--- description: The Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN is a dual port network interface card (NIC) designed to deliver extreme bandwidth at sub-600 nanosecond latency and a high... title: Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE DA/SFP NIC Review image: https://www.storagereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/StorageReview-Mellanox-100G-Dual-Port-Thumb.jpg --- [![Storage Review]()](https://storagereview.com/) --- [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/@storagereview) [X (Twitter)](https://twitter.twitter.com/storagereview) [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/storagereview/) [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/storagereview-com) [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/user/storagereview?sub_confirmation=1) [Email](mailto:info@storagereview.com) [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/1y6VnznABhHeOSMOmbDTz0) [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/StorageReview/) [Discord](https://discord.gg/TwMHb4azdC) [RSS Feed](https://www.storagereview.com/rss.xml) [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@storagereview) [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/@storagereview) [X (Twitter)](https://twitter.com/storagereview) [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/storagereview/) [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/storagereview-com) [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/user/storagereview?sub_confirmation=1) [Email](mailto:info@storagereview.com) [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/1y6VnznABhHeOSMOmbDTz0) [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/StorageReview/) [Discord](https://discord.gg/TwMHb4azdC) [RSS Feed](https://www.storagereview.com/rss.xml) [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@storagereview) [![StorageReview.com]()](https://www.storagereview.com) ≡ Menu - [Home](https://www.storagereview.com/) - [Storage Reviews](https://www.storagereview.com/review) - [End User Reviews](https://www.storagereview.com/consumer) - [Enterprise Reviews](https://www.storagereview.com/enterprise) - [Ubiquiti Reviews](https://www.storagereview.com/best/ubiquiti-reviews) - [SR Merch](https://store.storagereview.com) - [Leaderboards](https://www.storagereview.com/best) - [Best Storage Arrays](https://www.storagereview.com/best/storage-arrays) - [Best Enterprise SSDs](https://www.storagereview.com/best/enterprise-ssds) - [Best Servers](https://www.storagereview.com/best/servers) - [Best Enterprise GPUs](https://www.storagereview.com/best/enterprise-gpus) - [Best Desktops for Local AI](https://www.storagereview.com/best/desktops-local-ai) - [Best Laptops for Local AI](https://www.storagereview.com/best/laptops-local-ai) - [Best Local LLM Tools](https://www.storagereview.com/best/local-llm-tools) - [Agentic AI Hardware](https://www.storagereview.com/best/agentic-ai-hardware) - [Best SSDs & Hard Drives](https://www.storagereview.com/best_drives) - [Best Portable SSDs](https://www.storagereview.com/best/portable-ssds) - [Best Business Laptops](https://www.storagereview.com/best/business-laptops) - [Best Mobile Workstations](https://www.storagereview.com/best/mobile-workstations) - [Best Desktop Workstations](https://www.storagereview.com/best/desktop-workstations) - [Best Mini PCs](https://www.storagereview.com/best/mini-pcs) - [Best Laptop Battery Life](https://www.storagereview.com/best/laptop-battery-life) - [Storage Reference Guide](https://www.storagereview.com/storage-reference-guide) - [About SR](https://www.storagereview.com/about-storagereview) - [StorageReview.com Sweepstakes Rules and Regulations](https://www.storagereview.com/storagereview-com-sweepstakes-rules-and-regulations) Search [Home](https://www.storagereview.com/) » [Review](https://www.storagereview.com/review) » Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE DA/SFP NIC Review # Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE DA/SFP NIC Review by StorageReview Consumer Desk on September 17, 2018 [Enterprise](https://www.storagereview.com/enterprise)  ◇  [Networking](https://www.storagereview.com/enterprise/networking) The Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN is a dual port network interface card (NIC) designed to deliver extreme bandwidth at sub-600 nanosecond latency and a high message rate with its 100GbE transfer rate. With its advanced storage capabilities including NVMe-oF target offloads, this NIC is ideal for High Performance, Cloud, Data Analytics and Storage platforms. ![]() The latest version of ConnectX controller, version -5, delivers high bandwidth, lower latency, and high computation efficiency making it an ideal choice in HPC infrastructures. The NIC leverages RDMA over Converged Ethernet (RoCE) technology in order to hit the low latency and high performance. The ConnectX-5 also provides MPI and SHMEM/PGAS and Rendezvous Tag Matching offload as enhancements to HPC infrastructures. The new controller supports Switch Adaptive-Routing and data delivered out-of-order, enhancing RDMA network capabilities. While the new controller in this NIC comes with the above, where it gets interesting for storage is its support for NVMe over Fabric (NVMe-oF). NVMe is becoming the go to technology when fast storage is needed. While it has promise in several areas, NVMe-oF is particularly interesting to us for its promise of performance and low latency. The ConnectX-5 provides NVMe-oF target offloads, meaning NVMe storage access without CPU intervention for even better performance and lower latency. ## **Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN specifications** - Device Type: Network Adaptor - Form Factor: Plug-In Card - Interface: PCIe - Ports: 100 Gigabit Ethernet x 2 - Data Link Protocol: 100 Gigabit LAN - Data Transfer Rate: 100Gbps - Expansion / Connectivity - Interfaces: 2 x 100Gb Ethernet ## **Design and Build** The Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN is low profile, dual Ethernet configuration, plug in network interface card. With its screwless design, the card is easily installed inside a compatible server. At the front of the card, you’ll find two QSFP+ ports and, at the back, a large black heat sink covering the majority of the Mellanox controller. ![]() The back of the card has a couple of identification stickers, leaving most of this side of the card blank, as you’d come to expect. ## **Conclusion** The Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE DA/SFP is a PCIe NIC ideal for performance-demanding environments. Its two 100GbE ports are also backward compatible with 50GbE/40Gbe/25Gbe/ and 10GbE, allowing for flexible network upgrade capabilities as the needs arise. Offering high bandwidth, sub-600 nanosecond latency, and high message rate, the ConnectX-5 EN is ideal for building a bottleneck-free storage system for achieving extreme efficiency on a variety of workloads in a virtualized environment. ![]() The Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN, which we integrated into our  [Dell R740xds](https://www.storagereview.com/dell_emc_poweredge_r740xd_server_review), has been an invaluable asset to the StorageReview lab, playing a key role in the testing of NVMeoF products, such as our review of [Toshiba’s KumoScale](https://www.storagereview.com/toshiba_kumoscale_nvmeof_newisys_nss1160g2n_review). During our KumoScale test that leveraged the ConnectX-5 NIC we saw performances of nearly 3 million IOPS for 4K read and 64k read speeds of 13.36GB/s. The software and NIC were able to hit over a million IOPS on several of our tests. Anyone that is looking to leverage NVMe-oF or utilize HPC should take a long hard look at a NIC such as the Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE card. [Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN page](http://www.mellanox.com/page/products_dyn?product_family=260&mtag=connectx_5_en_card) Discuss This Review [Sign up for the StorageReview newsletter](https://www.storagereview.com/storagereview_newsletter_signup) **Engage with StorageReview** [Newsletter](https://www.storagereview.com/storage_newsletter) |  [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/user/StorageReview "Opens in a new window") | Podcast  [iTunes](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/storagereview-com-storage-reviews/id1060681115 "Opens in a new window")/ [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/1y6VnznABhHeOSMOmbDTz0 "Opens in a new window") |  [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/storagereview/ "Opens in a new window") |  [Twitter](https://twitter.com/storagereview "Opens in a new window") |  [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@storagereview? "Opens in a new window") |  [RSS Feed](https://www.storagereview.com/rss.xml) ![]() ### StorageReview Consumer Desk Previous post: [HyperX Gaming MicroSD Card Review](https://www.storagereview.com/review/hyperx-gaming-microsd-card-review) Next post: [NetApp EF570 All-Flash Array Review](https://www.storagereview.com/review/netapp-ef570-all-flash-array-review) Trusted Vendors Products and solutions from our affiliate partners: - [ ![Ubiquiti Logo]() Ubiquiti ](https://store.ui.com/us/en?a_aid=StorageReview "Opens in a new window") - [ ![Newegg Logo]() Newegg ](https://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=g5terNMDhz0&offerid=1207190.18&subid=0&type=4 "Opens in a new window") - [ ![Amazon Logo]() Amazon ](https://amzn.to/4fLJUEW "Opens in a new window") Newsletter Subscribe to the StorageReview newsletter to stay up to date on the latest news and reviews. We promise no spam! 1 Leave this field empty if you’re human: ## Advertisement Content Categories [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/@storagereview) [X](https://twitter.com/storagereview) [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/storagereview/) [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/storagereview-com) [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/user/storagereview?sub_confirmation=1) [Email](mailto:info@storagereview.com) [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/1y6VnznABhHeOSMOmbDTz0) [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/StorageReview/) [Discord](https://discord.gg/TwMHb4azdC) [RSS](https://www.storagereview.com/rss.xml) [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@storagereview) Copyright © 1998-2025 Flying Pig Ventures, LLC Cincinnati, Ohio. All rights reserved. Manage your privacy To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site and show (non-) personalized ads. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions. Click below to consent to the above or make granular choices. Your choices will be applied to this site only. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by using the toggles on the Cookie Policy, or by clicking on the manage consent button at the bottom of the screen. Functional Functional Always active The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. Preferences Preferences The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. Statistics Statistics The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you. Marketing Marketing The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. Statistics Marketing Features Always active Special features Special purposes Always active - Manage options - Manage services - Manage {vendor\_count} vendors - [Read more about these purposes](https://cookiedatabase.org/tcf/purposes/) Accept Deny Manage options Save preferences Manage options - {title} - {title} - {title} Manage your privacy To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions. Functional Functional Always active The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. Preferences Preferences The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. Statistics Statistics The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you. Marketing Marketing The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. Statistics Marketing Features Always active Special features Special purposes Always active - Manage options - Manage services - Manage {vendor\_count} vendors - [Read more about these purposes](https://cookiedatabase.org/tcf/purposes/) Accept Deny Manage options Save preferences Manage options - {title} - {title} - {title} Manage consent Manage consent ```json {"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review","url":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review","name":"Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE DA\/SFP NIC Review - StorageReview.com","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/StorageReview-Mellanox-100G-Dual-Port-Thumb.jpg","datePublished":"2018-09-17T19:31:44+00:00","dateModified":"2020-03-04T14:43:41+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/StorageReview-Mellanox-100G-Dual-Port-Thumb.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/StorageReview-Mellanox-100G-Dual-Port-Thumb.jpg","width":100,"height":68},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review\/mellanox-connectx-5-en-dual-port-100gbe-da-sfp-nic-review#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Review","item":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/review"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Mellanox ConnectX-5 EN Dual-Port 100GbE DA\/SFP NIC Review"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/","name":"StorageReview.com","description":"StorageReview.com is a leading provider of news and reviews throughout the entire IT stack - from the datacenter to the edge, and all points in between.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/#organization","name":"StorageReview.com","url":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Storage-Reviews-2-2.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Storage-Reviews-2-2.png","width":344,"height":61,"caption":"StorageReview.com"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.storagereview.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/storagereview","http:\/\/youtube.com\/user\/storagereview"]}]} ```