Intel Xeon 3.4 socket: Socket 604

What the Xeon 3.4 is

The Intel Xeon 3.4 is a single-core dual-socket server processor from February 2005. One NetBurst core runs at 3.4 GHz through a 17x multiplier on an 800 MT/s front side bus. Hyper-Threading is supported across Irwindale, so the operating system sees 2 threads from the single core. Tray sSpecs include SL7ZK and SL7ZD, and the boxed E-suffix line shipped under sSpec SL8P4. The process is 90 nm and the package is the 604-pin type for Socket 604.

Cache follows the Irwindale template: 2 MB of on-die L2 and no L3 on the die. Dell's parts data for sSpec SL7ZD records the 3.4 GHz frequency, a single core, 2 MB of L2, a 90 nm process, the PGA 604 socket, an 800 MHz bus, and 64-bit operation. That entry matches the family data on Wikipedia, which places the 3.4 GHz Irwindale on an 800 MT/s bus with order number RK80546KG0962MM.

Power is 110 W on the per-SKU evidence available. Dell parts data for sSpec SL7ZD states a thermal design power of 110 W, and Wikipedia leaves the 3.4 GHz TDP cell blank while showing 110 W for the 2.8 GHz Irwindale row. Lists that print 135 W for this bin are therefore set aside here in favor of the verified per-SKU value.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

This processor fits Socket 604, the 604-pin mPGA604 zero insertion force socket. The DP designation sets the board class: dual-socket boards with up to two processors, which is the topology Wikipedia records for Irwindale and which Intel's 2 MB Xeon datasheet confirms with scalability to two processors. Boards with four or more sockets belong to the MP population and carry different qualification lists.

The board vendor decides support part by part. The CPU list must name the installed sSpec, whether tray or boxed, and the BIOS must include its microcode. Power regulation must cover a 110 W part across the 1.25 V to 1.388 V range the family data records. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide explains how socket, chipset generation, and BIOS revision interact on boards of this era.

Before fitting a used chip, read the sSpec from the package and match it against the board CPU list, then confirm the BIOS revision and the chassis airflow in the board manual. A socket match without a board listing is not support.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory belongs to the board on this platform, and no opened source ties a memory type to this exact SKU, so this page states none. The server maker memory list sets the type, speed, rank rules, slot order, and capacity ceiling for the exact board. Treat any memory assumption carried over from a different board as unverified until the manual confirms it.

The CPU connects to the server chipset over an 800 MT/s front side bus, and expansion slots hang off that chipset. Console output comes from board level graphics or remote management hardware. Because the processor contributes no expansion lanes of its own, I/O planning starts from the board block diagram and the chipset documentation.

Cooling is specified per chassis at the 110 W level. The correct heatsink is the server maker part for the exact board and chassis, installed in the directed airflow path the board manual describes. Reused heatsinks are acceptable only when rated for continuous full load operation at the new bin.

Upgrade paths

The top Irwindale bin is the Intel Xeon 3.6 at 3.6 GHz, keeping the 2 MB L2 and the 800 MT/s bus in the same socket for boards that list it. The Intel Xeon 3.2 and the Intel Xeon 3.0 below it give cheaper or cooler single-core options without leaving Socket 604. Each move is a matter of board listing, BIOS revision, and thermal rating.

Where the board BIOS lists dual-core Paxville DP parts, the Intel Xeon 2.8 adds a second core per socket. Beyond Socket 604, every newer Xeon generation requires a new board, new memory, and a new thermal plan.