Yes, this configuration is possible, but you should update the system firmware to the latest.

Get certified drives. They are cheaper if you don't purchase them directly from Dell:

http://www.xbyte.com/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-Hard-Drives.aspx

Most drives come with the caddies/carriers, but if you need the adapters, you can get them here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009DZBZJ8/

Thanks for that information.

Last week I spoke to someone from the Dell Expired Warranty Services team that serves the UK who suggested that only the first 300GB of whatever SAS drive was put in would be usable - is this what making sure the system is updated to the latest firmware fixes?

In terms of SAS drives I was looking at something like:

<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>

or

Dell - hard drive - 1.2 TB - SAS 6Gb/s 

Not sure what the difference between the two is though.

For the SATA I was looking at something like:

4TB 7.2K RPM SATA 3Gbps 3.5in Hot-plug Hard Drive

or

4TB SATA 7.2k 3.5in HD Hot Plug Fully Assembled 

<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>

Again not sure of the differences between them is.

I think HGST and Seagate do 5TB and/or 6TB SATA drives that are compatible (MegaRAID 6Gb/s 9260 SAS Controllers), is that correct?

Thanks,

Ian

Last week I spoke to someone from the Dell Expired Warranty Services team that serves the UK who suggested that only the first 300GB of whatever SAS drive was put in would be usable - is this what making sure the system is updated to the latest firmware fixes?

No. There is no such limitation.

There is NO difference between the two SAS drives you linked to ... they even have the same part number.

The only difference between the two SATA drives is the part number ... they are probably just manufactured by different companies or possibly just different mfg dates.

HGST/ST may make drives that are compatible with LSI controllers, and one may have even have tested and certified their device to work with the other, but that does not automatically translate to Dell drives and controllers. Dell controllers and certified drives have special firmware loaded on them to meet specific requirements so that Dell can guarantee the reliability and performance of their devices, so generics sometimes can and sometimes can't be used reliably with OEM devices.

Sorry that was a cut and paste error, the correct one is:

<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>

Just need to find a UK supplier to compare against Dell prices.

Thanks for your help.

Ian