5N2CC Dell Broadcom 10GB Dual Port PCI-E Ethernet Adapter

Details of Dell 10GB Dual Port Adapter

The Dell 5N2CC Broadcom Dual-Port 10Gb PCI-E Ethernet Adapter is a high-speed networking solution designed for enterprise servers. It delivers reliable wired connectivity, advanced Ethernet support, and efficient data transfer for mission-critical workloads.

General Information

• Manufacturer: Dell
• Part Number: 5N2CC
• Device Type: Network Adapter

Technical Specifications

• Plug-in card design
• Low-profile configuration for space-efficient servers

Interface Type

• PCI Express (PCIe) bus architecture
• Optimized for high-bandwidth enterprise applications

Networking Features

• Dual-Port design
• Supports 10Gb Ethernet per port

Connectivity Technology

• Wired Ethernet connectivity
• 10GBase-T compliant cabling standard

Data Link Protocol

• 10 Gigabit Ethernet protocol support
• Ensures stable and high-speed communication

Data Transfer Rate

• 10 Gbps throughput per port
• Ideal for demanding workloads and enterprise networking

Expansion & Connectivity

• 2 x 10GBase-T ports
• RJ-45 copper connectors for easy integration

Compatibility Information

Dell EMC PowerEdge Supported Models

• C6420
• FC640
• R440
• R540
• R640
• R6415
• R740
• R740xd
• R7415
• R7425

Dell 5N2CC Broadcom 10GB CM57416 PCIE Adapter Overview

The Dell 5N2CC Broadcom 10Gb BCM57416 Dual Port PCI-E Ethernet Adapter represents a high-performance networking solution engineered for modern data-intensive enterprise environments. Built around the Broadcom BCM57416 chipset, this adapter delivers dual-port 10 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity designed to support high-throughput workloads, virtualization platforms, cloud infrastructure, storage networking, and mission-critical enterprise applications. As organizations continue to scale their digital ecosystems, the demand for low-latency, high-bandwidth, and highly reliable network interface cards becomes essential, and this adapter fulfills that requirement with advanced hardware offload capabilities and optimized PCI Express architecture integration.

Designed for Dell server ecosystems, this Ethernet adapter ensures seamless compatibility with enterprise-grade PowerEdge systems, providing stable performance under heavy network traffic conditions. Its dual-port configuration allows for increased redundancy and load balancing, ensuring uninterrupted connectivity in environments where network downtime is not acceptable. With 10GbE speed per port, it significantly enhances data transfer efficiency across distributed systems, storage arrays, and virtual machine clusters.

Core Architecture and Broadcom BCM57416 Chipset Engineering

Advanced ASIC Design for High Throughput

At the heart of the Dell 5N2CC adapter lies the Broadcom BCM57416 network controller, a sophisticated application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designed for high-density networking operations. This chipset is engineered to handle large volumes of packet processing with minimal CPU intervention, thereby reducing host system overhead and increasing overall server efficiency. The architecture supports advanced offload functions that optimize packet segmentation, checksum calculations, and protocol processing directly at the hardware level.

The BCM57416 chipset is particularly optimized for modern data center environments where virtualization and containerized workloads require consistent and predictable network performance. By minimizing software-based network processing, the adapter ensures lower latency and higher throughput consistency, which is essential for enterprise workloads such as database replication, real-time analytics, and high-frequency transaction processing systems.

PCI Express Integration and Bandwidth Optimization

The PCIe interface of the Dell 5N2CC adapter is engineered to provide maximum data flow efficiency between the network controller and the host system. It utilizes a high-speed PCI Express lane configuration that ensures sufficient bandwidth for simultaneous dual-port 10GbE operations. This architecture eliminates bottlenecks that can occur in traditional network adapters and enhances scalability in multi-node server deployments.

With optimized lane utilization, the adapter ensures that network traffic is distributed efficiently across system resources. This is particularly beneficial in environments where multiple virtual machines or container instances are sharing the same physical network interface. The result is consistent throughput performance even under peak load conditions, supporting enterprise-level service reliability and uptime requirements.

Dual-Port 10GbE Performance Capabilities

Simultaneous High-Speed Data Transmission

The dual-port configuration of the Dell 5N2CC Broadcom BCM57416 adapter allows simultaneous transmission and reception of data across two independent 10 Gigabit Ethernet channels. This configuration is ideal for network redundancy, link aggregation, and high-availability system designs. Each port operates independently, enabling administrators to configure active-active or active-passive networking strategies depending on infrastructure requirements.

In high-demand environments such as cloud computing clusters and enterprise storage networks, dual-port functionality significantly improves data distribution efficiency. It allows for parallel data streams that reduce congestion and improve response times for applications that require real-time data access and synchronization across multiple nodes.

Load Balancing and Traffic Distribution Efficiency

The adapter supports advanced traffic distribution mechanisms that ensure optimal utilization of both network ports. This enables intelligent load balancing across network paths, reducing the risk of congestion and improving overall system stability. By distributing workloads evenly, the adapter enhances application performance and ensures consistent service delivery across enterprise environments.

This capability is particularly valuable in environments where high availability is critical, such as financial systems, healthcare databases, and large-scale e-commerce platforms. The ability to distribute traffic effectively ensures that no single network path becomes a performance bottleneck, thereby improving overall infrastructure resilience.

Virtualization and Cloud Infrastructure Optimization

Enhanced Virtual Machine Networking Efficiency

The Dell 5N2CC Broadcom 10Gb Ethernet Adapter is optimized for virtualization platforms that require high-density virtual machine deployments. It supports hardware-assisted virtualization features that reduce CPU overhead and improve network I/O performance for virtual machines. This enables data centers to run more virtual instances per physical host without compromising network performance.

In virtualized environments, network efficiency is critical to maintaining application responsiveness. This adapter ensures that each virtual machine receives dedicated and optimized network bandwidth allocation, reducing latency and improving workload isolation. As a result, organizations can achieve higher consolidation ratios and improved infrastructure utilization.

Support for Modern Cloud Architectures

Cloud computing environments demand scalable and flexible networking solutions that can adapt to dynamic workloads. The BCM57416-based adapter is designed to integrate seamlessly into private cloud, hybrid cloud, and multi-cloud architectures. Its high-speed connectivity and hardware acceleration features make it suitable for distributed computing models where data must be transmitted rapidly between geographically dispersed nodes.

The adapter's efficiency in handling east-west traffic within data centers enhances communication between virtualized services, microservices architectures, and containerized applications. This ensures consistent performance across cloud-native applications and supports the growing demand for scalable infrastructure solutions.

Advanced Offload and Hardware Acceleration Features

TCP/IP Offload Engine Optimization

One of the key strengths of the Dell 5N2CC adapter is its advanced TCP/IP offload engine capabilities. By offloading network protocol processing from the host CPU to the adapter hardware, system resources are freed for application-level processing. This results in improved overall server efficiency and reduced latency in data transmission operations.

The offload engine is designed to handle complex networking tasks such as segmentation, reassembly, and checksum validation directly at the hardware level. This reduces processing delays and enhances throughput consistency, particularly in environments with heavy network traffic.

Checksum and Segmentation Offloading Efficiency

The adapter incorporates hardware-based checksum offloading that ensures data integrity while minimizing CPU workload. This feature is essential in high-throughput environments where large volumes of data packets are transmitted continuously. Segmentation offloading further enhances performance by breaking down large data packets into optimized segments for transmission without requiring software intervention.

These hardware acceleration features collectively improve network efficiency and reduce system overhead, allowing enterprise servers to allocate more resources to critical application processing tasks.

Enterprise Data Center Deployment Scenarios

High-Performance Storage Networking Integration

The Dell 5N2CC Broadcom 10Gb Ethernet Adapter is widely utilized in storage networking environments where fast and reliable data access is essential. It supports high-speed communication between storage arrays, backup systems, and server nodes, ensuring minimal latency during data retrieval and storage operations.

In storage-intensive applications such as database clusters and virtualization storage backends, the adapter enhances input/output operations per second (IOPS) by enabling faster communication between storage and compute layers. This results in improved application performance and reduced data access delays.

Scalable Data Center Networking Architecture

Modern data centers require scalable networking solutions that can grow alongside increasing computational demands. The dual-port 10GbE architecture of this adapter provides a flexible foundation for scalable network design. It supports integration into spine-leaf architectures commonly used in large-scale enterprise environments.

By enabling high-speed interconnectivity between server racks and network switches, the adapter ensures consistent performance across distributed infrastructure. This scalability is essential for enterprises that anticipate rapid data growth and increased network traffic over time.

Reliability, Redundancy, and Fault Tolerance

Network Failover Capabilities

Reliability is a core requirement in enterprise networking environments, and the Dell 5N2CC adapter is designed with redundancy features that ensure continuous network availability. In the event of a port failure, traffic can be automatically rerouted through the secondary port, minimizing downtime and maintaining operational continuity.

This failover capability is critical for mission-critical applications where even brief interruptions can result in significant operational impact. The adapter ensures that network services remain stable and accessible under varying hardware conditions.

High Availability Network Design Support

The adapter supports high availability configurations that enhance system resilience. By enabling redundant network paths and dynamic traffic rerouting, it ensures that enterprise systems can maintain uninterrupted communication even during maintenance or unexpected hardware issues.

This level of resilience is essential for industries that require 24/7 uptime, including financial services, telecommunications, and healthcare systems.

Power Efficiency and Thermal Optimization

Energy-Efficient Network Processing

The BCM57416 chipset is designed with power efficiency in mind, enabling reduced energy consumption while maintaining high performance levels. This is particularly important in large-scale data centers where power usage directly impacts operational costs. The adapter dynamically manages power states based on network load, ensuring efficient energy utilization.

By reducing unnecessary power consumption during low-traffic periods, the adapter contributes to overall energy efficiency in enterprise environments. This makes it a suitable choice for organizations focused on sustainable IT infrastructure development.

Thermal Management and Operational Stability

Effective thermal management is essential for maintaining consistent network performance. The Dell 5N2CC adapter is engineered to operate efficiently under varying temperature conditions, ensuring stable performance even in high-density server environments. Its design minimizes heat generation while maintaining optimal processing capabilities.

This ensures long-term operational reliability and reduces the risk of thermal-induced performance degradation in mission-critical systems.

Enterprise Compatibility and System Integration

Dell PowerEdge Server Ecosystem Integration

The Dell 5N2CC Broadcom 10Gb Ethernet Adapter is specifically optimized for integration with Dell PowerEdge server platforms. This ensures seamless compatibility, simplified deployment, and optimized driver support within enterprise IT environments. Its firmware and driver architecture are aligned with Dell server management tools for efficient configuration and monitoring.

This tight integration enables IT administrators to deploy the adapter quickly across multiple systems without complex configuration overhead, improving operational efficiency in large-scale deployments.

Operating System and Virtualization Platform Support

The adapter is compatible with a wide range of enterprise operating systems and virtualization platforms, ensuring flexibility in heterogeneous IT environments. It supports major virtualization technologies, enabling seamless integration into existing infrastructure without requiring extensive modifications.

This compatibility ensures that enterprises can deploy the adapter across diverse system architectures while maintaining consistent performance and reliability standards.