Aurora R7 validated OEM CPU =

00N9G Intel i3-8100, 3.60GHz, 4C, 65W, 6MB, FSB 2400MHz, Coffee Lake-S
X85H0 Intel i5-8400, 2.80GHz, 6C, 65W, 9MB, FSB 2667MHz, Coffee Lake-S
CGRD7 Intel i5-8600K, 3.60GHz, 6C, 95W, 9MB, FSB 2667MHz, Coffee Lake-S
7TMX7 Intel i7-8700, 3.20GHz, 6C, 65W, 12MB, FSB 2667MHz, Coffee Lake-S
YYVN7 Intel i7-8700K, 3.70GHz, 6C, 95W, 12MB, FSB 2667MHz, Coffee Lake-S

Aurora R7 validated OEM heatsink =

1D40R 65W
J46J2 95W for air and liquid cooler
MH0HN 95W for liquid cooler

I am also upgrading my CPU to a Intel I7-8700k LGA1151 and wanting a graphics card to match the performance. any ideas?

@ProfessorW00d​ 

good Info

@DELL-ChrisM2​ 

Great info!!

@ProfessorW00d​ gaming, cad, and need high reslolution. lots of 3d mapping

       I’ve seriously considered a case swap, but with the Alienware Aurora R7 it’s far from straightforward. The proprietary motherboard layout, front I/O, power button wiring, and Dell-specific fan headers make transplanting the system into a standard ATX case more trouble than it’s worth. The R7 chassis itself is also extremely restrictive in terms of radiator clearance and overall airflow, which is a known limitation of this generation.

While my current CPU temperatures are still within spec, I’m increasingly concerned about the long-term reliability of the factory Alienware AIO. Pump failure on the OEM liquid cooler is a well-documented issue with the R7, and once it starts degrading, thermals quickly become the limiting factor. The BIOS also tends to be conservative with fan curves and thermal headroom, which further restricts sustained performance under load.

My goal is to push more consistent performance out of the system without being bottlenecked by the case design. Because of the tight internal clearances and airflow constraints, I’m exploring the idea of moving the cooling solution outside the chassis entirely—potentially using an external radiator or cooling tower. An external loop would significantly increase thermal capacity, reduce internal heat soak, and mitigate the long-term risks associated with the OEM AIO, all while avoiding the complications of a full case swap.

Yes sir! we are on the same page for sure, give me a pvm. I got questions and need some fast answers. 

If the CPU is not on the CPU supported list, it will not boot.

That being said, there could be other issues with it besides that. Only trying with a supported CPU will tell if there's anything else going on.

Well, the installed CPU must-be on the list of supported processors (obviously).

Without a cooler (or at least a fanned heat-sink), it might not even Post.

Motherboard might be bad and that is why the CPU was removed.

With appropriate CPU, Remove CMOS battery and do CMOS reset procedure with jumpers (see PDF manual).

If it has on-board video, remove dedicated video-card and try it instead. If only dedicated Nvidia/AMD, try HDMI port instead of DP.

I am pretty sure the i7-8086K is also compatible.