MHQH29-XTC Mellanox ConnectX InfiniBand Host Channel Dual 4XQSFP 40Gb/s Network Adapters

The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC ConnectX InfiniBand Host Channel Dual 4X QSFP 40Gb/s Network Adapter is designed to deliver high-performance networking for enterprise servers, data centers, scientific computing environments, and high-throughput storage infrastructures. 

General Information

• Manufacturer: Mellanox
• Part Number: MHQH29-XTC
• Product Type: Dual-Port Network Adapter

Technical Highlights

• Bus Type: PCI Express 2.0 x8
• Host Interface: PCIe 2.0 x8
• Expansion Slot Type: QSFP
• InfiniBand Ports: 2 dedicated connections
• Data Transfer Speed: 40 Gbit/s throughput
• Total Expansion Slots: 2

Physical Characteristics

• Form Factor: Plug-in Card
• Height: Low-profile design for space efficiency

Key Advantages

• Reliable dual-port InfiniBand connectivity
• High-speed 40Gbps data transmission
• Compact low-profile card suitable for dense server environments
• Flexible QSFP expansion slots for future upgrades

Mellanox MHQH29-XTC InfiniBand Network Adapter

The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC InfiniBand Host Channel is equipped with a powerful and efficient interface known as Dual 4XQSFP. This feature sets it apart from other products in the market and offers numerous benefits to users. Built around the proven ConnectX architecture, this host channel adapter provides exceptional bandwidth, low latency communication, and reliable connectivity for demanding workloads that require rapid data movement across clustered computing resources.

Featuring dual 4X QSFP interfaces, the adapter enables high-speed InfiniBand connectivity with aggregate throughput capabilities that support large-scale computing operations. The design emphasizes efficient packet processing, reduced CPU overhead, and advanced transport acceleration technologies that help optimize application performance in bandwidth-intensive environments.

The adapter serves as a critical component in high-performance computing clusters where communication efficiency directly impacts overall system productivity. By providing dedicated hardware acceleration for networking operations, the MHQH29-XTC minimizes software processing requirements while maximizing available computing resources for application execution.

ConnectX Technology Foundation

The ConnectX platform integrates advanced networking intelligence directly into the adapter hardware. This architecture enables efficient processing of network traffic while maintaining consistent performance under heavy workloads. The hardware design incorporates specialized processing engines that handle communication protocols, transport services, and data movement operations independently from the host processor.

By offloading networking functions from the server CPU, the adapter allows applications to utilize more processing resources for computational tasks. This design approach is particularly beneficial in environments where low-latency communication and high message rates are essential for achieving optimal application scalability.

InfiniBand Host Channel Adapter

As a dedicated InfiniBand Host Channel Adapter, the Mellanox MHQH29-XTC provides direct connectivity between server systems and InfiniBand fabric infrastructure. The adapter supports advanced communication mechanisms that enable efficient message passing, remote memory access operations, and scalable data transfer capabilities across interconnected computing nodes.

The architecture is engineered to support enterprise-grade reliability requirements while delivering the performance characteristics necessary for mission-critical computing environments. This combination of speed, efficiency, and stability makes the adapter suitable for a broad range of networking and computational applications.

Dual 4X QSFP Port

High-Density Connectivity

The dual-port design provides two independent 4X QSFP interfaces, allowing servers to connect simultaneously to multiple network paths or fabric switches. This configuration increases deployment flexibility and supports various redundancy, performance, and scalability strategies within enterprise networking environments.

Each port is capable of delivering substantial bandwidth while maintaining the low latency characteristics associated with InfiniBand networking technologies. The dual-port architecture also supports fault-tolerant network configurations where connectivity can be maintained even in the event of individual link failures.

4X QSFP Interface Technology

The Quad Small Form-factor Pluggable interface provides a compact, high-density connection platform suitable for modern data center infrastructures. The 4X implementation aggregates multiple communication lanes to achieve higher throughput rates while maintaining signal integrity and transmission reliability.

QSFP connectivity enables efficient cable management and supports a variety of compatible cable and transceiver options. This flexibility allows organizations to deploy networking solutions tailored to specific distance, performance, and infrastructure requirements.

Port Scalability Advantages

Multiple port configurations facilitate network expansion without requiring additional adapter installations. Organizations can utilize one port for primary connectivity while reserving the second interface for failover, load balancing, or future growth initiatives.

This scalability helps optimize server expansion strategies and simplifies infrastructure planning in rapidly growing data center environments.

40Gb/s Data Transfer Performance

High-Bandwidth Communication

The 40Gb/s network capability provides substantial throughput for applications requiring rapid data movement between servers, storage systems, and computational resources. This bandwidth level supports demanding workloads involving large datasets, parallel processing operations, and distributed computing architectures.

High-speed connectivity helps eliminate network bottlenecks that can negatively affect application performance. By enabling faster communication between cluster nodes, the adapter contributes to improved job completion times and enhanced overall system utilization.

Efficient Data Movement

Large-scale enterprise applications frequently generate significant volumes of network traffic. The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC is engineered to handle these demands efficiently by supporting accelerated data transfer operations that reduce communication delays and improve workload responsiveness.

The adapter's high-bandwidth capabilities are particularly valuable in environments where applications continuously exchange large blocks of information between distributed computing resources.

Throughput Optimization

Advanced hardware mechanisms optimize packet transmission and reception processes, helping maintain consistent throughput under varying traffic conditions. These capabilities support predictable performance characteristics that are essential for business-critical applications.

Data-Intensive Application

The available bandwidth accommodates applications involving scientific simulations, engineering analysis, database processing, storage networking, virtualization, and cloud infrastructure services. High throughput capacity ensures that network communication remains aligned with modern server performance requirements.

Low-Latency Communication Capabilities

Reduced Communication Delays

One of the primary advantages of InfiniBand technology is its ability to deliver extremely low communication latency. The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC incorporates hardware acceleration mechanisms designed to minimize delays associated with packet processing, protocol handling, and data transfer operations.

Low latency is critical in environments where application performance depends on rapid exchanges of information between multiple systems. By reducing communication overhead, the adapter helps improve responsiveness and computational efficiency.

Application Performance Enhancement

Many distributed applications rely on frequent communication between processing nodes. The adapter's low-latency design helps reduce waiting times associated with message exchanges, enabling applications to scale more effectively across larger computing clusters.

Improved communication efficiency often translates directly into higher productivity and faster completion of computational tasks.

Message Rate Efficiency

The adapter supports high message rates that facilitate rapid transmission of small data packets. This capability is particularly important in parallel computing environments where applications exchange large numbers of synchronization and coordination messages.

PCI Express Integration

Server Platform Compatibility

The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC utilizes a PCI Express interface that enables seamless integration with a wide range of server platforms. PCIe technology provides sufficient bandwidth to support the adapter's networking capabilities while ensuring compatibility with modern enterprise hardware architectures.

The standardized interface simplifies deployment processes and allows organizations to incorporate the adapter into existing infrastructure with minimal complexity.

Optimized Host Communication

The PCI Express connection serves as the communication pathway between the host server and the networking adapter. Efficient interaction between these components is essential for achieving maximum performance and maintaining low latency characteristics.

Advanced bus management mechanisms help ensure efficient utilization of available PCIe resources while minimizing communication bottlenecks between the server and network fabric.

Enterprise Deployment Flexibility

Compatibility with industry-standard server architectures enables deployment across diverse computing environments. This flexibility supports various infrastructure strategies, including clustered computing systems, storage networks, virtualization platforms, and enterprise application environments.

Remote Direct Memory Access Technology

RDMA Acceleration Features

The adapter supports Remote Direct Memory Access functionality, allowing systems to transfer data directly between memory regions without extensive operating system involvement. This capability significantly reduces CPU utilization and improves overall communication efficiency.

RDMA technology enables applications to achieve higher throughput and lower latency compared to traditional networking approaches. By minimizing software processing requirements, the adapter helps maximize available server resources for productive workloads.

Memory-to-Memory Communication

Direct memory transfer capabilities streamline communication between distributed systems. Data can be moved efficiently across the network fabric while bypassing many conventional processing steps that typically introduce latency and resource consumption.

This architecture is especially valuable in environments where large datasets must be exchanged rapidly between interconnected servers.

CPU Offload Advantages

Hardware-assisted communication processes reduce processor workload and improve overall system efficiency. Lower CPU utilization allows servers to dedicate more computational capacity to application execution and business operations.

Cluster Computing Applications

High-Performance Computing Environments

The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC is well suited for deployment in high-performance computing clusters where communication speed directly influences application scalability. Scientific research institutions, engineering organizations, and academic computing centers frequently utilize InfiniBand networking technologies to support advanced computational workloads.

The adapter's combination of bandwidth and low latency enables efficient collaboration among cluster nodes, helping achieve faster execution of parallelized applications.

Distributed Processing Workloads

Modern distributed applications often require continuous communication between multiple servers. The adapter facilitates efficient data exchange mechanisms that support large-scale processing environments while maintaining consistent performance characteristics.

Applications involving simulation, modeling, analytics, and machine learning can benefit from the networking efficiency provided by dedicated InfiniBand connectivity.

Scalable Cluster Expansion

The adapter supports growth-oriented infrastructure strategies by enabling organizations to expand cluster resources while maintaining communication performance. Consistent networking efficiency helps preserve application scalability as environments increase in size and complexity.

Storage Networking Performance

High-Speed Storage Connectivity

Storage infrastructures increasingly require networking solutions capable of supporting substantial data transfer demands. The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC provides the bandwidth necessary for efficient communication between servers and storage resources.

Fast storage networking helps reduce backup windows, accelerate data access operations, and improve responsiveness for storage-intensive applications.

Data Center Storage Integration

The adapter can be deployed within enterprise storage environments that require reliable, high-throughput communication. Its InfiniBand capabilities support efficient movement of data across storage networks while maintaining low latency performance.

Storage Consolidation Benefits

Organizations implementing centralized storage architectures can leverage the adapter's high-bandwidth capabilities to support consolidated resource pools without sacrificing application performance.

Enterprise Reliability and Operational Stability

The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC is engineered to operate reliably within enterprise environments that demand uninterrupted network availability. Robust hardware design, mature networking architecture, and proven InfiniBand technologies contribute to dependable long-term performance.

Continuous operation capabilities are essential for mission-critical infrastructures where network interruptions can negatively affect business processes, application availability, and user productivity.

Data Integrity Protection

Advanced communication mechanisms help ensure accurate transmission of information across network links. Reliable packet handling processes contribute to stable operation and support the integrity requirements of enterprise applications.

Infrastructure Dependability

Data centers rely on networking components that can maintain consistent performance under varying workload conditions. The adapter's enterprise-focused design helps deliver predictable operational characteristics suitable for demanding deployment scenarios.

Advanced Network Fabric Integration

InfiniBand Fabric Connectivity

The Mellanox MHQH29-XTC integrates seamlessly into InfiniBand switching environments, enabling efficient communication across extensive network fabrics. The adapter supports scalable infrastructure architectures that can accommodate growing performance requirements while maintaining low latency characteristics.

Its connectivity capabilities allow organizations to build high-speed communication frameworks capable of supporting thousands of interconnected computing resources.

Large-Scale Infrastructure Deployment

Enterprise and research environments often require networking solutions capable of supporting substantial expansion. The adapter's architecture facilitates integration into large-scale infrastructures while preserving communication efficiency and operational stability.