MCX555A-ECAT Mellanox ConnectX-5 VPI Adapter Card EDR IB & 100GBe 1-Port QSFP28

Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT ConnectX-5 VPI Adapter Card Overview

The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT ConnectX-5 VPI Adapter Card is a high-performance networking solution engineered for modern enterprise data centers, cloud infrastructure, virtualization platforms, and high-performance computing (HPC) environments. Featuring a single QSFP28 port, this advanced network adapter delivers support for both 100Gb Ethernet and 100Gb EDR InfiniBand, providing exceptional flexibility for organizations that require ultra-fast data transfer, low latency, and maximum bandwidth efficiency.

Designed with a PCI Express 3.0 x16 interface, the MCX555A-ECAT maximizes throughput while ensuring compatibility with PCIe 1.1, PCIe 2.0, and PCIe 3.0 systems. Its VPI (Virtual Protocol Interconnect) architecture allows businesses to seamlessly deploy Ethernet or InfiniBand networking from a single adapter, reducing infrastructure complexity while improving scalability and operational efficiency.

General Product Information

• Manufacturer: Mellanox
• Part Number: MCX555A-ECAT
• Product Type: Network Adapter Card
• Series: ConnectX-5 VPI

Technical Specifications

• Product Family: ConnectX-5 VPI
• Product Type: Network Adapter Card
• Form Factor: Plug-in Card
• Bus Interface: PCI Express 3.0 x16
• PCIe Support: PCIe 1.1, PCIe 2.0, PCIe 3.0
• Network Port: 1 × QSFP28
• Supported Interfaces: 100Gb Ethernet and 100Gb EDR InfiniBand
• Maximum Data Rate: 100 Gbps
• Transport Protocols: TCP/IP, UDP/IP, iSCSI

High-Speed PCI Express Architecture

• PCI Express 1.1
• PCI Express 2.0
• PCI Express 3.0

Benefits of 100Gb Connectivity

• Accelerated application performance
• Reduced network congestion
• Lower latency communication
• Faster backup and disaster recovery
• Efficient storage networking
• Improved virtualization performance
• Enhanced cloud computing capabilities

QSFP28 Advantages

• Compact high-density design
• Supports 100Gb Ethernet connectivity
• Supports 100Gb EDR InfiniBand
• Excellent signal integrity
• Ideal for modern enterprise switches
• Supports high-performance optical and direct-attach cables

Supported Networking Protocols

Wide Range of Ethernet Speeds

• Gigabit Ethernet (GigE)
• 10 Gigabit Ethernet
• 25 Gigabit Ethernet
• 40 Gigabit Ethernet
• 50 Gigabit Ethernet
• 100 Gigabit Ethernet
• 100 Gigabit InfiniBand (EDR)

Transport Protocol Compatibility

• TCP/IP
• UDP/IP
• iSCSI

Virtual Protocol Interconnect (VPI) Technology

• Reduced infrastructure costs
• Simplified deployment
• Greater network flexibility
• Easy migration between networking technologies
• Future-ready enterprise networking

Advanced IEEE Compliance

• IEEE 802.1Q VLAN
• IEEE 802.1P Priority Tagging
• IEEE 802.3ad Link Aggregation (LACP)
• IEEE 802.3AE 10 Gigabit Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3AP Backplane Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3AZ Energy Efficient Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3BA 40Gb/100Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.1AX Link Aggregation
• IEEE 802.1QBB Priority Flow Control
• IEEE 802.1QAZ Enhanced Transmission Selection
• IEEE 802.1QAU Congestion Notification
• IBTA 1.3 InfiniBand Architecture
• IEEE 802.1QBG Edge Virtual Bridging
• IEEE 1588v2 Precision Time Protocol
• IEEE 802.3BJ 100Gb Backplane Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3BM Optical Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3BY 25Gb Ethernet

Benefits for Modern IT Environments

Designed for Performance and Scalability

• High-speed server connectivity
• Reduced network latency
• Efficient bandwidth utilization
• Flexible Ethernet and InfiniBand deployment
• Enterprise-grade reliability
• Optimized for virtualization
• Supports next-generation data center architectures
• Ideal for AI and machine learning workloads
• Excellent compatibility with storage networking
• Long-term infrastructure investment protection

Key Features of Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT

• Single-port QSFP28 connectivity
• Supports both 100Gb Ethernet and 100Gb EDR InfiniBand
• High-speed PCI Express 3.0 x16 interface
• Backward compatible with PCIe 1.1 and PCIe 2.0
• Maximum data transfer speed of 100 Gbps
• Virtual Protocol Interconnect (VPI) technology
• Low-latency networking for mission-critical workloads
• Optimized for cloud, enterprise, AI, and HPC environments
• Supports advanced Ethernet and InfiniBand standards
• Excellent compatibility with virtualization technologies

Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT ConnectX-5 VPI Adapter Card

The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT ConnectX-5 VPI Adapter Card is a powerful enterprise-class networking solution engineered to support modern data center infrastructures, cloud computing environments, high-performance computing clusters, enterprise virtualization, artificial intelligence platforms, and large-scale storage networks. Featuring a single QSFP28 interface with support for both EDR InfiniBand at 100Gb/s and 100 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity, this advanced PCI Express adapter delivers exceptional bandwidth, ultra-low latency, and industry-leading efficiency for demanding workloads.

Organizations requiring scalable networking infrastructure often rely on the Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT because it combines high throughput with intelligent hardware acceleration. As enterprise applications continue to generate enormous volumes of data, businesses require network adapters capable of reducing CPU overhead while maximizing application performance. This ConnectX-5 VPI adapter provides a reliable platform for mission-critical networking where speed, reliability, and scalability are essential.

The adapter is designed around the advanced ConnectX-5 architecture, enabling organizations to deploy either InfiniBand or Ethernet networks using the same hardware platform. This versatility simplifies infrastructure planning while allowing businesses to migrate between networking technologies without replacing server hardware.

ConnectX-5 Architecture Designed for Enterprise Data Centers

Modern enterprise data centers require network adapters capable of handling increasingly complex workloads without compromising application responsiveness. The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT leverages the fifth-generation ConnectX architecture to deliver superior packet processing, intelligent offloading technologies, and optimized data movement between servers and storage systems.

The PCI Express interface provides high-speed communication between the server motherboard and the network controller, ensuring that bandwidth-intensive applications receive sufficient throughput. By minimizing communication bottlenecks, organizations can maximize CPU utilization while reducing latency across distributed computing environments.

The hardware incorporates sophisticated traffic management capabilities that improve communication between compute nodes while maintaining predictable network performance under heavy workloads. These features are particularly valuable for cloud service providers, financial institutions, research organizations, and enterprise IT departments operating large server farms.

Optimized Hardware Design

The engineering behind the MCX555A-ECAT focuses on balancing raw network performance with power efficiency. The adapter integrates advanced networking technologies into a compact PCIe card suitable for standard enterprise servers. Its efficient thermal design allows deployment within dense rack-mounted systems while maintaining reliable long-term operation.

The single-port QSFP28 interface supports high-bandwidth connectivity using industry-standard cabling, allowing seamless integration into modern switching environments. Organizations can simplify network infrastructure while maintaining outstanding communication speeds between servers, storage devices, and networking equipment.

Support for Both EDR InfiniBand and 100 Gigabit Ethernet

One of the defining advantages of the Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT is its Virtual Protocol Interconnect technology. VPI enables a single adapter to operate as either an InfiniBand interface or a high-speed Ethernet adapter depending on deployment requirements.

This flexibility allows IT administrators to standardize hardware procurement while supporting different networking architectures across departments or data centers. Instead of maintaining separate inventories for InfiniBand and Ethernet adapters, organizations can deploy a unified networking solution that adapts to changing infrastructure requirements.

EDR InfiniBand Performance

EDR InfiniBand provides outstanding communication efficiency for latency-sensitive applications such as scientific computing, engineering simulations, machine learning training, financial modeling, and research computing. The high bandwidth enables rapid data exchange among cluster nodes while maintaining extremely low latency.

InfiniBand environments benefit from advanced transport mechanisms that reduce communication delays, improve message delivery efficiency, and accelerate distributed computing applications operating across thousands of processing cores.

100 Gigabit Ethernet Connectivity

When configured for Ethernet operation, the adapter delivers full 100 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity suitable for enterprise networks, cloud infrastructure, virtualization platforms, storage networking, and large-scale web applications.

The Ethernet capabilities support modern networking standards while enabling organizations to upgrade existing infrastructure without redesigning server architectures. The adapter integrates efficiently with enterprise switches, routers, and storage platforms supporting QSFP28 connectivity.

PCI Express Interface for Maximum Throughput

The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT utilizes a high-speed PCI Express interface that provides sufficient bandwidth to support full-rate network communication. PCIe technology minimizes communication delays between the processor, system memory, and network adapter, ensuring applications receive consistent performance during intensive workloads.

Large-scale virtualization hosts, database servers, AI platforms, and storage appliances benefit from the efficient PCI Express communication path because it eliminates many traditional bottlenecks found in legacy networking solutions.

Efficient Data Transfers

Advanced PCIe integration allows high-speed packet movement while minimizing processor intervention. Hardware acceleration techniques enable the adapter to process network traffic independently, freeing valuable CPU resources for application workloads.

Low Latency Networking for Mission-Critical Applications

Latency is often more important than raw bandwidth for enterprise applications. Financial transactions, distributed databases, virtualization clusters, artificial intelligence workloads, and scientific simulations all require extremely fast communication between computing nodes.

The ConnectX-5 architecture minimizes packet processing delays while implementing intelligent hardware features that reduce communication overhead throughout the networking stack. Applications experience faster response times, improved synchronization, and greater operational efficiency.

Predictable Network Response

Consistent latency allows enterprise software to perform reliably during peak operational periods. Instead of experiencing unpredictable communication delays, applications receive deterministic network performance that supports business continuity and operational stability.

Advanced Hardware Offloading Technologies

The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT incorporates numerous hardware acceleration technologies that reduce CPU utilization while increasing networking efficiency. Instead of forcing the operating system to process every networking task, many operations are executed directly within the adapter hardware.

This approach significantly improves server efficiency because processors remain focused on executing business applications rather than network management operations. Hardware acceleration becomes especially valuable in virtualization environments where dozens or hundreds of virtual machines share common physical resources.

Reduced Processor Utilization

By transferring networking functions to dedicated hardware, the adapter lowers processor overhead during high-volume data transfers. Servers can therefore accommodate more workloads while maintaining consistent response times.

Improved Application Performance

Applications handling storage traffic, virtualization, cloud services, artificial intelligence, and analytics benefit from the reduction in CPU interruptions. Overall system efficiency improves because networking activities occur with minimal software intervention.

Virtualization Performance Enhancement

Virtualized data centers demand networking hardware capable of efficiently supporting numerous virtual machines operating simultaneously. The ConnectX-5 architecture includes virtualization optimizations that improve communication between guest operating systems and external networks.

Hypervisors can allocate networking resources more effectively while maintaining isolation between virtual machines. This results in improved scalability for enterprise cloud deployments and private virtualization infrastructures.

Efficient Resource Sharing

Virtual networking capabilities enable multiple workloads to share a single high-performance network adapter without sacrificing throughput or responsiveness. This improves hardware utilization while reducing infrastructure costs.

Cloud Computing Infrastructure

Cloud environments require adapters capable of scaling alongside expanding workloads. The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT supports cloud service providers through its combination of high bandwidth, low latency, intelligent traffic management, and flexible protocol support.

Private clouds, hybrid clouds, and public cloud infrastructures all benefit from the adapter's ability to maintain predictable network performance under continuously changing workload conditions. Large numbers of simultaneous users can access cloud services without creating communication bottlenecks.

Storage Networking Applications

Storage performance depends heavily upon reliable, high-speed networking between servers and storage arrays. The ConnectX-5 VPI adapter enables efficient movement of large files, database transactions, virtual machine images, backup operations, and storage replication traffic.

Organizations deploying software-defined storage, distributed storage clusters, or enterprise SAN environments can leverage the adapter to maximize storage throughput while minimizing transfer latency.

Reliable Data Movement

Large storage environments require adapters capable of sustaining continuous data transfers over extended operational periods. The MCX555A-ECAT provides dependable communication suitable for enterprise backup systems, disaster recovery infrastructure, and business continuity planning.

High-Performance Computing Environments

Research institutions, engineering organizations, universities, and government laboratories rely on high-performance computing systems for complex simulations and scientific analysis. The ConnectX-5 VPI adapter provides networking infrastructure suitable for demanding HPC applications requiring low communication latency and exceptional throughput.

Applications involving computational chemistry, weather forecasting, molecular dynamics, seismic analysis, fluid dynamics, and engineering simulations benefit from rapid node-to-node communication enabled by EDR InfiniBand networking.

Enterprise Reliability and Scalability

Enterprise networking hardware must deliver consistent operation throughout continuous production workloads. The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT is engineered for long-term deployment within mission-critical environments where network interruptions can significantly impact business operations.

Its robust hardware architecture supports continuous data transmission while maintaining stable operation across demanding enterprise workloads. As organizations expand computing capacity, additional adapters can be integrated seamlessly into existing infrastructure.

Long-Term Infrastructure Investment

The combination of high-speed networking, protocol flexibility, hardware acceleration, and enterprise-class engineering makes the MCX555A-ECAT an attractive long-term investment for organizations planning future infrastructure growth. Rather than requiring frequent hardware replacement, businesses can continue leveraging the adapter as networking demands increase.

Compatibility with Modern Enterprise Platforms

The Mellanox MCX555A-ECAT integrates with a broad range of enterprise servers supporting PCI Express expansion slots. It is compatible with many operating systems, virtualization platforms, cloud frameworks, storage environments, and networking architectures commonly deployed within enterprise IT infrastructure.

System administrators appreciate the straightforward deployment process and extensive ecosystem support, allowing organizations to incorporate the adapter into existing environments with minimal disruption. Its compatibility with industry-standard QSFP28 networking equipment further simplifies infrastructure planning while protecting existing investments.