Overview
Rev 1.4
Mellanox Technologies
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Overview
The Mellanox BridgeX gateway series is a 1U, top-of-rack gateway that provides server I/O con-
solidation over an InfiniBand network. The product supports 40Gb/s InfiniBand to 1GigE/10GigE
Ethernet bridging.
The BridgeX Gateway is a multi-protocol bridge that enables InfiniBand connectivity to native
Ethernet networks. The gateway implements stateless bridging protocols by encapsulating Ether-
net over InfiniBand (EoIB) acting as a packet relay, based on read-only context. Bridging with the
gateway requires the use of Mellanox ConnectX or ConnectX 2 adapters on the server to imple-
ment server side processing of EoIB protocols. EoIB capable ConnectX and ConnectX 2 adapters
present standard Ethernet (Sockets) software interfaces to server applications providing transpar-
ent connectivity for existing Enterprise Data Center (EDC) and High Performance Computing
(HPC) applications to Ethernet LAN. ConnectX and ConnectX 2 adapters also present a standard
InfiniBand (Verbs) software interface to server applications for Inter Process Communication
(IPC). This allows Ethernet and InfiniBand payloads to be carried over a common converged high
performance 40Gbps InfiniBand fabric without any changes to existing server applications. Data
on the converged fabric requiring access to Ethernet LAN is bridged by the gateway preserving
existing LAN investments and management practices.
The BridgeX gateway along with ConnectX and ConnectX 2 adapters converge different networks
onto a single fabric, reducing the number of adapters, cables and switch ports by a factor of three
and reducing capital expenditure. The high port density of the gateway, within a 1U form factor,
low power consumption, and ease of management also reduces operating expenses.
Figure 1: MBX 5020 Gateway
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Mellanox
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