NVIDIA Mellanox MCX353A-FCBS ConnectX-3 VPI Single-Port QSFP+ FDR 56Gb/s and 40GbE Adapter: This is a single-port QSFP+ Host Channel Adapter (HCA) built on the ConnectX-3 VPI ASIC. The single QSFP+ port can be configured for InfiniBand FDR at 56Gb/s or for Ethernet at 40Gb/s, switched in software. This is a standard low-profile PCIe 3.0 x8 card, NOT a mezzanine or OCP form-factor adapter. This is a refurbished unit.
Engineering Context
The MCX353A-FCBS implements ConnectX-3 VPI on a PCIe 3.0 x8 (8GT/s) host interface, exposing one QSFP+ port. It supports RDMA, RoCE for Ethernet RDMA, GPUDirect for low-latency GPU-to-GPU transfers across the fabric, and SR-IOV for virtualized hosts. Stateless TCP/UDP/IP offload, T10/DIF, and end-to-end QoS are also supported. The card ships with a low-profile bracket; full-height brackets are available separately.
Deployment & Use Cases
HPC compute nodes joining an FDR InfiniBand fabric. Storage front-ends using SRP, iSER, NFS over RDMA, or NVMe-oF over RoCE. GPU compute clusters where GPUDirect RDMA reduces collective-operation latency. 40GbE upgrade path for legacy 10GbE servers where a single high-speed uplink is sufficient.
Technical Specifications
OEM: NVIDIA Mellanox
Part Number: MCX353A-FCBS
Controller: ConnectX-3 VPI
Form Factor: Standard PCIe HHHL, low-profile bracket
Ports: 1 × QSFP+
InfiniBand Rate: FDR 56Gb/s (also QDR 40Gb/s, FDR10)
Ethernet Rate: 40GbE
Host Interface: PCIe 3.0 x8 (8GT/s)
Protocol Mode: VPI (InfiniBand or Ethernet)
RDMA: InfiniBand verbs, RoCE
Other Offloads: SR-IOV, GPUDirect, stateless TCP/UDP/IP
Condition: Refurbished — Tested by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
Compatibility & Hard Constraints
Fits any standard PCIe 3.0 x8 (or higher) slot. To reach FDR 56Gb/s, requires a SwitchX or SwitchX-2 FDR-class switch and FDR-rated QSFP+ DAC or active optical cables; older QDR cables will negotiate down to FDR10/QDR. Not compatible with 56GbE — the Ethernet mode of MCX353A-FCBS is 40GbE; the 56GbE-capable SKU in this family is MCX353A-FCBT. Cannot drop into a Dell C-series mezzanine slot or OCP slot. Driver support: MLNX_OFED for older Linux, inbox drivers for current Linux distributions, WinOF for Windows Server.
Why Choose T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS link-tests every adapter at FDR, verifies firmware, and inspects the QSFP+ cage and PCIe edge before shipment. We provide global shipping, pre-sale guidance on InfiniBand vs. RoCE design, and 1–3 business day handling. See tes-itsolutions.com for the full ConnectX-3 catalog.