NVIDIA® ConnectX NIC Series Overview and Comparison

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In today's data-driven world, high-performance networking is essential for powering the most demanding applications. As businesses and industries continue to embrace digital transformation, the need for efficient, scalable, and low-latency networking solutions has never been greater. The NVIDIA® ConnectX family of NICs leads the industry with advanced hardware offloading and acceleration, offering the best ROI and lowest total cost of ownership for hyperscale environments, clouds, storage, AI, and more.
 
 
NVIDIA® ConnectX Series Comprehensive Guide
The ConnectX series, including the ConnectX-5 EN, ConnectX-6 DX, ConnectX-6 Lx, and newer models like the ConnectX-7 and ConnectX-8, offers a comprehensive range of NICs designed to meet diverse networking requirements.
NVIDIA® ConnectX Ethernet Adapters
1. ConnectX-5 EN
Key Features:
 
High Performance: 
 
Up to two 100GbE ports, 750ns latency, and 200 million messages per second
 
Storage Acceleration: 
 
Hardware accelerations: T10-DIF, PCIe switch, NVMe-oF offloads
 
Efficient Offload: 
 
Offloads Open vSwitch to improve packet processing and reduce CPU usage
 
Flexible Form Factors: 
 
Supports PCIe Gen 3.0/4.0; available in PCIe, OCP 2.0, and OCP 3.0 with Multi-Host® and Socket Direct®
Use Cases: Ideal for cloud and telecom data centers, enhancing packet processing efficiency and reducing CPU usage. They also accelerate storage-intensive workloads with advanced hardware offloads like NVMe-oF and T10-DIF.
2. ConnectX-6 Lx
Key Features:
 
High Performance: 
 
Provides connectivity at 25GbE speeds, with support for up to two 25GbE ports or one 50GbE port.
 
Security Features: 
 
Offers advanced security capabilities for enterprise data centers.
 
Cost Efficiency: 
 
Delivers the best total cost of ownership for modern infrastructure.
 
PCIe Support: 
 
Compatible with PCIe Gen3 and Gen4 x8 host interfaces.
Use Cases: Ideal for cloud, data centers, and edge environments handling modern workloads.
3. ConnectX-6 Dx
Key Features:
 
High Performance: 
 
Supports up to two 100Gb/s or one 200Gb/s Ethernet ports for enhanced throughput.
 
Network Offloads: 
 
Offloads switching, routing, SR-IOV, and VirtIO to reduce CPU usage and improve efficiency.
 
Built-in Security: 
 
Includes encryption and packet filtering for robust protection.
 
Storage Acceleration: 
 
Enhances RoCE and NVMe-oF performance for modern storage workloads.
Use Cases: Optimized for cloud, data center workloads including security, AI, and storage.
4. ConnectX-7
Key Features:
 
High Throughput: 
 
Up to four ports and 400Gb/s throughput for high-bandwidth needs.
 
Advanced Networking: 
 
Supports ASAP2, RoCE, and GPUDirect Storage for high-performance networking.
 
Security Offloads: 
 
Hardware acceleration for TLS, IPsec, and MACsec encryption/decryption.
 
Data Center Scalability: 
 
Designed for cloud, telecommunications, AI, and enterprise workloads.
Use Cases: Optimized for cloud, telecommunications, AI, and enterprise data center workloads, especially in high-bandwidth and high-density environments.
NVIDIA® ConnectX InfiniBand Adapters
1. ConnectX-5
Key Features:
 
High Performance: 
 
Up to two 100Gb/s ports for InfiniBand and Ethernet connectivity with low latency.
 
RDMA-enabled: 
 
Provides advanced application offload capabilities for HPC, cloud hyperscale, and storage platforms.
 
Hardware Offloads: 
 
Includes PCIe switch and NVMe over Fabrics offloads for improved efficiency.
 
Form Factor Options: 
 
Available in PCIe Gen3/Gen4 and OCP Spec 2.0, with Multi-Host and Socket Direct technologies in selected models.
Use Cases: Designed for high-performance computing (HPC), cloud hyperscale, and storage platforms, particularly for environments requiring high-speed networking and offloads.
2. ConnectX-6
Key Features:
 
High Performance: 
 
Up to two 200Gb/s InfiniBand and Ethernet ports with low latency and high message rate.
 
NVIDIA In-Network Computing: 
 
Includes smart offloads and In-Network Computing acceleration for improved efficiency.
 
Broad Compatibility: 
 
Works within the NVIDIA Quantum InfiniBand platform for scalability and performance.
 
Advanced Applications: 
 
Designed to optimize performance for HPC, AI, cloud, hyperscale, and storage platforms.
Use Cases: Optimized for high-performance computing (HPC), artificial intelligence, cloud, hyperscale, and storage platforms, where performance and scalability are critical.
3. ConnectX-7
Key Features:
 
High Speed: 
 
Supports speeds up to 400Gb/s with InfiniBand and Ethernet protocols.
 
Scalable Solutions: 
 
Offers advanced, scalable, and secure networking for various applications.
 
Broad Use Cases: 
 
Designed to address both traditional enterprise needs and demanding workloads.
 
Support for Demanding Workloads: 
 
Optimized for AI, scientific computing, and hyperscale cloud data center environments.
Use Cases: Designed for AI, scientific computing, and hyperscale cloud data center workloads, as well as traditional enterprise needs.
4. ConnectX-8
Key Features:
 
High Speed: 
 
Supports up to 800Gb/s InfiniBand and Ethernet networking.
 
Optimized for AI: 
 
Designed to accelerate hyperscale AI computing workloads.
 
Efficient Connectivity: 
 
Delivers fast, efficient network connectivity for enhanced system performance.
 
Cloud Support: 
 
Enhances performance in AI factories and cloud data center environments.
Use Cases: Optimized for hyperscale AI computing workloads, particularly for AI factories and cloud data center environments.
Provided NVIDIA® NIC Comparison
Compufox offers a range of high-performance NVIDIA® Ethernet NICs and NVIDIA® InfiniBand NICs designed to meet the needs of various application scenarios. ConnectX NIC series supports speeds ranging from 25G to 400G, catering to the needs of small to large-scale enterprises and data centers. The following are NVIDIA® ConnectX series models offered by Compufox.
 
 
 
ConnectX Series
Products
Techonology
Ports
Host Interface
Data Transmission Rate
IB RDMA/RoCE
ConnectX-5 EN
MCX516A-CCAT
Ethernet
Dual-Port QSFP28
PCIe 3.0 x 16
100/50/40/25/10/1Gb/s
RoCE
MCX515A-CCAT
Ethernet
Single-Port QSFP28
PCIe 3.0 x 16
100/50/40/25/10/1Gb/s
RoCE
ConnectX-6 Lx
MCX631102AN-ADAT
Ethernet
Dual-Port SFP28
PCIe 4.0 x 8
25/10/1Gb/s
RoCE
ConnectX-6 Dx
MCX623106AN-CDAT
Ethernet
Dual-Port QSFP56
PCIe 4.0 x 16
100/50/40/25/10/1Gb/s
RoCE
MCX621202AC-ADAT
Ethernet
Dual-Port SFP28
PCIe 4.0 x 8
25/10/1Gb/s
RoCE
ConnectX-7
MCX75510AAS-NEAT
InfiniBand
Single-Port OSFP
PCIe 5.0 x 16
NDR/NDR200/HDR/HDR100/EDR/FDR/SDR
IB RDMA
ConnectX-6 VPI
MCX653105A-HDAT-SP
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Single-Port QSFP56
PCIe 4.0 x 16
HDR and 200Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoCE
MCX653106A-ECAT-SP
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Dual-Port QSFP56
PCIe 4.0 x 16
HDR and 100Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoCE
MCX653105A-ECAT-SP
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Single-Port QSFP56
PCIe 4.0 x 16
HDR and 100Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoCE
MCX653106A-HDAT-SP
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Dual-Port QSFP56
PCIe 4.0 x 16
HDR and 200Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoCE
ConnectX-7 VPI
MCX75310AAS-NEAT
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Single-Port OSFP
PCIe 5.0 x 16
IB: NDR/NDR200/HDR/HDR100/EDR/FDR/SDR
Eth: 400/200/100/50/40/10/1Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoCE
MCX75310AAC-NEAT
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Single-Port OSFP
PCIe 5.0 x 16
IB: NDR/NDR200/HDR/HDR100/EDR/FDR/SDR
Eth: 400/200/100/50/40/10/1Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoCE
MCX755106AS-HEAT
Ethernet, InfiniBand
Dual-Port QSFP112
PCIe 5.0 x 16
IB: NDR200/HDR/HDR100/EDR/FDR/SDR
Eth: 200/100/50/25/10Gb/s
IB RDMA, RoC
 
This table compares the key features of Compufox offered NVIDIA® ConnectX series to help select the most suitable solution based on your organization's needs.
Summary

With the increasing demand for high-speed, low-latency, and scalable networking, choosing the right NIC is essential to maximize application performance and investment value. By reviewing the comparison tables and feature overviews, you can confidently identify the model that best aligns with your performance, scalability, and budget requirements. For more information, please visit COMPUFOX.COM.

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