Network Interface Card (NIC) Support Policy
May 07, 2025
Introduction
We want to take this opportunity to remind our customers that the rXg platform officially supports only Intel-based Network Interface Cards (NICs) and NVIDIA Data Processing Units (DPUs) for any production deployments. This includes both embedded Intel Ethernet controllers and PCIe Ethernet / DPU adapters that are fully compatible with our validated drivers and performance optimization configurations.
Ethernet NICs from other vendors, such as Broadcom, Mellanox, Marvell, and others, are not supported at this time. This includes both hardware compatibility and driver-level support within our environment.
We want to take this opportunity to remind our customers that the rXg platform officially supports only Intel-based Network Interface Cards (NICs) and NVIDIA Data Processing Units (DPUs) for any production deployments. This includes both embedded Intel Ethernet controllers and PCIe Ethernet / DPU adapters that are fully compatible with our validated drivers and performance optimization configurations.
Ethernet NICs from other vendors, such as Broadcom, Mellanox, Marvell, and others, are not supported at this time. This includes both hardware compatibility and driver-level support within our environment.
Rationale:
It has recently come to our attention that host servers are still being deployed with non-Intel-based Ethernet NICs, which adversely affects the following:
- Driver Stack Stability: Our software stack has been thoroughly tested and optimized with Intel Ethernet and NVIDIA DPU drivers to ensure maximum stability and performance.
- Feature Compatibility: Certain features and optimizations (e.g., SR-IOV, DPDK, offload capabilities) are validated only on Intel Ethernet NICs.
- Supportability: Limiting NIC support reduces variability in troubleshooting and allows faster, more effective technical support.
Recommendation:
For all deployments, we recommend selecting Intel-based Ethernet NICs or NVIDIA DPUs. The use of unsupported NICs may lead to degraded performance, lack of advanced features, and limited support from our technical team.
For all deployments, we recommend selecting Intel-based Ethernet NICs or NVIDIA DPUs. The use of unsupported NICs may lead to degraded performance, lack of advanced features, and limited support from our technical team.
