406-BBTD Dell Emulex Lpe35000 Single Port 32GB Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter.

Main Details of Dell 406-BBTD Emulex Lpe35000

The Dell 406-BBTD Emulex Lpe35000 Single Port PCI-E 4.0 X8 32GB Fibre Channel Sfp28+ Host Bus Adapter is engineered to deliver high-speed connectivity, efficient throughput, and consistent performance. Designed for enterprise-grade storage and server infrastructures, this host bus adapter enhances data transfer speeds and optimizes system reliability.

Manufacturer and Part Identification

• Brand: Dell
• Part Number: 406-BBTD
• Category: Fibre Channel Adapter
• Sub-Type: Host Bus Adapter

Technical Specifications

Device and Form Factor

• Hardware Type: Host Bus Adapter
• Design: Plug-in Card
• Expansion Slot: PCI Express 4.0 x8

Performance and Connectivity

• Port Speed: 32Gb Fibre Channel
• Transmission: Wired Communication
• Supported Protocol: 32Gb Fibre Channel Data Link
• Available Interface: 1 x 32Gb Fibre Channel Port

System Compatibility

This advanced host bus adapter ensures smooth integration with several Dell PowerEdge servers, enabling enterprises to achieve faster storage networking.

Supported Models

• Dell PowerEdge R650
• Dell PowerEdge R740
• Dell PowerEdge R750
• Dell PowerEdge R750xa

Dell 406-BBTD LPe35000 Single Port PCIe 4.0 x8 32Gb Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter

The Dell 406-BBTD Emulex LPe35000 Single Port PCIe 4.0 x8 32Gb Fibre Channel SFP28+ Host Bus Adapter sits within a high-performance family of enterprise storage connectivity solutions designed for data centers, virtualization platforms, and storage area networks (SANs). This category comprises single- and multi-port Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) that prioritize low latency, high throughput, proven reliability, and broad operating system and storage vendor compatibility. Products in this class are engineered to provide the predictable I/O performance demanded by databases, virtual machine clusters, backup and recovery systems, and high-availability storage arrays. The emphasis is on robust hardware offload capabilities, driver maturity, and compatibility with modern server platforms and PCIe 4.0 host buses.

Key technical identity and position in the market

As a single-port 32Gb adapter leveraging the Emulex LPe35000 chipset and SFP28+ optics interface, the Dell 406-BBTD targets IT teams that need a compact, efficient HBA with enterprise-grade features. Within its category, the adapter focuses on delivering high fabric throughput for bandwidth-intensive workloads while minimizing CPU cycles consumed by I/O processing. Compared to older 8Gb or 16Gb Fibre Channel adapters, the 32Gb class raises the ceiling for sequential and concurrent transfers, which benefits replication, large file movement, and heavy multi-VM traffic patterns. When evaluating this category, buyers typically weigh port count, lane width (PCIe 4.0 x8 here), driver support, and whether the adapter supports the SAN features required by their storage arrays.

Product Features and What They Mean for Real-World Use

High bandwidth and low latency connectivity

Adapters in this category, including the Dell 406-BBTD Emulex LPe35000, provide 32 Gigabit Fibre Channel connectivity via SFP28+ optics. This bandwidth increase enables faster backups, quicker VM migrations, and improved performance for data-intensive workloads such as analytics, large relational databases, and high-performance file systems. Low latency is vital for transactional workloads where round-trip times directly impact application responsiveness. The LPe35000 architecture focuses on hardware offload and optimized firmware paths to reduce latency and jitter on busy fabrics.

PCIe 4.0 x8 host interface

The PCIe 4.0 x8 interface ensures the adapter can communicate with modern server platforms without becoming the bottleneck. For systems with PCIe 4.0 capability, this means the host bus can match or exceed the adapter’s internal throughput, allowing sustained high-speed transfers. When deployed in mixed environments that include older PCIe generations, the adapter will operate at the highest mutually supported rate; however, to realize full 32Gb performance, pairing with PCIe 4.0-capable servers is recommended.

SFP28+ optics and cabling considerations

SFP28+ modules support the 32Gb Fibre Channel physical layer and are the expected transceiver form factor for dense, modern fabrics. Choosing the right SFP28+ module and compatible multimode or single-mode fiber is essential for achieving the advertised link speed and error-free operation. In practical terms, selecting optics from trusted vendors, ensuring clean fiber runs, and verifying end-to-end compatibility with SAN switches are standard operational tasks when installing adapters from this category.

Compatibility, Interoperability, and Supported Ecosystems

Operating systems and hypervisors

A core strength for enterprise HBAs is broad driver support across server operating systems and hypervisors. The Emulex LPe35000-based adapters commonly offer certified drivers for multiple Linux distributions, Windows Server releases, VMware ESXi, and other commercial OS platforms. This category is chosen by administrators who require predictable behavior in heterogeneous OS estates, because mature drivers reduce the risk of performance anomalies and simplify firmware and driver lifecycle management.

Storage arrays and SAN interoperability

Fibre Channel remains the backbone for many SAN deployments, and adapters such as the Dell 406-BBTD emphasize interoperability with mainstream SAN vendors. Interoperability testing typically covers zoning, fabric login (FLOGI), registered state change notifications (RSCN), and advanced SAN features like NPIV (N_Port ID Virtualization) for virtualized server environments. Because enterprise storage arrays often implement vendor-specific features or performance optimizations, compatibility matrices and interoperability guides are a key source of truth during procurement and deployment.

Firmware and management utilities

Enterprise HBAs include firmware and management utilities that allow administrators to monitor link status, update firmware, configure advanced features, and troubleshoot issues. For the category represented by the Dell 406-BBTD, management tools from the adapter vendor or from Dell provide a centralized way to handle firmware rollouts, performance tuning, and event logging—important for maintaining uptime and simplifying support interactions with both server and storage vendors.

Performance Characteristics and Benchmark Considerations

Throughput, IOPS, and latency trade-offs

Performance evaluations for this adapter class focus on sustained throughput for large sequential I/O, IOPS for small random operations, and latency under mixed loads. In benchmarks, the adapter should deliver close-to-line-rate throughput for sequential transfers while maintaining low latency for small-block random workloads. Because performance in SAN environments depends on whole-system factors—storage array headroom, switch fabric congestion, host CPU and memory, and driver efficiency—benchmarks should be designed to reflect real workload patterns rather than synthetic maximums alone.

Realistic testing methodology

When validating an adapter for production, architects should run workload-specific tests: database-style random reads/writes with representative queue depths, VM boot storms for virtualization density planning, and replication or backup streams to measure throughput over sustained periods. These tests help determine whether the adapter, in combination with the server and SAN configuration, achieves the desired service levels. The presence of offload features in the Emulex architecture can reduce host CPU utilization during heavy I/O, which should be captured in performance reports.

Deployment Scenarios and Use Cases

Virtualized datacenters and high-density VM hosts

In virtualized infrastructures, a single Host Bus Adapter often needs to service dozens or hundreds of virtual machines. The Dell 406-BBTD and its category deliver the bandwidth and feature set to support VM mobility, storage multipathing, and virtualized SAN features like NPIV. Properly configured, the adapter acts as a reliable conduit between dense compute nodes and shared storage, ensuring that VM performance is consistent during migrations, backups, and heavy multi-VM activity.

Database servers and latency-sensitive applications

Databases and transaction-processing systems are particularly sensitive to storage latency. The 32Gb Fibre Channel speed class reduces queuing and transport delays for database replication, checkpoints, and large I/O operations. For transactional systems, administrators often prioritize low-latency paths and robust multipathing to prevent single points of failure. This adapter category supports the network-level consistency and performance required by enterprise database workloads.

Backup, replication, and disaster recovery

Enterprises often use Fibre Channel links for high-throughput backups and synchronous or asynchronous replication between arrays. A 32Gb HBA reduces the backup window and accelerates replication timelines, allowing organizations to meet tighter recovery point objectives (RPOs) and faster recovery time objectives (RTOs). When planning for disaster recovery, consistent firmware and driver versions across sites simplify failover testing and production readiness.