NVIDIA Mellanox MCX654106A-ECAT ConnectX-6 VPI HDR100/EDR/100GbE Dual QSFP56 Socket Direct Adapter — Refurbished
Technical Identity
The NVIDIA Mellanox MCX654106A-ECAT is a refurbished ConnectX-6 VPI Socket Direct host channel adapter. It exposes two QSFP56 ports, each operating as HDR100 InfiniBand (100Gb/s), EDR InfiniBand (100Gb/s) or 100GbE Ethernet. VPI dual-protocol means every port is independently selectable as IB or Ethernet via mlxconfig. The card uses Socket Direct: two independent PCIe 3.0 x16 host links, one terminating at each CPU socket through Cabline SA-II Plus harnesses, eliminating QPI/UPI hop latency for NUMA-aware HPC and AI workloads. Crypto Enabled. Linux only — Socket Direct is not supported in Windows/WinOF-2. Condition: Refurbished.
Specifications
Brand: NVIDIA Mellanox
MPN: MCX654106A-ECAT
Family: ConnectX-6 VPI (Socket Direct)
ASIC: ConnectX-6
Ports: 2× QSFP56 (Dual-Port)
InfiniBand: HDR100 100Gb/s, EDR 100Gb/s, FDR 56Gb/s, QDR 40Gb/s — backward compatible
Ethernet: 100GbE / 50GbE / 40GbE / 25GbE / 10GbE / 1GbE
Protocol: VPI dual-protocol — InfiniBand / Ethernet selectable per port
Host interface: 2× PCIe 3.0 x16 (Socket Direct, one link per CPU socket)
Form factor: Low-profile main PCB + passive PCIe auxiliary carrier card + Cabline SA-II Plus harnesses
Bracket: Tall bracket (2× included)
Cryptography: Crypto Enabled — hardware MACsec / IPsec offload
RDMA: RDMA over InfiniBand, RoCE v1/v2, SR-IOV, GPUDirect RDMA
OS support: Linux only (Socket Direct not supported in Windows / WinOF-2)
Condition: Refurbished — inspected, MPN verified, ESD-safe packed
What This Is NOT
NOT a standard PCIe stand-up card — the design requires Cabline SA-II Plus harnesses and a passive PCIe auxiliary carrier card
NOT capable of HDR 200Gb/s per port — line rate is capped at 100Gb/s (HDR100 / EDR / 100GbE). For 200Gb/s HDR per port see MCX653106A-HDAT
NOT supported in Windows or the WinOF-2 driver stack — Socket Direct is Linux only
NOT suitable for single-socket servers — both PCIe x16 connections must terminate at independent CPU sockets to realize NUMA-direct benefit
NOT supplied with QSFP56 cables, optical modules, additional Cabline harnesses, or auxiliary kit components unless explicitly itemized
Compatibility
Server platform: Dual-socket x86 or ARM server with two adjacent PCIe 3.0 x16 slots on independent root complexes (one per CPU)
Mechanical kit: Two Cabline SA-II Plus harnesses plus the passive PCIe auxiliary carrier card supplied as part of the MCX654106A Socket Direct kit
InfiniBand fabric: Interoperates with NVIDIA Quantum-2 and Quantum HDR switches at HDR100, and Switch-IB 2 EDR switches at 100Gb/s. Backward compatible with FDR and QDR fabrics
Ethernet fabric: Interoperates with NVIDIA Spectrum-3, Spectrum-2 and Spectrum 100GbE switches and any standards-compliant 100GbE QSFP56/QSFP28 port
Interconnects: QSFP56 HDR100/EDR passive copper DAC (MCP1650), AOC (MFA1A00-Hxxx series), or QSFP56 optical transceivers (MMA1T00). QSFP28 100GbE DAC/AOC also supported in Ethernet mode
Driver stack: MLNX_OFED 4.7 or later on Linux. NVIDIA MOFED 5.x / DOCA recommended for current kernels
NUMA tuning: Each port should be pinned to processes running on its locally attached CPU socket for maximum benefit
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the MCX654106A-ECAT?
The MCX654106A-ECAT is a refurbished NVIDIA Mellanox ConnectX-6 VPI Socket Direct adapter with two QSFP56 ports operating at HDR100 or EDR InfiniBand, or 100GbE Ethernet. Each port is connected to a separate CPU socket via an independent PCIe 3.0 x16 link through Cabline SA-II Plus harnesses, eliminating NUMA cross-socket data movement.
How does MCX654106A-ECAT differ from MCX653106A-HDAT?
The ECAT is HDR100 (100Gb/s per port) with Socket Direct using two PCIe 3.0 x16 host links. The HDAT is full HDR (200Gb/s per port) with a single PCIe 4.0 x16 host interface. Choose ECAT for NUMA-direct dual-socket deployments at 100Gb/s; choose HDAT when 200Gb/s per port is required.
Can the MCX654106A-ECAT run at 200Gb/s HDR per port?
No. The card is capped at 100Gb/s per port (HDR100 / EDR / 100GbE). For 200Gb/s HDR per port use MCX653106A-HDAT or the ConnectX-6 HDR variants.
What does VPI dual-protocol mean on this adapter?
VPI — Virtual Protocol Interconnect — means each of the two ports is independently selectable between InfiniBand and Ethernet using the mlxconfig utility (LINK_TYPE_P1 / LINK_TYPE_P2). No hardware change is required to switch a port between protocols.
What condition does T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS supply?
Refurbished. Each card is visually inspected, MPN and EEPROM verified, connectors and brackets condition-checked, and packed in ESD-safe anti-static packaging. Refurbished units ship from EU stock. Cabline harnesses and the auxiliary PCIe carrier are not included unless explicitly listed.
Why Choose T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS is a Europe-based specialist B2B reseller of NVIDIA Mellanox networking infrastructure. We provide pre-sale technical alignment for Socket Direct and dual-socket NUMA architectures, multi-currency invoicing (EUR / USD / GBP), and global express logistics with direct contact to our engineering team — not a call-center.
Quality Assurance
All refurbished NVIDIA Mellanox ConnectX-6 adapter cards are inspected for physical condition, MPN and EEPROM verification, and connector/port integrity. Each unit is packed in ESD-safe anti-static packaging for international B2B shipment.