I’ve asked elsewhere and gotten some contradicting answers, so I was really hoping to get some more feedback here.
Hello!
I snagged one of these on eBay for $19, here: Dell Mellanox CX4121C ConnectX-4 Dual 10/25GBE SFP28 Low Profile | eBay The exact model number as listed was Dell Mellanox CX4121C ConnectX-4.* I put it in my test Linux Mint Debian Edition box, and LMDE not only saw it, but auto configured it for DHCP, and it auto negotiated to 2.5 Gbps on my multigig switch via a 10GTek RJ-45 transceiver.
NVIDIA’s Debian management software sees it just fine.
I couldn’t be happier so far with how it’s working out.
I did have a question about the firmware, and I’d really appreciate some help. It clearly identifies as a Dell device.
$ sudo mlxfwmanager --query
Querying Mellanox devices firmware ...
Device #1:
----------
Device Type: ConnectX4LX
Part Number: 020NJD_0MRT0D_Ax
Description: Mellanox 25GBE 2P ConnectX-4 Lx Adapter
PSID: DEL2420110034
PCI Device Name: /dev/mst/mt4117_pciconf0
Base MAC: 98039b993a82
Versions: Current Available
FW 14.32.2004 N/A
PXE 3.6.0502 N/A
UEFI 14.25.0018 N/A
Status: No matching image found
The part number and PSID are Dell variant identifiers. From this thread here-- Mellanox ConnectX-4 CX4121C firmware | ServeTheHome Forums – it’s apparently a Mellanox MCX4121A-ACAT with custom Dell firmware.
Now, as reluctant as I am to mess with something that’s working, I’ve had bad luck putting HP firmware flashed SAS drives into a non-HP server, so now I’m a bit nervous about just leaving the HP firmware on there, even though Debian seems to be okay with it so far. I’m going to be putting this card in a server that will be hard to offline long enough to cross-flash it later, if that becomes necessary.
I promised questions.
- Did I actually read that STH thread correctly? I’m a bit nervous that I’m not ID’ing the actual card correctly.
- Is there some reason not to flash the actual Mellanox firmware onto the card? See: Firmware for ConnectX®-4 Lx EN
- Do I have the latest firmware already? I’ve got 14.32.2004, but the release notes for the last version are for 14.32.1900 ( NVIDIA ConnectX-4 Lx Adapter Cards Firmware Release Notes v14.32.1900 - NVIDIA Docs ). I suspect the OEM versions have slightly different numbers…
Specifically, here’s what I’m seeing on NVIDIA’s site:
*Spectacular price and rock solid packaging and shipping speed. Would absolutely recommend buying from here.