Vostro 200 slim - supported CPUs

Hi xfinger, Your manual is HERE. Device manager reports a G33/G31/P35 Express Chipset which is true, however, you cannot use DDR3 memory. The max supported memory the board can handle is 4GB,

Type 667-MHz, 800-MHz DDR2 SDRAM

Memory connectors four

Memory capacities 512 MB, 1 GB or 2 GB

Minimum memory 512 MB

Maximum memory 4 GB

As for your CPU, the E8400 is out of the question because the socket on your mobo is 65nm. Im  not sure about the quad, however i was once told that your front side bus ( FSB) had to be the same. I dont know why you want these upgrades, because your system is ok. These mobo are custom made by foxconn, and are made per model, as an result there is not a lot of upgrading that can be done on these mobo's.

Thanks alot for the info.

The idea is to have a processor that supports Intel Virtualization Technology (which E4500 does not).

However, what made me assume that 45nm processors will be supported is the release notes for the latest BIOS update (1.0.15) which states this:

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Systems: Dell Vostro 200
Version: 1.0.15
Build Date: 06/23/2008

Fixes/Enhancements:
1.Updated Intel microcode.

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According to Dell's own parts for your computer, the Vostro 200 does support the 45nm processors.  I plugged in my dad's service tag for his Vostro 200 and a E8400 was listed as compatible for the Vostro 200.  Virtualization is supported starting with the E8200 for the 45nm processors and the E6300 for the 65nm processors.

According to Dell's own parts for your computer, the Vostro 200 does support the 45nm processors.  I plugged in my dad's service tag for his Vostro 200 and a E8400 was listed as compatible for the Vostro 200.  [...]

Hi jsktx,

where did you get that info from? I wasn't able to find it on Dell's website (at least not on .ie support page) ...

I would need to document it before going ahead and order a cpu ...

Thanks,

Hi RobinBredin,

let me get back on this as I have more time in the weekend.

As for your CPU, the E8400 is out of the question because the socket on your mobo is 65nm. Im  not sure about the quad, however i was once told that your front side bus ( FSB) had to be the same. I dont know why you want these upgrades, because your system is ok. These mobo are custom made by foxconn, and are made per model, as an result there is not a lot of upgrading that can be done on these mobo's.

I had the impression that the CPU socket is the same for 65nm and 45nm and that the difference relies on the chipset as to provide with the proper FSB clock / multiplier.

As for the fsb / memory bus, they have 'divorced' quite a while ago, and an eventual 'match' is just recommended (though this match is rather in terms of base freq). Imagine that my Vostro was shipped with E4500 + 1Gb DDR2 PC5300 (200MHz FSB : 270 MHz DRAM). I have upgraded soon enough to 4 x1GB DDR2 PC6400 (400MHz DRAM, thus FSB/DRAM = 1:2).

I don't have 2Gb RAM sticks to test if the mb supports more than what it says in the manual. I expect it to state 4Gb due to 32bit system limitation, as the chipset is perfectly capable of handling 8Gb.

And you were right about the mb: Foxconn G33 M2 Rev A01.

Now the latest Bios release notes are scarce in information as they didn't say what newer processors were supported with the new microcode update...

But if you are right about the limits imposed on such boards, it just saddens me ...

Went to the following link and entered my dad's service tag number.  Then selected processors and a refurbished 3Ghz 1333 FSB (E8400) processor came up.  After selecting the processor I clicked compatibility to confirm.

So here I am now:

- I decided to bet on 45nm processor support and I ordered the E8400.

- I also decided to bet on over 4Gb support on the motherboard  and ordered 2x2Gb Corsair PC2 6400 5-5-5-18 to suplement  2 other Corsair sticks of 1Gb already present (and I planned to keep the 2x2Gb in case that 4Gb+ wouldn't be supported)

The stuff was delivered last Friday and voila:

I am running an E8400 / 45nm on my Vostro 200S (3GHz = 333MHz x 9)

Total RAM on system: 6GB : 2x1GB PC2-6400 (5-5-5-18) Corsair modules + 2x2GB PC2-6400 (5-5-5-18) Corsair modules

(Running OS: Windows 7 x64 build 7068)

Thus, the Dell manual is often marketing stuff and the 4GB limit refers to the amount a 32bit OS supports, although this info is placed in the hardware specs area.

The motherboard has a G33 chipset and runs happily with 4Gb+ (up to 8Gb).

Again, the motherboard type of my Vostro 200Slim is Foxconn G33 M02 Rev A01 (identified by the WinOS as DELL 0CU409 Rev. A2), BIOS ver 1.0.15 .

Things for further consideration:

1. The FSB:DRAM ratio is 5/6 due to my choice of memory (PC2-6400) that was a match for the previous CPU (E4500 / 800MHz, thus a 1:2 ratio).

Changing this is not a priority at the moment and ordering something else is not going to happen as I would be very undecided upon what it to be tested first and still have a fall back: DDR2 (PC2-8500, 266MHz mem clock / 533 IO Bus) or DDR3 (PC3-1333, 166MHz mem clock / 667 IO Bus) ?

Dell manual says that supported memory type is: 667-MHz, 800-MHz DDR2 SDRAM. Now Intel G33 Express Chipset supports dual channel DDR3, but motherboard manufacturers had a choice in either supporting only DDR2, or only DDR3 and a very few of them were actually supporting both DDR2 or DDR3 (1.8V or 1.5V).

2. The heatsink and fan supplied with E8400 does not fit to the motherboard, so you are stuck with the old one that screws into the MB (better in my opinion).

So, if anyone tried DDR3 on Vostro200 S, please let me know your results.

Anyway, 45nm processors & 6Gb work and I'm glad I tried and succeed in doing so.

Congrats on the upgrade.  As for running DDR3 on a Vostro 200, it won't work.  The notch position on the memory modules is different between DDR2 and DDR3 and the Vostro 200 motherboard is designed for DDR2.

Ok, not to be greedy.

But will any Quad cores work???

YES. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU....

I have been trying to figure this out for a few years. VERY GLAD I found this thread....

THIS IS AWESOME.....

I have a pentium dual core, and been wanting to upgrade for a while....

IM SO EXCITED...

Unfortunately a G33M02 motherboard will not support a quad, only Core 2 Duo.

Unfortunately a G33M02 motherboard will not support a quad, only Core 2 Duo.

I wouldn't hury to rule out the quad. It's true I didn't have the money to bet on a quad at the time of my upgrade, but the info on Intel chipset (G33 Express) says that quad cores are supported:

http://www.intel.com/cd/products/services/emea/eng/chipsets/348057.htm

1333/1066/800 MHz System Bus Supports the Intel® Core™2 Duo and Intel® Core™2 Quad processors with Intel® Virtualization Technology (Intel® VT)±, Intel® Pentium® processor, and Intel® Celeron® processor.

My E8400 is 1333Mhz FSB / 45nm so I don't see why a Q9400 wouldn't be supported (also a 1333MHz FSB / 45nm).

Well, I could see at least one reason = if the microcode update on the latest bios didn't include quad processors. :-s

But unless someone tries we cannot know for sure.

My opinion : good luck !

Actually Dell manufactured two versions of the G33 motherboard.  A G33M02 and G33M03.  Any guess which one supports quad?  Correct, the G33M03.  The difference between the boards is the power regulation for the CPU.  The G33M03 is designed for the more power hungry quads.

So how can you tell which G33 Mb you have 02, or 03?

Hmm, I only show one part number for a Vostro 200 motherboard (WK785).