vs SATA hard drives and how to choose the right HPE SSD.
SL230s Gen8 Drives FAQ
How many drives fit in an SL230s Gen8?
Four 2.5-inch or two 3.5-inch quick release drives inside the tray, plus up to two SmartDrive hot-plug 2.5-inch drives in the front bezel.
What is the maximum internal storage of an SL230s Gen8?
4.8TB on four 1.2TB quick release SAS SFF drives, or 8.0TB on two 4TB quick release LFF drives. The front hot-plug bays reach 2.4TB on 1.2TB SAS drives.
Do front drives cost me an expansion slot?
Yes. One front position is shared with the PCI Express expansion slot and the other with the FlexibleLOM slot, so each hot-plug drive fitted there takes one of them.
Do SL230s Gen8 drives come with a carrier?
Yes, and there are two kinds. The drives inside the tray use quick release carriers, including the non-hot-plug drives; the front bays take SmartDrive hot-plug carriers.
Do I need a licence key to use SAS drives?
With the embedded B320i as the primary controller, yes - HPE requires the B320i SAS licence key. SATA drives need no licence.
Does an SL230s Gen8 ship with drives fitted?
No. No hard drives ship as standard, and HPE lists drive-less models, so the drive and the cage kit that holds it are configured separately.
✅ Looking for a specific SL230s Gen8 drive? Browse our full selection below.
Browse all models
Why Global One?
- Trusted by thousands. Over 36,000 customers in 100+ countries trust Global One Technology to deliver mission-critical HP Enterprise hardware - including Fortune 500 businesses, schools, hospitals, and federal, state, and local goverment agencies.
- HPE is our specialty! We only sell genuine HP Enterprise parts.
- EASY ordering process. Purchase online now with credit card or PayPal!
- FAST shipping. Global One Technology ships orders received by 4pm ET the same day and offers NEXT DAY delivery to US customers.
