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How we test and grade

Refurbished only works if the testing is real and the grading is honest. Here is what happens to a part between arriving on our dock and appearing on the site.

The grades we use

  • New, factory sealed — unopened OEM packaging, full manufacturer warranty where it transfers.
  • New, opened box — never deployed, but the box has been opened, usually from a cancelled build.
  • Refurbished — previously deployed, cleaned, tested, firmware brought to a current baseline, cosmetically sound.
  • Tested pull — previously deployed and fully tested, but sold as-is cosmetically. Function is identical to refurbished; the price reflects the marks.

Memory

Every DIMM runs four passes of MemTest86 at its rated speed, in the platform family it is sold for — HPE parts in a ProLiant, Dell parts in a PowerEdge. A DIMM that throttles below its rated speed is rejected rather than relabelled. Contacts are inspected, and any module with bent or discoloured pins is scrapped, not sold.

Processors

Four hours of Linpack with package temperatures logged throughout, plus an IHS and pin inspection under magnification. We record the stepping and microcode level so you can match what is already in your estate. Lidded parts are supplied with thermal paste residue removed.

Drives

Full SMART long test and a complete surface scan. Power-on hours, reallocated sectors and percentage endurance used are recorded per drive and supplied with the delivery, not averaged across the batch. Every drive is erased to NIST 800-88 Purge and issued with an erasure certificate before it leaves.

Complete systems

Built to your specification, then 48 hours of burn-in under load with the full vendor diagnostic suite. Firmware and BIOS are brought to a current stable baseline, out-of-band management is licensed and configured to your IP plan if you send it, and asset tags are applied to your numbering scheme.

What happens if something fails

Warranty is return-to-us as standard, and advance replacement on approved trade accounts, which means the replacement ships before the failed part comes back. We do not ask for the original packaging and we do not charge a restocking fee on warranty returns.