NVIDIA Mellanox MQM8790-HS2F Quantum HDR InfiniBand Switch (Unmanaged): This is a 40-port HDR InfiniBand switch built on the NVIDIA Quantum ASIC, delivering 200Gb/s per port over QSFP56 connectors. The HS2F suffix denotes the unmanaged variant (no on-board x86 management CPU) with P2C (Power-to-Connector) airflow. This is a high-speed forwarding-plane switch — not a managed switch and not an Ethernet switch. It requires an external Subnet Manager such as OpenSM or UFM running on a managed switch or host. This is a refurbished unit tested by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS.
Engineering Context
The MQM8790-HS2F is engineered as a cost-optimized leaf or spine in scale-out HDR InfiniBand fabrics. The Quantum ASIC delivers 16 Tb/s aggregate non-blocking switching at 200Gb/s per port with sub-130ns port-to-port latency. By omitting the management CPU, the unmanaged variant reduces idle power draw and acquisition cost. The OEM system P/N is 920-9B110-00FH-0D0. P2C airflow draws cool air from the rear (PSU side) and exhausts at the port (front) side — designed for rear-cooled rack layouts and hot-aisle containment used in dense GPU clusters.
Deployment & Use Cases
Leaf switch in fat-tree HDR InfiniBand topologies where Subnet Manager runs on a managed spine or host. Expansion of existing HDR clusters managed by a central UFM appliance. AI/ML training fabrics for distributed PyTorch/Megatron jobs over RDMA. NVMe-oF over InfiniBand storage tiers requiring 200Gb/s per host. HPC clusters running MPI workloads where per-port latency is critical.
Technical Specifications
OEM: NVIDIA Mellanox
Part Number: MQM8790-HS2F (System P/N: 920-9B110-00FH-0D0)
ASIC: NVIDIA Quantum (HDR generation)
Ports: 40x QSFP56 (200Gb/s HDR per port)
Aggregate Throughput: 16 Tb/s
Form Factor: 1U
Airflow: P2C (Power-to-Connector / blue latch)
Management: Unmanaged (no on-board x86 CPU)
Subnet Manager: Required externally (OpenSM, UFM, or host-based)
Power Supplies: Dual redundant hot-swap AC
Condition: Refurbished — Tested by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
Compatibility & Hard Constraints
Compatible with NVIDIA ConnectX-6 and ConnectX-7 HDR/HDR100 adapters. Works with HDR DACs, HDR AOCs, and HDR transceivers in QSFP56 form factor. Also supports HDR100 split mode for 80x 100Gb/s connections via splitter cables. Requires an active Subnet Manager elsewhere in the fabric — without one, the switch will not forward traffic. This is an InfiniBand-only switch; it does not operate as an Ethernet switch and is not VPI-capable. P2C airflow requires the rack hot-aisle to be at the port (front) side; mismatched airflow direction can cause thermal shutdown.
Why Choose T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS lab-validates every Quantum switch for ASIC health, all 40-port HDR throughput, and PSU integrity. We provide expert consultation on Subnet Manager setup and fat-tree topology design, fast 1-3 day handling, global shipping, and a comprehensive warranty. Visit tes-itsolutions.com for the full enterprise networking catalog.