NVIDIA Mellanox® MSX1016X-2BRS — SwitchX-2 64-Port 10GbE SFP+ Managed Switch (1U, C2P Airflow)

Technical Identity
The NVIDIA Mellanox® MSX1016X-2BRS is a 1U managed Ethernet switch built on the SwitchX-2 ASIC, delivering 64 line-rate SFP+ ports at 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) in a compact half-width-port layout. The "-2BRS" suffix indicates dual hot-swap AC power supplies, rail kit included, and C2P (Connector-to-Power) airflow — air enters from the port side and exhausts through the PSU side, matching standard hot-aisle / cold-aisle data-center deployments. With 1.28 Tb/s of non-blocking switching capacity and full Layer 2 / Layer 3 forwarding, this switch is purpose-built for high-density 10GbE leaf/ToR aggregation in HPC, storage, and enterprise data-center fabrics. Condition: New, factory-sealed.

Specifications

Brand: NVIDIA Mellanox
Model / MPN: MSX1016X-2BRS
Product type: Managed Ethernet Switch (1U rack-mount)
ASIC / Family: SwitchX-2 (SX1016)
Protocol: Ethernet only
Ports: 64 × SFP+ (10GbE)
Speed: 10 Gigabit Ethernet per port
Switching capacity: 1.28 Tb/s non-blocking, cut-through forwarding
Latency: ~250 ns port-to-port (cut-through)
Layer: L2 / L3 managed
OS: MLNX-OS / NVIDIA Onyx
Power supplies: Dual hot-swap AC (1+1 redundant)
Airflow: C2P (Connector-to-Power, front-to-back)
Rail kit: Included
Form factor: 1U, 19" rack-mount
Management: Console (RJ45), out-of-band Ethernet (RJ45), USB
Condition: New, factory-sealed


What This Is NOT

NOT an InfiniBand switch. The SX1016 SwitchX-2 variant is Ethernet only — it does not run IB SDR/QDR/FDR/EDR/HDR fabrics or carry an embedded Subnet Manager.
NOT a Spectrum-family switch. SwitchX-2 predates the Spectrum ASIC line (SN2000/SN3000/SN4000/SN5000). Feature parity with Spectrum-2/3/4 (RoCEv2 deep buffers, What Just Happened telemetry, Cumulus Linux) is NOT applicable.
NOT a NIC, adapter, or BlueField DPU. Rack-mount switch — requires 1U of rack space, AC power feeds, and structured cabling.
NOT bundled with SFP+ optical transceivers, DAC/AOC cables, or patch cords unless explicitly listed in the order.
NOT 25GbE / 40GbE / 100GbE capable. Each port is fixed 10GbE SFP+ — the cage does not accept SFP28, QSFP+, or QSFP28 modules.


Compatibility & Constraints

Cabling: SFP+ 10GbE DAC (passive/active copper), SFP+ AOC, or SFP+ optical transceivers (10GBASE-SR / LR / ER). Standard SFP+ MSA — interoperable with Cisco, Arista, Juniper, Dell, HPE host ports when speed is matched.
Compatible host adapters: ConnectX-3 / ConnectX-3 Pro, ConnectX-4 Lx, ConnectX-5 EN, ConnectX-6 Dx — any NVIDIA Mellanox card with an SFP+ 10GbE port. Third-party 10GbE NICs (Intel X520/X710, Broadcom 57xx, etc.) are also fully supported.
Airflow planning: C2P (port-side intake → PSU-side exhaust). Ensure both PSUs share the same airflow direction as adjacent equipment in the rack — mixing C2P and P2C in the same hot aisle creates thermal recirculation.
Power: Dual AC inputs (100–240 V). For full redundancy, feed each PSU from a separate PDU / circuit.
Management: Initial config via RJ45 console (115200 8N1). Day-2 operations via SSH/CLI, SNMP v2c/v3, REST API, and the MLNX-OS Web UI.
Firmware: Verify MLNX-OS image compatibility with your installed feature set (LAG, MLAG, MSTP, OSPF, BGP) before production cut-over.


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q. What is the NVIDIA Mellanox MSX1016X-2BRS?
The MSX1016X-2BRS is a 1U managed Ethernet switch based on the SwitchX-2 ASIC, providing 64 line-rate 10GbE SFP+ ports, dual hot-swap AC power supplies, an included rail kit, and C2P (front-to-back) airflow. It targets high-density 10GbE leaf/ToR aggregation in HPC, storage, and enterprise data centers.
Q. Does the MSX1016X-2BRS support InfiniBand?
No. The SX1016 SwitchX-2 variant is Ethernet only. It does not run InfiniBand SDR/QDR/FDR/EDR/HDR fabrics and does not include an embedded Subnet Manager. For InfiniBand use Mellanox/NVIDIA SX6000-series, Switch-IB, Quantum, or Quantum-2 platforms.
Q. What airflow direction is "C2P" and why does it matter?
C2P = Connector-to-Power: cool air is drawn in through the SFP+ port side and exhausted through the PSU side. This matches standard cold-aisle-front / hot-aisle-back rack layouts. Mixing C2P and P2C (reverse airflow) units in the same hot aisle causes thermal recirculation and triggers PSU/fan alarms.
Q. Which transceivers and cables work in the SFP+ ports?
Any standard SFP+ MSA-compliant module: 10GBASE-SR / LR / ER optics, SFP+ DAC (passive or active twinax) up to ~7 m, and SFP+ AOC. The cage is fixed 10GbE — SFP28 25GbE modules are not supported.
Q. Is the switch managed, and what operating system does it run?
Yes — fully managed L2/L3. It runs MLNX-OS (also branded as NVIDIA Onyx on newer revisions) with CLI, SSH, SNMP v2c/v3, REST API, and Web UI. Standard features include LAG, MLAG, STP/RSTP/MSTP, VLAN/QinQ, OSPF, BGP, sFlow, and per-port hardware counters.
Q. Is the MSX1016X-2BRS compatible with non-NVIDIA equipment?
Yes. As a standards-compliant Ethernet switch with SFP+ MSA cages, it interoperates with Cisco, Arista, Juniper, Dell, HPE, and other vendors' 10GbE end-stations and uplinks. No vendor lock-in on the data plane.
Q. What condition is supplied by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS?
New, factory-sealed in original NVIDIA Mellanox packaging. Every unit is verified for cosmetic condition and seal integrity before shipping from EU stock. Anti-static, foam-cushioned packaging; worldwide B2B express shipping; free pre-sale fabric-design consultation for HPC, storage, and AI deployments.

Why buy from 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 focus on a single brand so every unit is identified by MPN, NVIDIA P/N, and ASIC generation before it ships, and every customer gets free pre-sale compatibility advice for switch, adapter, and cable pairing. Multi-currency B2B invoicing, EU stock with worldwide express options, and direct technical contact with our engineering team — not a call-center.