NVIDIA Mellanox MCX546A-CDAN ConnectX-5 EN 100GbE Dual-Port QSFP28 OCP 2.0 Type 2 Adapter: This is an OCP 2.0 Type 2 mezzanine network interface card based on the ConnectX-5 EN ASIC, providing two QSFP28 ports for 100GbE Ethernet connectivity. This is an OCP 2.0 mezzanine card designed for OCP-compliant server platforms, not a standard PCIe HHHL add-in card and not an InfiniBand-only HCA. The card uses a PCIe 4.0 x16 host interface. This is a refurbished unit.
Engineering Context
The MCX546A-CDAN delivers up to 100 Gb/s per port for a dual-port aggregate of 200 Gb/s, with hardware offloads including RDMA over Converged Ethernet (RoCEv2), SR-IOV virtualization, NVMe-oF, and stateless offloads (TSO, LRO, checksum). The OCP 2.0 Type 2 mezzanine form factor is designed for OCP-compliant chassis and provides denser port consolidation than standard PCIe slots. The card supports MSI-X, Multi-Host, and embedded switch (eSwitch) for hypervisor offload. Latency is sub-microsecond for RoCE-enabled workloads.
Deployment & Use Cases
OCP 2.0 server fleets in hyperscale and CSP data centers requiring 100GbE per port. RoCEv2-accelerated storage targets and initiators (NVMe-oF over fabrics). Open Compute compute nodes for VMware ESXi, KVM/Linux, and Windows Server clusters. SR-IOV virtualization in cloud-native and multi-tenant deployments. AI/ML training clusters where GPUDirect RDMA over Ethernet is required.
Technical Specifications
- OEM: NVIDIA Mellanox
- Part Number: MCX546A-CDAN
- Controller: ConnectX-5 EN
- Form Factor: OCP 2.0 Mezzanine, Type 2
- Ports: Dual-Port QSFP28
- Data Rate: 100GbE per port (200GbE aggregate)
- Host Interface: PCIe 4.0 x16
- Protocol: Ethernet only (EN)
- Key Offloads: RoCEv2, SR-IOV, NVMe-oF, stateless offloads
- Bracket: No bracket (OCP mezzanine form factor)
- Condition: Refurbished — Tested by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
Compatibility & Hard Constraints
Requires an OCP 2.0 Type 2 compliant server chassis (e.g., OCP-compliant Wiwynn, Quanta, Inspur, Dell EMC PowerEdge models with OCP 2.0 mezzanine slot). Not compatible with standard PCIe HHHL/FHHL slots — this is a mezzanine card, not an add-in card. Requires QSFP28 transceivers or DAC/AOC cables for 100GbE; not compatible with SFP28 cages or QSFP+ (40GbE) without proper port configuration. EN suffix indicates Ethernet-only; this card cannot be reconfigured for native InfiniBand operation. PCIe 4.0 x16 host interface is backward compatible with PCIe 3.0 x16 at reduced bandwidth.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q. What is the MCX546A-CDAN?
The MCX546A-CDAN is a ConnectX-5 EN OCP 2.0 dual-port adapter at up to 100GbE.
Q. Does it support InfiniBand?
No. ConnectX-5 EN is Ethernet-only.
Q. Will T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS confirm the configuration of MCX546A-CDAN before shipping?
Yes. T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS (tes-itsolutions.com) bench-tests each unit where test topology is available, before dispatch from EU stock.
Why Choose T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS tests every NIC on a known-good OCP-compliant chassis, verifying link training on both ports, PCIe link width/speed, and firmware version before shipment. We provide expert consultation on NVIDIA Mellanox networking, global shipping, and 1–3 day handling. Visit tes-itsolutions.com for our full catalog.