Head-to-head · every figure from the vendor documents
HPE DL380 Gen11 vs HPE DL380a Gen11
A specification-by-specification comparison of the HPE ProLiant DL380 Gen11 and the HPE ProLiant DL380a Gen11, built from HPE’s own documents. 2 headline measures favour the DL380 Gen11 and none favour the DL380a Gen11, and 40 processors appear in both lists.
Bottom line. DL380 Gen11 leads on virtualisation, databases and in-memory work, storage density. Neither vendor publishes benchmarks for these machines, so every call here is made on what their documents state.
Each row is a figure both vendors publish. Bars show the split between the two; a badge marks the larger figure, which is not always the better buy — a shallower chassis or a lower power ceiling can matter more.
2
Processor sockets
2
128
Cores, fully populated
Largest listed processor × its socket count
128
8 TBHigher
Memory ceiling
As each document states it
3 TB
36Higher
Drive bays
8
Up to 8
Accelerators
Up to 8
2,200 W
Largest power supply
2,200 W
2U Rack
Rack height
2U Rack
400 GbE class
Fastest network option
400 GbE class
02 — Verdict
Which one, and why
Drawn from the measures above and each model’s own data sheet. Neither vendor publishes benchmark results for these servers, so nothing here claims one is “faster”.
Choose the DL380 Gen11 if…
Memory ceiling: 8 TB against 3 TB on the DL380a Gen11
Drive bays: 36 against 8 on the DL380a Gen11
Five factory chassis — 8SFF, 24SFF, 8LFF, 12LFF and 12EDSFF — plus mid-tray and rear cages, so one model spans small SFF builds, 16 LFF bays and 36 EDSFF NVMe drives.
Choose the DL380a Gen11 if…
Four double-wide or eight single-wide accelerators in a 2U chassis, with six NVIDIA and Intel cards in HPE’s GPU table spanning the 72 W L4 to the 400 W H100 NVL.
03 — By workload
Where each one pulls ahead
Calls made on documented capacity only — cores, memory, bays, accelerators and network options — with the figures behind each one shown.
VirtualisationDL380 Gen11: 128 cores with 8 TB. DL380a Gen11: 128 cores with 3 TB.DL380 Gen11
Databases & in-memoryMemory ceiling 8 TB against 3 TB, across 32 and 24 DIMM slots.DL380 Gen11
Storage density36 bays in 2U against 8 in 2U.DL380 Gen11
AI & acceleration8 accelerators against 8 in the vendor documents.Line ball
Network throughputFastest card listed: 400 GbE class against 400 GbE class.Line ball
04 — Specifications
Side by side, differences first
Everything both documents state, grouped. The default view hides rows where the two machines are identical.
Processors
Every processor each vendor lists for the model, from its own document.
Bay counts are the maximum each document states, including rear and mid-chassis positions.
Specification
DL380 Gen11
DL380a Gen11
Maximum bays
36
8
Documented layouts
13
2
Bay sizes
2.5-inch · 3.5-inch · E3.S
2.5-inch · E3.S
Boot devices
HPE NS204i-u Gen11 NVMe Hot Plug Boot Optimized Storage Device · HPE NS204i-u v2 960GB NVMe Hot Plug Boot Optimized Storage Device · HPE NS204i-u v2 960GB NVMe SED Hot Plug Boot Optimized Storage Device + 2 more
HPE NS204i-u Gen11 NVMe Hot Plug Boot Optimized Storage Device
Storage controllers
13
5
Accelerators & I/O
Specification
DL380 Gen11
DL380a Gen11
Double-wide cards listed
3
0
PCIe network slots
8
4
Network cards listed
39
32
Power & platform
Specification
DL380 Gen11
DL380a Gen11
Power-supply options
5
2
Output range
800–2,200 W
1,600–2,200 W
Input types
AC · −48 V DC
AC
Chassis depthVendors measure depth differently — see each data sheet
SFF CTO: 72.7 cm (28.62 in)
81.6 cm / 32.13 in deep (server)
05 — The data
Processors, memory, bays and power
The same charts each data sheet carries, drawn to the same scale so the two ranges can be read against each other.
DL380 Gen11: processors by cores and TDP
5th Gen Xeon Scalable 294th Gen Xeon Scalable 37Bubble size = L3 cache · hover a bubble for the full SKU
DL380a Gen11: processors by cores and TDP
4th Gen Xeon Scalable 235th Gen Xeon Scalable 18Bubble size = L3 cache · hover a bubble for the full SKU
DL380 Gen11: memory with every slot filled
DL380a Gen11: memory with every slot filled
DL380 Gen11: drive bays
Front panel
12 × EDSFF NVMe at the front — 12 bays in total.
SAS/SATANVMeSAS/SATA + NVMe
DL380a Gen11: drive bays
Front panel
8 × EDSFF NVMe at the front — 8 bays in total.
SAS/SATANVMeSAS/SATA + NVMe
DL380 Gen11: power supplies
AC−48 V DC
DL380a Gen11: power supplies
AC
06 — Like for like
40 processors you can order in either
Both vendor documents list these parts, so a build can be matched across the two and the comparison comes down to the chassis: 26 more are exclusive to the DL380 Gen11 and 1 to the DL380a Gen11.
Processor
Cores
TDP
Intel Xeon Platinum 8592+
64
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8580
60
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8570
56
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8480+
56
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8470
52
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8568Y+
48
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8558
48
330 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8468
48
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8468V
48
330 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8458P
44
350 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8460Y+
40
300 W
Intel Xeon Platinum 8452Y
36
300 W
07 — Questions
DL380 Gen11 vs DL380a Gen11, answered
Is the DL380 Gen11 or the DL380a Gen11 the faster server?
Neither document publishes benchmark results, so this page compares what they do state. The DL380 Gen11 lists 66 processors up to 64 cores at 385 W; the DL380a Gen11 lists 41 up to 64 cores at 350 W. Fully populated that is 128 cores against 128.
Which holds more memory?
The DL380 Gen11 has 32 DIMM slots and a stated ceiling of 8.0 TB. The DL380a Gen11 has 24 and 3.0 TB.
Which takes more drives?
DL380 Gen11: 36 bays across 13 documented layouts. DL380a Gen11: 8 across 2. Counts include rear and mid-chassis positions where the vendor documents them.
Can either take GPUs?
DL380 Gen11: up to 8 accelerators, 3 double-wide cards listed. DL380a Gen11: up to 8, 0 double-wide listed.
Do they share any processors?
Yes — 40 processors appear in both documents, including the Intel Xeon Platinum 8592+. That makes a like-for-like build possible on either server.
Where these figures come from. DL380 Gen11: HPE ProLiant DL380 Gen11 QuickSpecs (Version 47 - 08-Sep-2026) (HPE document). DL380a Gen11: HPE ProLiant DL380a Gen11 QuickSpecs (Version 34 - August 3, 2026) (HPE document). Each claim on this page is derived from those documents, checked page by page on the two data sheets, and carries no pricing.