Question 1

Does this motherboard support ECC. I checked the ASUS site and it said its supported, but on newegg.com its not in the description. I have 32GB of ( 1600MHz 2Rx4 ECC Reg - M393B1K70DH0-CK0 ) memory. I this board compatible?

Accepted Answer

Hi A M, yes this motherboard supports ECC, however, for me base on my preference, I only use Kingston HyperX memory modules in all my systems, but you should be fine with just about any ECC memory. Great board by the way, I have it configured to run VMware ESXi/Vsphare, managing 23 virtual machines. Another way to decide what type of memory is best for your board, visit Kingston website and use the tool to match your board with the right memory modules then return to Newegg to make your purchases.

Question 2

Does this come with i3?
I want core i7 for my system.

Accepted Answer

It comes with no CPU.  It will support any v3 Socket 1150 CPU.  It will work with Xeon E3-12x5 v3 CPUs (workstation) and with i3/i5/i7 v3 processors.  If you get an E3 CPU you will need unregistered ECC DDR3.  If you use an i3/i5/i7 CPU you will need unregistered non-ECC DDR3 (the most common PC memory).  Note that most ECC memory sold (typically as "server" memory) is registered so you have to be careful if ordering memory for an E3 CPU.

If you are trying to overclock this is may not be the motherboard you want - it is a workstation board targeted at stability and the C2x6 chipsets don't have as many overlocking features - but it's still usable for basic overclocking.

Question 3

I am planning to Install Windows Server 2012 R2. Can this motherboard handle that?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely. I just installed 2012 R2 on this board in August.  Worked quite well.

Question 4

Does this board support Xeon Phi Coprocessor cards? As in:

"BIOS support for memory mapped I/O address ranges above 4GB"

the Xeon Phi requires a motherboard and BIOS with large "Base Address Register" support!"

So does this board have the option: Memory Mapped I/O above 4GB?

Accepted Answer

My MB is Asus P9D WS and may not be the board you are looking at.
However mine has the Memory Remap feature allowing you to enable remapping above 4GB. Configuration options are Enabled or Disabled. It also has PCI Express 3.0

I am not familiar with the Xeon Phi coprocessor cards.

Question 5

Does this support non server CPUs (4770k) and if so, does it allow overclocking? I notice in the overview bit it says it does, but I don't think C226 does.

Accepted Answer

I use this motherboard with a Xeon E3. I have two, one with an E3-1275v3 for my primary desktop w/gaming use and one with an E3-1245v3 for fast but low power non-gaming desktop for my wife.  ASUS product page only mentions supporting i3 CPUs.

In general I would not spend get a C22x motherboard like this unless you are using a Xeon and using ECC memory.   If you are not using ECC memory several H/Q/Z motherboards will support Xeon with more features for less money.

I'm not being a snob but trying to save you frustration. If you are talking overclocking you really should be looking at non-workstation boards with a Z87 chipset...it is the only Haswell chipset with full support for the unlocked "K" (and some SSD features).  Workstation/server vendors using the C22x have little interest in overclocking or unlocked CPU multipliers.

You run a Workstation setup (workstation class motherboard, Workstation/Server CPU, ECC memory) because you are willing to trade a few % of performance for stability under load especially with large amounts of RAM (at a maxed out 32G you are playing with fire running without ECC if you look at DRAM error rates).

On desktops I ran with i7 (Nehalem then Westmere generation) for a long time and skipped Sandy/Ivy Bridge and with even 6G or 12G I found lots of issues with stability confirmed with various testing schemes just due to typical "bitrot" rates on DRAM especially as it ages (several studies show DRAM error rates often start to ramp past 2 years operational time).  So I decided to do workstation builds going forward.  $50-$100 and a few % (~5% give or take typically) buys a lot of stability.

The downside is you won't find as many blingy features in workstation mobos.  This board does benefit from BIOS 1406 or later.

If you do go the workstation route note that only the C226 like this motherboard supports embedded GPUs (the E3-12x5 parts).  On lower cost boards it's common to see a C224 or C222 which requires external graphics.

Question 6

Does this price include the processor?

Accepted Answer

no.

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