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8 Professor
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August 31st, 2019 13:00
Aurora R7, Intel 9th Gen CPUs installed
I thought some people on this forum might be interested... so I was browsing eBay and found two Alienware Aurora R7's for sale with 9th gen CPUs installed. In both cases, the seller posted photos showing the back of the motherboard's rear IO shield (which reads "R7"), and a processor diagnostic tool showing the CPU reading as a 9400F. In any event, and considering that Dell recycled the same z370 mobo for the R7/R8, the fact that eBay flippers can do it, should make it even more clear that providing an official BIOS upgrade path to allow for 9th gen on the R7 would be as relatively simple task for Dell.
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r72019
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September 1st, 2019 13:00
According to an anonymous source, the following 9th gen CPUs use the same microcode as 8th gen CPUs and as such, should work with an Alienware Aurora R7 regardless of which Dell BIOS version is installed (but note, the underlined CPUs ship in two different versions and the newer version would require an updated BIOS (which Dell has not made available for the Aurora R7).)
The following 9th gen CPUs require new microcode, different than 8th gen CPUs (and, absent a BIOs update, are not compatible with the Alienware Aurora R7):
*BOLD AND UNDERLINED CPUs SHIP WITH TWO DIFFERENT MANUFACTURING REVISIONS. ONLY THE ORIGINAL VERSION IS COMPATIBLE WITH 8TH GEN BIOS.
Disclaimer: I have not tested/verified the accuracy of this information, so YMMV, and follow it at your own risk! Just sharing what I've learned.
Anonymous
12 Elder
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August 31st, 2019 13:00
Same seller for both listings. I sent a message asking how they got it to work. I will advise of any response.
amstel78
2 Intern
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August 31st, 2019 13:00
It's possible that a 9th gen CPU will function when installed into an R7 motherboard. Right before they became available for purchase to the public, testers had leaked screen shots of 9th gen Coffee Lake processors running on 370 boards that hadn't yet had a BIOS update. In some cases, the BIOS just reported the processor as an unknown CPU but it still worked nevertheless.
Anyway, would be interesting to hear what the seller responds with.
r72019
8 Professor
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August 31st, 2019 13:00
Interesting, I suspect that if they do have a custom BIOS, they would be unlikely to admit it.
I thought I had read a post a while back from someone who tried to upgrade an R7 to a 9th gen, and the PC wouldn't post until they stuck the 8th gen back in. But I can't find it now so maybe I'm not remembering correctly.
Anonymous
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August 31st, 2019 13:00
The response:
New message from: pa_zentek (228Turquoise Star)
The Aurora r7 has a Z370 chipset... Has nothing to do with the bios.. or dell.
https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/125903/intel-z370-chipset.html
Anonymous
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August 31st, 2019 14:00
@r72019 I mean just type "upgrade Z370 to 9th generation" into google and you'll get hundreds of hits about it being all about BIOs.
I sent that comment (paraphrased) back at the seller. Will post any response.
r72019
8 Professor
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August 31st, 2019 14:00
The part about the seller saying it has nothing to do with BIOs makes me wonder whether they are dishonest or just ignorant. I mean just type "upgrade Z370 to 9th generation" into google and you'll get hundreds of hits about it being all about BIOs. But, if the latter, and dell discreetly slipped in the necessary microcode for the R7, then this is really good news for people seeking to upgrade their R7 to 9th gen. Now, who's going to be the first guinea pig?
GTS81
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August 31st, 2019 15:00
Service Tag:
Express Service Code:
System was shipped 12/27/2017 as an Aurora R7. CPU was an i7-8700.
Went diving a bit off the deep end of mod-land and noticed that a certain generic UEFI mod software has a pre-release on github a few weeks back. The seller has long record of selling PC systems and parts so maybe found a way to hack the BIOS? The downside is that once .20 release comes out and Dell really doesn't intend to support the system, it'll be bricked.
Zen_Tek
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August 31st, 2019 15:00
r72019
8 Professor
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August 31st, 2019 15:00
Yeah, made me curious, so I looked at the seller feedback and just noticed that 2 purchasers alleged being scammed with a defective product, one was an Alienware Aurora... maybe the purchaser tried to update the BIOs?
Zen_Tek
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August 31st, 2019 15:00
Zen_Tek
3 Posts
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August 31st, 2019 16:00
I hope this helps.
GTS81
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August 31st, 2019 16:00
Currently out and about but can someone with a non unlocked 8th gen please check if their CPUID matches 9400F’s? Might be the restriction is for unlocked SKUs with different CPUID.
GTS81
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August 31st, 2019 16:00
BIOS .19 and screenshots are on the online selling site. Looks legit to me.
GTS81
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August 31st, 2019 16:00
Per the epic R7 9th Gen thread:
https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/Aurora-R7-upgrade-to-i9-9900K/m-p/6239224/highlight/true#M7600
@ravic
So only @ravic can confirm this assuming both R7 and XPS with 9600k are still with him/ her.