Optane Memory H10 and PCIe lane reversal

[MBeck22]

As H10 memory hit the retail market, a question on compatibility. Will Optane memory H10 work on series 300/C240 platforms utilizing PCIe lane reversal? According to the PCH datasheet (volume 1, p. 203), 1x2+1x2 is not a valid Lane Reversal Supported Motherboard PCIe Configuration.

I'm considering combining Optane memory H10 with a Supermicro X11SCL-F motherboard, which labels the C242<->M.2 PCIe x4 connection "Reversal". I don't need RST software support, I just need both portions of the device to be available. So, would it work?

[BrusC_Intel]

Hello, MBeck22.

Good day,

Thank you for contacting the Intel Community Support.

I understand that you have some questions regarding the Optane Memory H10, I will be glad to assist you.

Compatibility with Optane Memory H10 is determined by the manufacturer of the system, it is recommended to contact your motherboard manufacturer to make sure it will support Intel® Optane™ Memory H10.

The use of Intel RST is required in order to work with the Optane H10 module since both portions of the SSD are intended to work together, any other uses are outside of our scope of support.

Best regards,

Bruce C.

Intel Customer Support Technician

A Contingent Worker at Intel

[MBeck22]

Dear Bruce,

I'm fully aware that I'm operating beyond the scope of official support. For purly academic interest, I want to explore the usage of the 3D XPoint memory connected through the PCH as an additional, non-volatile buffer to protect transactions on a hyper-converged edge node, while using the 3D QLC memory as an emergency hot spare for the NVMe devices connected directly to the CPU. Before spending money on this experimental setup, I wanted to learn if a lane-reversed PCIe x4 port on the C242 PCH will be still able to provide the required PCIe port bifurcation down to x2+x2, when inferfacing an Optane Memory H10 module. It would be great to receive an answer on this detail.

Best regards,

M. Beck

Post-doctoral researcher at the

Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich

[BrusC_Intel]

Hello, MBeck22.

Thank you for the response.

We cannot provide comments on configurations that are not validated/replicated by us.

I will investigate and get back to you as soon as possible in case there is anything we can provide.

Best regards,

Bruce C.

Intel Customer Support Technician

A Contingent Worker at Intel

[BrusC_Intel]

Hello, MBeck22.

Thank you very much for waiting.

We reviewed your ticket and the available documentation to check if there is more information we can provide.

The chipset is not part of the supported platforms for Optane Memory and the motherboard does not list Optane Memory support or H10 compatibility either:

- Software and Platform Support for Intel® Optane™ Memory: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000026040/memory-and-storage/intel-optane-memory.html

Regarding the usage of the product, we are not able to comment on non-supported configurations.as you already know, it is still recommended to contact the motherboard manufacturer to check if they can provide more information or other recommendations, but this usage will likely need to be tested personally.

Best regards,

Bruce C.

Intel Customer Support Technician

A Contingent Worker at Intel

[BrusC_Intel]

Hello, MBeck22.

I wanted to follow up on your ticket to check if you have any other questions.

If I can be of assistance or you would like to close the ticket, just let me know.

Best regards,

Bruce C.

Intel Customer Support Technician

A Contingent Worker at Intel

[BrusC_Intel]

Hello, MBeck22.

I will proceed to close the thread for now.

If you need additional assistance, you can always contact us back.

Best regards,

Bruce C.

Intel Customer Support Technician

A Contingent Worker at Intel