NVIDIA Mellanox MCX614106A-VCAT — ConnectX-6 EN 200GbE Dual-Port QSFP56 Socket Direct Adapter (Refurbished)
Technical Identity
The NVIDIA Mellanox MCX614106A-VCAT is a ConnectX-6 EN (Ethernet-only) Socket Direct network adapter kit, designed for dual-socket servers running latency-sensitive 200 GbE workloads. The kit attaches each of the two QSFP56 ports directly to one CPU socket via a dedicated PCIe 4.0 x16 link (2× PCIe 4.0 x16 total, one per CPU), removing the inter-socket UPI/QPI hop for NIC-bound traffic. The card supports RoCE v2, NVMe-oF, and ASAP² Open vSwitch offload, and ships with hardware crypto enabled. Condition: Refurbished, EU stock, anti-static packaging.

Specifications

Brand: NVIDIA Mellanox
Model / MPN: MCX614106A-VCAT
Product family: ConnectX-6 EN (Socket Direct)
ASIC: ConnectX-6
Protocol: Ethernet only (no InfiniBand — this is an EN-series adapter, not a VPI adapter)
Network ports: 2× QSFP56
Port speed: 200 GbE per port (also supports 100/50/40/25/10 GbE)
Host interface: 2× PCIe 4.0 x16 (Socket Direct — one PCIe link per CPU socket; auto-negotiates down to PCIe 3.0 x16)
Form factor: Low-profile PCIe card with Cabline SA-II Plus harness (2× tall brackets included)
Cryptography: Enabled (IPsec / TLS / MACsec inline crypto)
RDMA: RoCE v1 / RoCE v2
Virtualization: SR-IOV, VirtIO acceleration, ASAP² (OVS hardware offload)
Storage: NVMe-oF (RoCE / TCP) initiator and target offload
Tunneling offloads: VXLAN, NVGRE, Geneve
Power: Standard PCIe slot power; no auxiliary power required
Condition: Refurbished — MPN-verified, link-tested where topology permits, ESD-safe packaging


What This Is NOT

NOT a VPI (dual-protocol) adapter — Ethernet only. For HDR InfiniBand or VPI dual-protocol operation, see the ConnectX-6 VPI MCX653/MCX654 series.
NOT a single-PCIe card — Socket Direct requires two PCIe slots (one on each CPU socket) plus the Cabline SA-II Plus harness and auxiliary PCIe connection card supplied as part of the Socket Direct kit.
NOT a Multi-Host adapter — Socket Direct serves one server across two sockets, not multiple independent hosts.
NOT bundled with QSFP56 cables, transceivers, or replacement Cabline harnesses unless explicitly stated in the listing.
NOT supported under Windows / WinOF-2 for Socket Direct mode — Linux MLNX_OFED only.


Compatibility

Server: Dual-socket server (Intel Xeon Scalable or AMD EPYC) with two adjacent PCIe 4.0 x16 slots — one slot must be reachable from each CPU socket. Single-socket platforms gain no benefit from Socket Direct.
Operating system / drivers: Linux with MLNX_OFED 5.x or later (or upstream RDMA-core / mlx5). Socket Direct is not supported in Windows.
Switches: Pairs with NVIDIA Spectrum-2 / Spectrum-3 / Spectrum-4 Ethernet switches (e.g., SN3700, SN4700) or any standards-compliant 200 GbE QSFP56 switch.
Cabling: QSFP56 200 G DAC, AOC, or optical transceivers (e.g., MCP1650-V series DAC, MFS1S00-V series AOC, MMA1T00-VS transceiver). Cables sold separately.
BIOS / firmware: Verify ConnectX-6 firmware ≥ 20.x and that host BIOS exposes both PCIe slots in the expected NUMA domains before deployment.


Frequently Asked Questions
What is the MCX614106A-VCAT?
The MCX614106A-VCAT is a refurbished NVIDIA ConnectX-6 EN Socket Direct adapter kit with two QSFP56 ports at 200 GbE per port. Each port is wired through a dedicated PCIe 4.0 x16 connection to one CPU socket, eliminating the inter-socket UPI/QPI hop for NIC traffic on dual-socket servers.
What is Socket Direct and why does it matter?
Socket Direct connects one physical NIC to two CPU sockets simultaneously, with one PCIe x16 link per socket. The CPU that owns a given NIC port reaches it without crossing the inter-socket interconnect, reducing latency and CPU overhead for NUMA-sensitive workloads such as MPI-based HPC, AI training fabrics, and NVMe-oF storage targets.
Does MCX614106A-VCAT support InfiniBand?
No. The 614-series is ConnectX-6 EN (Ethernet only). For 200 G HDR InfiniBand or VPI dual-protocol operation, use the ConnectX-6 VPI MCX653 / MCX654 series instead.
What offloads does the MCX614106A-VCAT support?
RoCE v1 / v2, NVMe-oF (RoCE and TCP), SR-IOV, ASAP² Open vSwitch hardware offload, VXLAN / NVGRE / Geneve tunneling, and inline IPsec / TLS / MACsec hardware crypto.
What condition is supplied by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS?
Refurbished. Each card is MPN-verified, inspected for connector, bracket and PCB condition, link-tested where topology permits, and packed in ESD-safe anti-static packaging. Cabline SA-II Plus harnesses and Socket Direct auxiliary kit components are not included unless explicitly listed.

Why Choose T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS is a Europe-based NVIDIA Mellanox specialist serving HPC, AI, and enterprise data-center procurement teams since 2007. We stock ConnectX-6 EN, ConnectX-6 VPI, ConnectX-6 Dx, and Socket Direct variants and provide pre-sale technical alignment so the adapter, switch, transceiver, and Cabline harness are validated before purchase. Multi-currency B2B invoicing, EU stock with worldwide express logistics, and direct engineering contact — not a call center.