IBM 98Y3756 — Mellanox IS5030 36-Port QSFP QDR 40Gb/s InfiniBand Edge Switch
Identity
This listing is for an OEM service part carrying the printed part number 98Y3756, an IBM part number for a Mellanox-built switch. Across the secondary market 98Y3756 is identified consistently as the Mellanox IS5030 36-port QSFP QDR InfiniBand switch (the MIS5030Q family). No IBM parts document naming 98Y3756 was located during research, so the mapping rests on consistent reseller data; the platform detail below comes from Mellanox IS5030-series documentation for the switch family. T.E.S confirms the exact model from the unit label before dispatch.
What is confirmed about 98Y3756
The printed part number is 98Y3756, listed consistently across the market as IBM's number for the Mellanox IS5030 InfiniBand switch. Related IBM numbers appearing alongside it include 98Y3580 and 98Y3374.
The IS5030 is a 1U rack-mount InfiniBand edge switch with 36 QSFP ports.
Per Mellanox IS5030-series documentation, it provides up to 40 Gbps full bidirectional bandwidth per port — QDR generation — for 2.88 Tb/s of non-blocking switching capacity, with roughly 100 ns port-to-port latency.
Per the same documentation, it is a managed switch: an on-board PPC405 management module runs embedded chassis management software for hardware health monitoring and diagnostics.
Per the same documentation, the platform supports hot-swappable and redundant fan drawers and a second power supply for PSU redundancy and hot-swap, and offers reversible airflow across the family.
It is a standalone 1U rack switch. It is not a chassis module and not a director-class system.
What is not yet confirmed
This list is deliberate. It is what T.E.S could not establish from documentation, and it is read off the physical unit before dispatch rather than guessed at here.
How many of the 36 ports are licensed and active on this unit. IS5030 systems were sold in configurations where only a subset of ports was enabled — one listing found during research offers an IS5030 with 18 active ports — and the active-port count is not derivable from the part number. Price this switch on the assumption that the port count needs checking, and ask us before you order.
Whether this unit is the managed IS5030 or the externally-managed IS5031 sibling. The two appear together in the market and the label is what settles it.
The exact MIS5030Q suffix (-1SFC, -1BFC, -1SRC and others exist), which encodes the power supply count and the airflow direction. Airflow must match the rest of your row.
How many power supplies are fitted to this unit, and whether rack ears or a rail kit are included.
Firmware level, subnet manager licensing state, and any residual configuration left by the previous owner. Assume no subnet manager licence transfers.
Request label photos before you order
Ask us for photographs of this unit's product label and we will send them before you commit to anything. This is a single unit, and the active-port count is the commercial question. We will photograph the full rear label including the MIS5030Q suffix, count the fitted power supplies, and where we can power the switch we will report the licensed port count and firmware level before you order. If the label does not match what is described on this page, we say so and re-quote or cancel — we do not ship a substitute and hope it fits. Quote part number 98Y3756 when you contact us.
Frequently asked questions
What exactly am I buying with 98Y3756?
A refurbished 1U InfiniBand edge switch carrying IBM part number 98Y3756, identified consistently across the market as the Mellanox IS5030 36-port QSFP QDR switch. Mellanox IS5030-series documentation gives up to 40 Gbps per port, 2.88 Tb/s non-blocking switching capacity and about 100 ns port-to-port latency, with an on-board PPC405 management processor. T.E.S located no IBM parts document naming 98Y3756, so the identification rests on reseller data and is checked against the unit label before dispatch.
Are all 36 ports on 98Y3756 usable?
Not confirmed, and worth asking about before you order. IS5030 systems were sold in configurations where only a subset of the 36 ports was licensed and active — one listing found during research offers an IS5030 with 18 active ports. The part number does not tell you which configuration this unit is. Where we can power the switch we will read out the licensed port count and tell you; otherwise we say plainly that it is unverified.
Is 98Y3756 a managed switch?
The IS5030, per Mellanox documentation, is a managed switch with an on-board PPC405 management module running embedded chassis management software for hardware health monitoring and diagnostics. What is not confirmed is whether this specific unit is an IS5030 or the externally-managed IS5031 sibling, which appears alongside it in the market. Ask for the label photograph if managed operation matters to your design.
What airflow direction and how many power supplies does 98Y3756 have?
Not confirmed from the part number. The MIS5030Q family carries suffixes such as -1SFC, -1BFC and -1SRC that encode power supply count and airflow direction, and the platform supports a second power supply for redundancy. Airflow must match the rest of your row — front-to-back and back-to-front units cannot be mixed freely in a hot-aisle layout. We read the suffix and count the fitted PSUs before dispatch.
Is the 98Y3756 switch tested?
It is cleaned, visually inspected and bench-tested where a suitable test topology is available. For a standalone 1U switch that usually means a power-on, management access and port-status check. It does not mean the switch has been run under load against a matching QDR fabric. Ask what was actually done to this unit and we will tell you rather than implying more.
Are QSFP cables or a subnet manager licence included with 98Y3756?
No on both counts. QSFP transceivers and DAC cables are separate items and are not included or implied. Any subnet manager licensing that existed on the originating system should be assumed not to transfer. T.E.S carries QSFP QDR interconnect separately — ask and we will quote the cabling alongside the switch.
Why T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS supplies refurbished enterprise networking and server hardware from EU stock to a B2B market. On OEM service parts whose exact model is not established by the part number alone, we publish what we can verify and name what we cannot, instead of filling the gap with plausible-sounding specifications. Every unit is photographed and its label read before dispatch. If the unit differs from this page, we tell you before we ship.