hard drive - HP ProLiant Server HDDs - Buy Spare Parts vs. Retail

sometimes i have to upgrade HP Servers. For example when they get a new "job" to do.

So lets say i need some more HDDs for an DL360 G7 Server. If the Server has an active HP Care Pack, does it matter if i buy HP Spare Parts? Often they are much cheaper than retail HDDs. (I often saw on internet e.g. $250 retail / $210 spare part - but it is the same Disk Type!) And if i use them in an Server with active Care Pack, i do not have to worry about the warranty. If the HDD crashes the HDD will be replaced no matter if it was an "retail" Product or an "spare part".

So am i right, or are there any disadvantages i didn't think about?

Answer

HP ProLiant server warranties follow the chassis. That covers everything inside the machine as long as you use HP parts!!

So the wise thing to do with something like a G7 server in 2014 is:

• Keep the server's warranty active.




• Once you hit the 3 year factory warranty, you can buy additional 1 or 2-year Care Packs if you wish to keep things under support.





• Weigh the cost of those warranty uplifts with the "street value" of used servers. For instance, a DL380 G6 is worth about $400US; less than the $1200US cost of extending the warranty for one.




• You can use any HP parts inside the machine you wish. So please try to find deals on disks... You can even use 8 year-old disks in a warrantied machine and get support replacements. It's the server chassis that counts.




• The parts you receive from HP for warranty replacements are usually refurbished parts.