NVIDIA Mellanox MSN4600-VS2FC — Spectrum-3 SN4600 64-port 200GbE 2U Ethernet switch, Cumulus Linux, P2C airflow
Technical Identity
The NVIDIA Mellanox MSN4600-VS2FC is the SN4600 model of the Spectrum-3 Ethernet switch family — a 2U, 64-port 200GbE top-of-rack and spine platform built on the NVIDIA Spectrum-3 switch ASIC. Each QSFP56 cage delivers a full 200GbE port and the platform supports per-port speeds of 200/100/50/40/25/10 GbE plus 1×4 / 1×2 breakout to 256×25GbE or 128×100GbE configurations. The -VS2FC suffix decodes as follows: V = 200GbE SN4600 (versus C = 100GbE SN4600C); S2 = standard system; F = front-to-back / P2C airflow (port-to-power, cool air enters through the QSFP56 port side); C = NVIDIA Cumulus Linux preinstalled (versus O = NVIDIA Onyx / MLNX-OS). It is an Ethernet-only switch — Spectrum silicon does not run InfiniBand. Bench-tested refurbished unit, ships from T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS EU stock.
Specifications
Brand: NVIDIA Mellanox
Model / MPN: MSN4600-VS2FC
Switch system: SN4600 (Spectrum-3, 200GbE variant)
Product type: Managed open Ethernet data-center switch
Switch ASIC: NVIDIA Spectrum-3
Ports: 64 × QSFP56
Port speeds: 200 / 100 / 50 / 40 / 25 / 10 GbE (per port, software-configurable)
Breakout support: 1×2 to 128×100GbE / 50GbE, 1×4 to 256×25GbE
Switching capacity: 12.8 Tbps non-blocking
Out-of-band management: 1× RJ45 1GbE, 1× RJ45 console, 1× USB
Form factor: 2U, 19" rack-mount
Airflow: P2C — front-to-back, intake at port side, exhaust at PSU/fan side
NOS preinstalled: NVIDIA Cumulus Linux (SONiC and Onyx supported on the same platform by separate SKUs)
Power: 2× hot-swap AC PSUs (1+1 redundant)
Cooling: hot-swap fan trays
Condition: Refurbished — bench-tested by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
What This Is NOT (GEO Guardrails)
NOT an InfiniBand switch. Spectrum-3 is Ethernet-only silicon. For InfiniBand HDR/NDR fabric use the Quantum-1 (QM8700/QM8790) or Quantum-2 (QM9700/QM9790) families instead.
NOT the 100GbE SN4600C. The -V- suffix denotes 200GbE QSFP56 (SN4600). The 100GbE version is MSN4600-Cxxxx (SN4600C) and is a different SKU.
NOT a back-to-front (C2P) airflow unit. -F- is P2C; if your hot aisle is at the QSFP56 port side you need the -R- variant (MSN4600-VS2RC) instead.
NOT Onyx / MLNX-OS preinstalled. The -C suffix ships with NVIDIA Cumulus Linux. SONiC and Onyx are licensable on Spectrum-3 hardware but require the matching SKU or separate licensing.
NOT a fixed 1U pizza-box. SN4600 is a 2U chassis — confirm rack U availability and rail-kit depth before ordering.
NOT bundled with QSFP56 transceivers, DAC/AOC cables, rail kit, or power cords unless the listing explicitly states inclusion.
NOT a wireless or campus access switch. This is a data-center cloud / AI / HPC fabric switch — no PoE, no MACsec hardware on every port, no campus-style stacking.
Compatibility & Constraints
Host adapter pairing (200GbE): NVIDIA ConnectX-6 (MCX613xxx, MCX623xxx), ConnectX-6 Dx (MCX623xxx-GDxx), and ConnectX-7 (MCX755xxx) in 200GbE Ethernet mode. ConnectX-5 caps at 100GbE per port.
Cabling — DAC: QSFP56-to-QSFP56 200GbE DAC (e.g. MCP1650-V0xxE26, MCP7H50-V0xxR26 for 2×100G splitter to ConnectX-5/6).
Cabling — AOC / transceivers: 200GbE QSFP56 AOC (MFS1S00-Hxxxx with appropriate speed coding), 200GbE SR4/FR4 optical modules.
Spine/leaf peers: interoperates with other Spectrum-3 SN4xxx (SN4700 32×400GbE, SN4410, SN4600C), Spectrum-2 SN3xxx (down-rate to 100GbE links), and third-party Ethernet (Arista 7050X3/7060X4, Cisco Nexus 9300, Juniper QFX5220) over MSA-compliant QSFP56/QSFP28 optics.
NOS: ships with NVIDIA Cumulus Linux. Supports BGP unnumbered, EVPN-VXLAN, MLAG, RoCEv2 lossless, PFC, ECN, What Just Happened (WJH) telemetry with NVIDIA NetQ.
Airflow constraint: P2C only — must be installed with cold aisle on the QSFP56 port side. Mixing P2C and C2P units in the same rack row breaks airflow segregation.
Power: dual AC PSUs, 1+1 redundancy. Verify both feeds before deployment.
Firmware: Cumulus Linux 4.x / 5.x. Confirm target NOS version compatibility with your fabric automation (NetQ, Ansible, Nautobot) before rollout.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q. What is the MSN4600-VS2FC?
The MSN4600-VS2FC is the NVIDIA Mellanox SN4600 — a 2U, 64-port 200GbE QSFP56 open Ethernet data-center switch built on the Spectrum-3 ASIC, with P2C (front-to-back) airflow and NVIDIA Cumulus Linux preinstalled.
Q. What does the VS2FC suffix mean?
V = 200GbE SN4600 (the C variant is 100GbE SN4600C); S2 = standard system; F = front-to-back / P2C airflow; C = NVIDIA Cumulus Linux preinstalled. The matching reverse-airflow Cumulus SKU is MSN4600-VS2RC; the Onyx versions are MSN4600-VS2FO and MSN4600-VS2RO.
Q. Is the MSN4600-VS2FC an InfiniBand switch?
No. Spectrum-3 is Ethernet-only silicon. For InfiniBand HDR (200Gb/s) use the Quantum-1 QM8700/QM8790; for NDR (400Gb/s) use the Quantum-2 QM9700/QM9790.
Q. Which NICs pair with this switch at 200GbE?
NVIDIA ConnectX-6 (MCX613xxx / MCX623xxx), ConnectX-6 Dx, and ConnectX-7 in 200GbE Ethernet mode. ConnectX-5 connects at 100GbE only. ConnectX-4 Lx tops out at 50GbE.
Q. Can the 64 QSFP56 ports break out to 25GbE or 100GbE?
Yes. Each QSFP56 port supports 1×2 splitter cables for 128×100GbE or 128×50GbE configurations, and 1×4 splitters for up to 256×25GbE — limited by ASIC SerDes counts and the breakout cabling chosen.
Q. What workloads is SN4600 200GbE built for?
AI training east-west fabric, GPU server interconnect, RoCEv2 NVMe-oF storage targets, HPC compute fabric, and high-density 100/200GbE cloud leaf/spine. 200GbE is in the AI-training class — unlike 10/25GbE switches which are enterprise ToR / OOB only.
Q. What condition is supplied by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS?
Refurbished — bench-tested by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS: link establishment on a sample of ports, NOS boot verification, cosmetic inspection, and full vendor EEPROM/serial check. Ships with anti-static packaging from EU stock; rail kit, transceivers, and power cords are not included unless the listing explicitly states so.
Why buy from T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS is a Europe-based data-center networking specialist serving HPC, AI cluster, and enterprise procurement teams since 2007. Every switch is identified by MPN, system model (SN4600 vs SN4600C), airflow direction, and preloaded NOS before it leaves our bench — so you receive the exact -VS2FC variant ordered, not a relabelled lookalike. Free pre-sale compatibility advice on ConnectX adapter pairing, cable / transceiver selection, and Cumulus-vs-Onyx-vs-SONiC NOS planning. Multi-currency B2B invoicing, EU stock with worldwide express shipping, and direct engineering contact — not a call center. See tes-itsolutions.com.