XW6600 Product Information Elusive

[DBrunnenmeyer]

I need help locating the following information for n xw6600 workstation;

1. Either or both of the HP xw6600 Maintenance and Service Guide and/or the HP xw600 Service and Technical Reference Guide in downloadable PDF file format.

2. A  link to the latest firmware and BIOS upgrades for the xw6600 workstation.

3. The QuickSpecs document for the xw6600 product lineup.

None of this information is readily available on the HP xw6600 product information page located here:

https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/hp-xw6600-workstation/3432821

Dennis ...

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi, Dennis:

Here is the link to the HP xw6600 Workstation Service and Technical Reference Guide:

http://h20628.www2.hp.com/km-ext/kmcsdirect/emr_na-c01312239-5.pdf

Here is the link to the xw6600 quickspecs...those are rarely if ever on any of the support pages.

http://www.usedcomp.de/pdf/HP-xw6600-Workstation-QuickSpecs.pdf

The latest BIOS update is: 

01.46      Oct 16, 2012

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp59001-59500/sp59217.exe

I would use the F10 BIOS Flash method to update the BIOS, since you are not running a supported operating system to update the BIOS in Windows.

You would find any other drivers/firmware listed under the W7 driver section.

HP does not support that model for W10, or any other PC manufactured prior to August of 2013.

[Hiatus]

Referense guide

http://h20628.www2.hp.com/km-ext/kmcsdirect/emr_na-c01312239-5.pdf

BIOS and firmware

https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/hp-xw6600-workstation/3432821

Google is your friend.

Hiatus

Edit: Second on the ball

[DBrunnenmeyer]

Hi...

The first link you provide was very useful, The second one does not yield any information  about firmware or BIOS information or upgrade links. It is useless. The third link you provided was blocked by Malwarebytes Premium (latest version).

The information provided by Paul_Tikkanen (Provost) was helpful. For now, I have what I need. Thank you for your offer to help!

Denns....

[Hiatus]

Glad you found what you were looking for.
Sorry about the malware link. My AV did not pick up on that... I'll remove it to be safe.
The second link takes you straight to the download page. I even selected the OS for you.

I'm not here to argue, but the link is correct.

Hiatus

[DBrunnenmeyer]

I beg to differ with you. Out here in the public world, going to that link, selecting Windows and then Windows 7 (64-bit OS) yield not what you show but only this statement, repeated verbatim:

"No software or drivers are available for this product with the selected operating system. Please make a different selection, or visit the product homepage."

The Product Homepage takes me back to the link you specified and then to the message above. I've tried this several times with the same result. This is not uncommon when trying to get maintenance, service, firmware and BIOS upgrade information here in the "real world" of end-users. I had the same problem when trying to find service, maintenance and upgrade information on other models, specificaly xw8200, xw8400, xw9400 and now the xw6600. We get stuck in an endless loop of dead-ends. Sorry but that's life out here in the real end-user world.

[SDH]

I happen to like the xw6600 quite a bit as an older workstation that still has chops.  Paul's advice to update BIOS from within BIOS is spot on.  That is the safest way to go, and we can help you with how to do that if you don't know.  It is just asking for trouble to not do it that way.  If you try to upgrade BIOS using the in-OS application HP provides you're using an XP program usually within a newer OS for a critical task.  There have been many bricks made by using that or a W7 HP BIOS updater from within W10.

I'm going to copy/paste a note to a friend below that will not be updated at all, but has many good points still valid.  Here are some updated tips, however:

1.  The SATA II SSD I recommend now is the Intel 320 series, 300 GB size, and you may actually find some great deals on the 600 gb version.  The workstation is a SATA II one, so you don't need a SATA III SSD.  eBay.... I almost never buy these new.

2.  For some reason HP ran its memory fan in these quite fast.  There are 4-wire Noctua fan speed reducers, about 3" long, that can be plugged straight onto your fan plug, and then plugged into the motherboard header.  You can use a low noise or an ultra low noise adapter (which is the NA-RC6).  The NA-RC7 runs a bit faster.  Adding one of those is worth doing because it does not seem to result in greater heat but does drop the noise.  At least use a NA-RC7..... There are utilities that let you monitor memory temps.

3.  What HP supports and what works are two different things.  These older workstations get no updates after a certain point, but the OEM suppliers don't stop and a good number of the updaters for later workstations are "universal" and include updates even for older chipsets despite being provided by HP for a newer workstation.  My last step on a build is to use my stash of known good HP updaters for newer workstations that work on the older ones too.

4.  I very much like the Quadro cards in these.  I don't play games; I need reliablility.  The quadro card for you I'd recommend is the Quadro 2000.  If you want to run 4 monitors like we do then I'll run a Quadro 2000D in the bottom slot and a Quadro 2000 in the top (PCIe x16 slots).  These both run on same drivers, important for W10.  Or, a step up:  K2000 from eBay also.  It is surprising how much a video card upgrade will make in your user experience.... the "pop" of everything you see is worth having.  It often is a link left weak by upgraders of these older workstations.

5.  Finally, I've been able to install W10Pro64 on any xw6400 and xw6600 I want.  Works great.  HP and MS take care of each other.....

Here's that old note to a friend, from April 2014:

The xw6600 is about 1/2 generation up from the xw6400, and both accept all the improvements below.  The xw6400 is easier and cheaper to find, and the one I have the most experience with.

1. The workstation purchase…. buying mainly the box/motherboard.  If you can get a great deal on a box with two processors rather than one processor then you get the second heatsink/fan included rather than having to buy one for the second quad core.  The slower single processor machines, however, tend to go for the best price….. rare to get a xw6600 for less than about $250.00 shipped and the xw6400 can be bought for about 180.00.
2. The second heatsink/fan can be from either the xw6400/xw8400 generation or the xw6600/xw8600 generation. If from the first get one that ends in -001 or -002 because the -003 ones are missing one of the 4 heat transfer tubes.  They look a little different but each generation fits the other perfectly.  Lowest cost about $40.00.  Noctua thermal compound needed too, about 10.00.
3. Processor: For xw6600 2 of the E5450 quad cores…… the latest sSpec code for that is SLBBM.  Currently about 45.00 each buy-it-now used on eBay.  Sometimes you’ll find a pair for a bit cheaper. Expect to pay about $90.00 for two with shipping included.   For xw6400 it is the E5345, SLAEJ sSpec code, and that processor is less expensive for 2.  A few motherboards cannot run these, but that is rare.  I have several spare xw6400s are  tested to run those fine.
4. The USB 3.0 card: This is the one that HP settled on for the Z600’s, and the same TI chip is now soldered on all their current workstation motherboards.  Search eBay for:  663212-001.  That one is 28.00 plus 6.00 for shipping, and is the one you want, from Alan Computech.  This one has a port on the card to lead to the  case front area for two front USB 3.0 ports in addition to the 2 ports on the backplane of the card itself.  The chip is from Texas Instruments and it is better than the older two port NEC/Renasus chip they started with (which is a different part number).  The drivers are the same as used if the TI chip is soldered on, so always easy to find.
5. Regarding drives….. HP recommends using only SATA generation II drives (3Gbps) internally for these workstations unless the drives are bought from HP. The next generation is SATA generation III (6Gbps), and current workstations have chips for that.  This is why I have the recommendations below.  An external drive or drive set with a USB interface can have generation III or II drives.  SSD as a boot drive makes the GII versus GIII issue moot.
6. I’ve shifted over to SSDs for my boot drive……. I buy them used off eBay. There are two Intel SSDs I recommend, the X25-M generation-2 (34 nm fab), or the Intel 320.  The speed benefit is fantastic.  The smallest I’d get is 160 GB, which is the largest form the X25-m G2 came in, but I have limited boot drive size needs on my dedicated telerad computers.  The Intel 320 series, also a 2.5” drive (don’t get a 1.8” drive) has larger sizes.  We can talk if you choose to go that route.  I can get one of these 160GB SSD drives for about 110.00 now off eBay.  If you keep your saved files off the boot drive you can have a very speedy experience this way.  You don’t really need this, however.  Just snappier, which is nice.
7. If you don’t go SSD at least get one of the Seagate Momentus XT 500 GB drives for booting from. It is a hybrid 2.5” SATA generation II drive, and has some SSD flash ram on it.  If you go that route we can talk on that also.  $65.00 with free shipping Seagate certified, on eBay.
8. If you end up with either 2.5” drive you’ll need a 2.5 to 3.5 adapter, and the one I recommend is from eBay which you can see for about 20.00 if you search under WD IcePack.
9. You’ll want an Akasa AK-HAD-06BK front USB 3.0 panel for the HP’s emptyfloppy drive bay if you get the USB 3.0 card….. it fits perfectly. Pics of mine are attached.  com.
10. You’ll want an eSATA-45-ex Akasa eSATA adapter for the backplane so you can use external eSATA drives for backup. The xw6600 has two (of 6 total) SATA ports on the motherboard that can be used internally or converted to eSATA specifications in BIOS.  I convert the last one to eSATA, and leave the other set to internal specs.  There are more than enough internal SATA ports.  Pics attached.  Also FrozenCPU.com.
11. Operating system: You could go OS 8.1 Pro 64 bit, but I personally still like W7Pro 64 bit better.  You want the system builder OS, cheapest, for this clean install.  About 140.00……. NewEgg was out of them but Amazon had them.  Make sure it is the Pro version and 64-bit.
12. There is a benefit to having an internal documents drive, in the second hard drive bay, whether you go the SSD or Momentus XT boot drive approach.  There is the very nice Western Digital “Red” 2 TB internal drive.  This is a SATA generation III drive, but I figured out how to run those reliably on the xw workstations.  Don’t go over that 2TB size, however, due to some motherboard constraints.  I have that type of setup, and like having the ability to select all folders on that and copy/paste into my backup external hard drive.  This keeps your documents mainly off your boot drive, and if you should have a boot drive failure you are not hurting.
13. With the dual quad cores I always add in a front cooling fan, Noctua NF-B9 and have figured out how to mount them cheaply to the inside front face of the case rather than using the 40.00 HP front case fan adapter that exists but is so hard to find. The Noctua is about 15.00 off Amazon.  You’ll need a 92mm metal wire fan grill, from FrozenCPU.com, to protect the internal face of that fan from internal cables that run nearby….. about $2.00.
14. Memory…… I have extra good HP workstation compatible memory I have bought by trolling eBay for best deals, and can get that for you at my cost. For 16GB plan on about 185.00.
15. Video cards…… I have extras, and I now recommend going with the nVidia Quadro cards. There is a nice one, the  about $75.00 FX3700 that I have extras of, and which I know drives the Dome C3Color.  I forget if we ever did the EDID update on your Dome…… it is a firmware update for the little computer (beam forming board) inside the monitor.  We should check on that.

Overall, when you look at all this you may wish to go for a new computer instead.  If so then take a look at the newer HP entry level workstations such as the Z230 “tower” or the Z420.  There are some improvements that have come out and the newest Z420 is different than the older Z420.  Do a search for Z420 QuickSpecs and you’ll find the current list of processors because you’ll find one from November 2013, and that will be the version that has the newer processors and thus the newer BIOS boot block.  You’d not get a dog if you bought one of the older versions, however.  Note that these two workstations take only one processor, but that processor can have 4,6,8 cores for the Z420.  The Z230 has 2 or 4 core processors, and you should only get the 4 core if you go that route.  On-board graphics is available for that, but I’d recommend the FX3700 nVidia quadro cards instead.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

I am out here in the public world, I do not work for or represent HP, and the W7/Vista/XP driver pages load just fine for me.

Though I accessed the driver pages using IE11.

You may have to use Edge, or Chrome or Firefox to get the pages to work sometimes.

If there is a specific item you are looking for, please let me know and I will post the direct link to the file like I did with the BIOS update.

[Hiatus]

Just to be straight.

You are talking to other "real world users" here. We do not work for HP. At least not me...

My guess is that the searches can't be linked... Good to know!

But your problem is realy weird. As you can see on the pic I attached, I got the list of software just by selecting Windows - Win7 64bit.

I can't see a good reason for the database to give you a different result...

This is something I think you should bring to the attention of the people outside the "real world"...

We can't help you with that here, I'm afraid. Try emptying your browser cache or try another browser, maybe?.

As a temporary fix, give me a list of the software you need and I'll link it for you. I have nothing better to do...

Hiatus

Edit: Dang it, Paul. Second again!

[SDH]

We almost never get input from a HP employee here.... just us self-helpers.....

I miss our old favorite HP engineer, Dan_in_WGBU who used to help on inside technical questions, but may have revealed too much to the masses!