The enthusiast EastMakes successfully refurbished a 15-year-old HP ProLiant N40L server by replacing its original motherboard with a custom-designed PCB. The project utilizes a Raspberry Pi CM5, which offers significantly higher performance and better power efficiency than the server's original AMD Turion II processor.
To integrate the Raspberry Pi CM5, the creator developed a custom I/O board based on open-source documentation. The new motherboard was designed to fit the dimensions of the original N40L chassis and features an NVMe slot, two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, and an Ethernet connector. The board was manufactured with a yellow-on-black finish.
The custom PCB includes specific trace length adjustments to prevent timing issues and features dedicated Boop and Reboop switches. After successful testing, the board was installed into the server case. While the current build lacks an SFF-8087 port for the hard drive bay, the system successfully boots and operates within specifications.
