Link™ SmartNIC Hardware
Product Overview
In a world of reconfigurable computing, it is the software that defines the use case functionality. However, the wrong choice of hardware can severely downgrade the overall value and reliability of the solution.
Napatech Link™ SmartNICs are designed to meet the standards of modern servers, with the rapidly changing world of data center and hyperscale deployments in mind.
Industry-Leading Reliability
When selecting a hardware solution, reliability is of the utmost importance. Software can be patched if faulty, but hardware needs a physical replacement, which is costly and complex.
For all Napatech designs, performance and reliability are unconditional tenets. With ~300,000 hours of mean time between failures (MTBF), our hardware ensures uninterrupted, error-free operation for many years ahead – as validated by our long-term loyal customer base.
Superior Thermal Design
The power of FPGA technology is only of value if it can be harnessed – and that requires cooling. An efficient cooling solution allows you to fit more compute power into your rack space, which translates into substantial TCO benefits.
Napatech Link™ SmartNICs are designed with active and passive cooling. The active solution provides 100% self-contained cooling with no requirements for a specific server airflow. This solution exhales most of the dissipated energy outside the server through front plate cutouts, which gives customers the freedom to choose server designs without worrying about cooling capacity.
To meet telco requirements, the passively cooled solutions are NEBS-compliant. A proprietary full body heatsink has been developed securing optimal cooling performance in the challenging NEBS applications for all critical components in the SmartNIC.
Hardware Resilience
Modern servers have quick-release PCI fastening mechanisms that allow for easy card replacement. Some of these designs, however, expose the card to vibration during transportation. Napatech SmartNICs are designed specifically to ensure hardware resilience in this environment.
Regulatory Compliance
Network appliances often require exceptions and compromises to fit a certain form factor or price point. In complex data center environments, it is therefore extremely beneficial if the hardware adheres to established industry standards, as this will make it easier for customers to integrate it in their solution. As a certified PCI-SIG member, Napatech has completed the meticulous compliance test, which demonstrates our high standards of excellence.
Applications that Benefit
Napatech offers a whole range of FPGA software options for the Link™ hardware, that address use cases within:
• Network Cybersecurity
• Network Quality of Experience Assurance
• Network & Security Forensics
• Application Performance Management (APM)
• Network Test & Measurement
• Cyber Defense
• vSwitch Acceleration
• Virtual Network Monitoring
| Link™ SmartNIC Products for COTS Servers |  |
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| Model | NT20E3-2 | NT40E3-4 NT40A01 |
NT50B01 | NT200D01 | NT200A02 | |
| General Hardware Specifications | ||||||
| Height | Full | Full | Half | Full | Full | |
| Length | Half | Half | Half | Half | Half | |
| FPGA technology | XC7VX330T | XC7VX330T | XCKU15P | S10 GX 2800 | XCVU5P XCVU7P[1] XCVU9P[1] |
|
| SDRAM | DDR3 | DDR3 | DDR4 | DDR4 | DDR4 | |
| – Density | 4 GB | 4 GB | 10 GB 20 GB[1] |
12 GB 24 GB[1] |
12 GB 24 GB[1] |
|
| – Bandwidth | 120 Gbps | 120 Gbps | 427 Gbps | 512 Gbps | 512 Gbps | |
| – Number of memory controllers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | |
| PCIe configuration | PCIe Gen3 8 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 8 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 16 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 16 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 16 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
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| Network Ports and Link Speeds | ||||||
| Network ports | 2xSFP+ | 4xSFP+ | 2xSFP28 | 2xQSFP28 | 2xQSFP28 | |
| 1G [2] | • | • | • | • [3] | • [3] | |
| 10G [2] | • | • | • | • [3] | • [3] | |
| 25G [2] | • | • [3] | • [3] | |||
| 40G [2] | • | • | ||||
| 50G [2] | • [4] | • [4] | ||||
| 100G [2] | • | • | ||||
| Time Synchronization Ports [2] | ||||||
| Tyco Mini female for RJ45-F/ SMA-F adapter (on PCI bracket) | • | • | ||||
| 2 x internal MCX-F for PPS and NT-TS | • | • | • | • | ||
| RJ45-F for 100/1000BASE-T IEEE1588 PTP (on PCI bracket) | • | • | ||||
| SMA-F for PPS (on PCI bracket) | •[1] | • | • | |||
| Time Synchronization Support | ||||||
| Stratum 3E compliant TCXO | • | • | •[1] | • | • | |
| SyncE frequency synch support [2] | • | • | • | • | • | |
| High-Speed Interconnect Port [2] | ||||||
| Maximum bidirectional bandwith | 180 Gbps | 180 Gbps | 900 Gbps | 900 Gbps | ||
| Hardware Board Monitoring | ||||||
| FPGA temperature | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Pluggable module temperature | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Ambient temperature | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Power sensors | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Power and Cooling | ||||||
| Cooling solution | Active | Active | Passive | Active | Active | |
| Max. power dissipation [5] | 45 W | 45 W | 55 W | 105 W | 95 W | |
| Idle power dissipation [5] | 10 W | 10 W | 10 W | 15 W | 15 W | |
| Airflow requirement | None | None | >= 2.5 m/s | None | None | |
| General Hardware Properties | ||||||
| Operating temperature | 0°C to 45°C (32°F to 113°F) | |||||
| Operating humidity | 20% to 80% | |||||
| MTBF (hours) | 297,993 | 297,993 | 317,821 | |||
| Weight | 260 g | 260 g | 355 g | |||
| Regulatory compliance (common) | PCI-SIG®, CE, CB, RoHS, REACH, cURus (UL), FCC, ICES, VCCI, RCM | |||||
| Regulatory compliance (product specific) | KCC | KCC | KCC[1] | KCC[1] | KCC[1] | |
[1] On demand
[2] Features depend on software support, please refer to product briefs for Link™ Software
[3] Breakout or QSFP28 to SFP28 adapter
[4] Breakout
[5] The power dissipation values indicate the capabilities of the hardware platform; the actual power consumption is dependent on the FPGA software payload
| Link™ SmartNIC Products NEBS-Compliant |  |
 |
|
 |
|
|
| Model | NT20E3-2 | NT40E3-4 NT40A01 |
NT50B01 | NT200D01 | NT200A02 | |
| General Hardware Specifications | ||||||
| Height | Full | Full | Half | Full | Full | |
| Length | Half | Half | Half | Half | Half | |
| FPGA technology | XC7VX330T | XC7VX330T | XCKU15P | S10 GX 2800 | XCVU5P XCVU7P[1] XCVU9P[1] |
|
| SDRAM | DDR3 | DDR3 | DDR4 | DDR4 | DDR4 | |
| – Density | 4 GB | 4 GB | 10 GB 20 GB[1] |
12 GB 24 GB[1] |
12 GB 24 GB[1] |
|
| – Bandwidth | 120 Gbps | 120 Gbps | 240 Gbps | 460 Gbps | 512 Gbps | |
| – Number of memory controllers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | |
| PCIe configuration | PCIe Gen3 8 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 8 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 16 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 16 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
PCIe Gen3 16 lanes @ 8 GT/s |
|
| Network Ports and Link Speeds | ||||||
| Network ports | 2xSFP+ | 4xSFP+ | 2xSFP28 | 2xQSFP28 | 2xQSFP28 | |
| 1G [2] | • | • | • | • [3] | • [3] | |
| 10G [2] | • | • | • | • [3] | • [3] | |
| 25G [2] | • | • [3] | • [3] | |||
| 40G [2] | • | • | ||||
| 50G [2] | • [4] | • [4] | ||||
| 100G [2] | • | • | ||||
| Time Synchronization Ports [2] | ||||||
| Tyco Mini female for RJ45-F/ SMA-F adapter (on PCI bracket) | • | • | ||||
| 2 x internal MCX-F for PPS and NT-TS | • | • | • | • | ||
| RJ45-F for 100/1000BASE-T IEEE1588 PTP (on PCI bracket) | • | • | ||||
| SMA-F for PPS (on PCI bracket) | •[1] | • | • | |||
| Time Synchronization Support | ||||||
| Stratum 3E compliant TCXO | • | • | •[1] | • | • | |
| SyncE frequency synch support [2] | • | • | • | • | ||
| High-Speed Interconnect Port [2] | ||||||
| Maximum bandwith | 180 Gbps | 180 Gbps | 900 Gbps | 900 Gbps | ||
| Hardware Board Monitoring | ||||||
| FPGA temperature | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Pluggable module temperature | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Ambient temperature | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Power sensors | • | • | • | • | • | |
| Power and Cooling | ||||||
| Cooling solution | Passive | Passive | Passive | Passive | Passive | |
| Max. power dissipation [5] | 45 W | 45 W | 55 W | 105 W | 95 W | |
| Idle power dissipation [5] | 10 W | 10 W | 10 W | 15 W | 15 W | |
| Airflow requirement | >= 2.5 m/s | >= 2.5 m/s | >= 3.5 m/s | >= 2.5 m/s | >= 2.5 m/s | |
| General Hardware Properties | ||||||
| Operating temperature | –5°C to 55°C (23°F to 131°F) | |||||
| Operating humidity | 5% to 85% | |||||
| MTBF (hours) | 367,807 | 367,807 | 398,565 | |||
| Weight | 260 g | 260 g | 355 g | |||
| Regulatory compliance (common) | PCI-SIG®, CE, CB, RoHS, REACH, cURus (UL), FCC, ICES, VCCI, RCM | |||||
| Regulatory compliance (product specific) | KCC | KCC | KCC[1] | KCC[1] | KCC[1] | |
[1] On demand
[2] Features depend on software support, please refer to product briefs for Link™ Software
[3] Breakout or QSFP28 to SFP28 adapter
[4] Breakout
[5] The power dissipation values indicate the capabilities of the hardware platform; the actual power consumption is dependent on the FPGA software payload
Explore Napatech FPGA SmartNICs
Our products capture data at high speed with zero packet loss, enabling real-time insight into network traffic.