I checked if the CPU I bought on AliExpress is genuine (E5-2650L V4) (Linux)
This article is a translation of the following my article:
Original: AliExpressで買ったCPUが本物かチェックしてみた (E5-2650L V4)（Linux）
* Translated automatically by Google.
* Please note that some links or referenced content in this article may be in Japanese.
* Comments in the code are basically in Japanese.
by bokumin
Checking if the CPU I bought on AliExpress is genuine (E5-2650L V4) (Linux)
Introduction
The electricity bill for my home server was quite high last month and the month before last, so I decided to review the power consumption of my web server. The CPU I was currently using was Core i7-6800K. Although it is nearly 10 years old with 6 cores and 12 threads, I was satisfied with the performance. However, theTDP (design maximum heat dissipation) is 140W, which I felt was a bit of a burden considering recent electricity bills.
So, when I was looking for a CPU that could be used with the LGA2011-V3 socket, I came across the Xeon E5-2650L v4.
When you hear Xeon, you get the impression that it consumes a lot of power, but the “L” in E5-2650L v4 means “Low-Power,” and it has an amazing power-saving design (at the time) of TDP65W while having 14 cores and 28 threads.
Here is a comparison of specs with 6800k.
| Item | Core i7-6800K | Xeon E5-2650L v4 |
|---|---|---|
| Number of cores | 6 | 14 |
| Number of threads | 12 | 28 |
| Base clock | 3.4 GHz | 1.7 GHz |
| Max Turbo | 3.8 GHz | 2.5 GHz |
| TDP | 140W | 65W |
| Cache | 15MB (L3) | 35MB (L3) |
| Socket | LGA2011-3 | LGA2011-3 |
| Memory compatible | DDR4-2400 | DDR4-2400 |
| ECC compatible | No | Yes |
| Release year | 2016 | 2016 |
Comparing the performance in Technical City, the performance is not that high considering the number of cores, but this is mainly due to the difference in clock speed. Comparison sites like this place emphasis on single-threaded performance as well as multi-threaded performance, so the low-clock Xeon E5-2650L v4 does not score as high as expected.
However, there is a big advantage in terms of power consumption. At 65W TDP, it consumes less than half the power of the Core i7-6800K, making it attractive for always-on applications. Considering the electric bill, I personally decided that it was worth choosing Xeon because I thought it would be a good deal in the long run.
However, the Xeon E5-2650L v4 is a CPU that only exists in the tray version, and the general retail version (boxed) is not manufactured. This is because this is an OEM-supplied CPU for servers.
Therefore, it has the following characteristics
- Not covered by Intel official support: Not listed on support page for individual users
- No operation guarantee: No direct quality guarantee from Intel (only warranty from shop)
- Difficult to determine whether it is fake: Official means of confirmation are limited
In other words, the only way to determine whether it is genuine is to purchase it and see how it actually works.
Purchase on AliExpress
This time, I looked around for the Xeon E5 2650L v4, and found that it is generally priced at around 7,000 yen to 15,000 yen, and sometimes it is sold on flea market sites for around 5,000 yen. While I was doing some research, I noticed that many of them were priced over 10,000 yen, so I was wondering if I could get them a little cheaper, and then I found something that looked good at Ariek.
The product price was 4,896 yen including shipping, which was attractive to me as it was very cheap considering I would be purchasing a new CPU with similar performance.
However, it is also true that overseas mail order sites such as Ariek have the following risks
- Possibility of counterfeit/modified product: Another CPU with changed markings
- Risk of defective products: Individuals with malfunction or short lifespan
- Difficulty in returning/exchanging: Overseas shipping is time-consuming and costly
It arrived 5 days after I purchased the CPU, which was much faster than I expected. The image below is what I actually received.
There is a JN marking, but I’m not sure if it represents the distribution channel of the used CPU or if it’s an inspected mark, but it looks authentic.
(When I later contacted the seller, I was told that it was the inspected mark of the company I purchased it from.)
This time, I used the system information acquisition function in a Linux environment to verify whether the CPU I purchased was really a Xeon E5-2650L v4 and whether it was operating properly.
Verification method/results
Compared to Windows, Linux is suitable for CPU verification for the following reasons
- Access detailed hardware information: /proc, /sys file systems
- Rich verification commands: lscpu, dmidecode, hwinfo, etc.
- Difficult to tamper: Obtain information at system level
- Command line operation: Easy to automate and easy to log
Introducing the verification results conducted in the openSUSE Tumbleweed environment.
First, let’s look at /proc/cpuinfo
$ cat /proc/cpuinfo
processor : 0
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 79
model name : Intel(R) Xeon(R) CPU E5-2650L v4 @ 1.70GHz
stepping : 1
microcode : 0xb000040
cpu MHz : 1449.112
cache size : 35840 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 28
core id : 0
cpu cores : 14
apicid : 0
initial apicid : 0
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 20
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe syscall nx pdpe1gb rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts rep_good nopl xtopology nonstop_tsc cpuid aperfmperf pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl smx est tm2 ssse3 sdbg fma cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid dca sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic movbe popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm abm 3dnowprefetch cpuid_fault epb cat_l3 cdp_l3 pti intel_ppin ssbd ibrs ibpb stibp fsgsbase tsc_adjust bmi1 hle avx2 smep bmi2 erms invpcid rtm cqm rdt_a rdseed adx smap intel_pt xsaveopt cqm_llc cqm_occup_llc cqm_mbm_total cqm_mbm_local dtherm ida arat pln pts md_clear flush_l1d
bugs : cpu_meltdown spectre_v1 spectre_v2 spec_store_bypass l1tf mds swapgs taa itlb_multihit mmio_stale_data
bogomips : 3398.10
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 46 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:
Continue using the dmidecode command to check.
$ sudo dmidecode -t processor
# dmidecode 3.6
Getting SMBIOS data from sysfs.
SMBIOS 3.0 present.
Handle 0x0073, DMI type 4, 42 bytes
Processor Information
Socket Designation: SOCKET 2011
Type: Central Processor
Family: Xeon
Manufacturer: Intel
ID: F1 06 04 00 FF FB EB BF
Signature: Type 0, Family 6, Model 79, Stepping 1
Version: Intel(R) Xeon(R) CPU E5-2650L v4 @ 1.70GHz
Voltage: 1.2 V
External Clock: 100 MHz
Max Speed: 4000 MHz
Current Speed: 1700 MHz
Status: Populated, Enabled
Upgrade: Socket LGA2011-3
Core Count: 14
Core Enabled: 14
Thread Count: 28
Characteristics:
64-bit capable
Multi-Core
Hardware Thread
Execute Protection
Enhanced Virtualization
Power/Performance Control
/proc/cpuinfo displays the information detected by the kernel, and dmidecode displays the SMBIOS information, and by checking the consistency of these two information sources, it is possible to confirm with high reliability whether the CPU is fake or not.
In other words, if one of these two values (for example, CPU ID, Family, Stepping, etc.) is different, it is possible that the CPU is impersonated.
Also, if fewer cores are recognized, it may be a fake, malfunction, or defective product.
The microcode version 0xb000040 is the format of the legal microcode version used by this CPU generation. We also confirmed that the number of cores, cache size, supported instruction set, etc. matched the product specifications. (The reference link is here)
Next, let’s check the CPU temperature using the sensors command.
$ sensors
coretemp-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
Package id 0: +36.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 0: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 1: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 2: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 3: +30.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 4: +30.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 5: +30.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 6: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 8: +30.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 9: +30.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 10: +30.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 11: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 12: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
Core 13: +29.0°C (high = +63.0°C, crit = +73.0°C)
As for the temperature, it is operating within the normal range of 1 to 2 degrees above room temperature. Next, let’s look at memory.
$ sudo dmidecode -t memory | grep Speed
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
Speed: 2400 MT/s
Configured Memory Speed: 2400 MT/s
The memory was also working normally at the rated 2400MHz. Originally it was a 3300MHz memory, but the frequency has been lowered to match the CPU specifications.
まとめ
Through this verification, we were able to confirm that the Xeon E5-2650L v4 purchased from Ariek is a genuine product
The purchase price was very cheap at 4,896 yen including shipping, and the power was increased from the 6 cores and 12 threads of the originally used CPU to 14 cores and 28 threads. The power consumption was also cut in half from 140W to 65W, and I am satisfied with the cost performance.
Purchasing on overseas online shopping sites comes with a certain amount of risk, but you can reduce that risk by choosing a platform that offers guarantees and returns. There is little benefit in pretending to be a CPU from this age now, so the risk of it being a fake is relatively low, but you need to consider the possibility of it being malfunctioning or having a short lifespan. Personally, I think that platforms that support returns and exchanges are safer than transactions between individuals such as a certain flea market site.
It is important to choose a seller with good reviews and read the product description carefully. We recommend that you perform an operation test upon arrival and contact us as soon as possible if there are any problems. At the Ariek shop where I purchased it this time, I think it was attractive because they accept returns and refunds within 90 days.
End
The product I purchased this time is here.