Upgrade fans on a 3020 SFF

There are NO options.

Dell uses proprietary fan headers and fans.

Hi g_t_j,

There are two compatible heat-sink/fan parts for the Optiplex 3020SFF, if you have the mainstream version you can upgrade to the performance version which has a larger heatsink but if you already have the performance version installed in the system then there are no further upgrades.

Here are the part numbers:

3020 SSF MAINSTREAM HEATSINK AND FAN - VHKV3

3020 SSF PERFORMANCE HEATSINK AND FAN - RD6XX

There will be a small part number sticker you can check on the shroud

Thanks,

Mick.

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@speedstepwrote:

There are NO options.

Dell uses proprietary fan headers and fans.

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Wrong I did it on my Optiplex 9010 and 780 also I made specific videos on how to do it on other dell Optiplex machines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmrKyE91CXw&t=10s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hZbR7b7zCg&t=98s

Hi. Quick intro. I am recently retired after a 20 year career doing warranty repair work in computers, printers, flat screen TV's, and other things. A service provider with a Dell account got me into the business, and I have trusted Dell enough that my home computer has always been a Optiplex of some sort.

I carried an Optiplex 745 absolutely as long as I could (that heady mix of "because I had to/because I can"), retired it recently and got a refurbished ex-office 3020 SFF. Proprietary cases, MBDs, fan connectors are nothing new to me in the Dell world, but the challenge of "hot-rodding" this tightly packaged SFF has provided some fun

It currently has the i5-4590 CPU, made note that faster i7-4790 & i7-4790K processors will work, though there is concern that the hot-running "K" CPU will overwhelm the cooler. In my web surfing, I noticed that Intel provides a different fan/heatsink for the "K", with copper core instead of straight aluminum. Made note that my RD6XX fan/heatsink was the best available for this SFF case. Then one day I see an E-Bay listing for a "high heat" fan/heatsink for an Optiplex XE2. Learned that is the next generation of Optiplex after the 3020/7020/9020, supporting 5th & 6th Generation Intel processors. Do my research, and the case and MDB configuration is pretty much identical. Multiple vendors on E-Bay and Amazon are offering this, p/n J9G15, new and used, for prices not much different than the RD6XX. So I buy, and install (gee, I'm doing my own service call ).



Dimensions, connector, and shrouding are identical. The difference? The J9G15 (left) has a copper core and a more powerful fan. Booted, ran, and had fun testing. First, I switched off the automatic fan control in BIOS to record CPU and case fans at full speed in ePSA (Warning- this will cause ePSA Diagnostics to hang up on the processor fan test). With the RD6XX, CPU fan maxes out at 4700 RPM, the case fan, 3200 RPM. The J9G15 redlines at 5667 RPM, and curiously, the same case fan runs slightly slower at 3010. 

I tested using Intel's Extreme Tuning Utility. 10 minutes of the CPU Stress Test, immediately followed by 10 minutes of the Memory Stress Test. Measured fan speed and temperatures using the HWiNFO64 utility. Same stock processor, a premium thermal paste used in each case. First, the stock heatsink- At rest, CPU temp 41 deg C @ 959 RPM, case fan 44 deg @ 1249 RPM. Test results were- CPU, max 74 deg (and climbing slowly) @ max 2324 RPM, case max 56 deg @ 1957 RPM. The computer's thermal profile allows things to heat up to a point, then runs fans faster to maintain that temp. Next, the new J9G15 heatsink. Same starting temps, the case fan at roughly the same RPM, heatsink fan faster @ 1166 RPM. Results- CPU, max 69 degrees C (holding steady the whole time) @ max 2709 RPM, the case sensor 2 degrees cooler, 54 deg @ a slower 1474 RPM.

I believe that there should be *no* problem cooling the i7-4790K processor with this heatsink, even if you try to tap dance around the Optiplex BIOS with the Intel Extreme Tuning Utility. I may do that processor eventually, but I don't *have* to. Yet...

Merci!

Optiplex XE2 uses the same J9G15 copper performance heatsink.

Copper heatsink

Precision T1700 Optiplex XE2 3020 7020 9020 Heatsink Fan RD6XX 0RD6XX

Dell OptiPlex 9020 Small Form Factor•Regulatory Model D07S• Regulatory Type D07S001

https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/product-support/product/optiplex-9020-desktop/docs

Good morning. I have an update.

Purchased a used i7-4790K and tried it. The MBD BIOS recognized the CPU, I was able to enable Hyperthreading, all fine. Except... CPU core temps skyrocketed to 95 degrees C on startup, and that copper core fan/heatsink and case fan *roared* at max speed during stress testing, somehow managing to keep the core temp just short of 100 C. I would've had a quick thermal shutdown with the original heatsink. I unintentionally tested many of the thermal protections, including the limitations of the Optiplex thermal profile, and backed out before I did damage to the CPU. Replaced the i5-4590, all good on the desktop. Since i7-4790's were in the field on these Optiplex office machines which are being resold widely, I don't think I'll have the same problem with that one.

This was a success *only* in that I didn't kill the processor. Now I must test E-Bay's return policy...

Update redux: . Even a 20 year veteran of the business can make a mistake. I read on an Alienware thread regarding  a CPU cooling upgrade that sudden spikes in CPU temperature are an indicator of insufficient heat transfer and poor application of thermal grease. Sure enough, when I pulled the heatsink after my misadventure, I found I had been *too* conservative in my application of Kryonaut, and less than patient tightening the heatsink evenly- not all of the contact surface was covered. Remedied when I replaced the i5-4590. Offered as a humility check and a lesson. 

Good news is that the vendor and Ebay accepted my return. A Core i7-4790, standard version, will come in time. An overclockable K processor will be forever underutilized on a MBD that will not allow overclocking. I still think the J9G15 fan/heatsink will be up to the task of cooling the Core i7-4790K processor. I had to remind myself *why* I purchased this machine on the cheap. It is not a gamer- it is the primary home/home office computer here, and it needs to run without calling attention to itself (any IT Helpdesk veteran will tell you what their life is like when that happens).

Peace, and I wish you the safest holiday possible.

I'm going to upgrade my 3020 SFF with one of these. Thanks for pointing it out.

I found a new J9G15 assembly on eBay, brand-new with thermal paste applied. It's been paired with a 4690 CPU.

It's working well so far.

do the J9G15 reduce temps better than all aluminum heatsink?

have you tested it during gaming?