InfiniBand: Mellanox Hardware & Firmware

Hardware

HPC

Network

InfiniBand

Published

August 19, 2015

Modified

January 30, 2025

Nvidia InfiniBand Networking Solutions

Switches

Switch	Config.	Ports	Speed
SB7800	fixed	36	EDR
QM87xx	fixed	40	HDR
QS8500	modular	800+	HDR
QM97xx	fixed	64	NDR

Switches come in to configurations…

…fixed …number of port
…modular …gradually expandable port modules

Switches come in two flavors…

…managed …
- …MLXN OS features unlocked
- …access over SSH, SNMP, HTTPs
- …enables monitoring and configuration
…unmanaged …
- …in-band management is possible
- …status via chassis LEDs

Get information from unmanaged switches with ibswinfo.sh

# requires MST service
>>> ./iwswinfo.sh -d lid-647
=================================================
Quantum Mellanox Technologies
=================================================
part number        | MQM8790-HS2F
serial number      | MT2202X19243
product name       | Jaguar Unmng IB 200
revision           | AK
ports              | 80
PSID               | MT_0000000063
GUID               | 0x1070fd030003af98
firmware version   | 27.2008.3328
-------------------------------------------------
uptime (d-h:m:s)   | 26d-20:16:01
-------------------------------------------------
PSU0 status        | OK
     P/N           | MTEF-PSF-AC-C
     S/N           | MT2202X18887
     DC power      | OK
     fan status    | OK
     power (W)     | 165
PSU1 status        | OK
     P/N           | MTEF-PSF-AC-C
     S/N           | MT2202X18881
     DC power      | OK
     fan status    | OK
     power (W)     | 148
-------------------------------------------------
temperature (C)    | 63
max temp (C)       | 63
-------------------------------------------------
fan status         | OK
fan#1 (rpm)        | 5959
fan#2 (rpm)        | 5251
fan#3 (rpm)        | 6013
fan#4 (rpm)        | 5251
fan#5 (rpm)        | 5906
fan#6 (rpm)        | 5293
fan#7 (rpm)        | 6125
fan#8 (rpm)        | 5293
fan#9 (rpm)        | 5959
-------------------------------------------------

Ethernet Gateway

Skyway InfiniBand to Ethernet gateway…

MLXN-GW (gateway operating system) appliance
16x ports (8 Infiniband EDR/HDR x 8 Ethernet 100/200Gb/s)
Max. bandwidth 1.6Tb/s
High-availability & load-Balancing

…achieved by leveraging Ethernet LAG (Link Aggregation). LACP (Link Aggregation Control Protocol) is used to establish the LAG and to verify connectivity…

Cables

Cable part numbers…

Cable	Speed	Type	Split	Length
MC2207130	FDR	DAC	no	.5, 1, 1.5, 2
MC220731V	FDR	AOC	no	3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 75, 100
MCP1600-E	EDR	DAC	no	.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5
MFA1A00-E	EDR	AOC	no	3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 50, 100
MCP1650-H	HDR	DAC	no	.5, 1, 1.5, 2
MCP7H50-H	HDR	DAC	yes	1, 1.5, 2
MCA1J00-H	HDR	ACC	no	3, 4
MCA7J50-H	HDR	ACC	yes	3, 4
MFS1S00-HxxxE	HDR	AOC	no	3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 50, 100, 130, 150
MFS1S50-HxxxE	HDR	AOC	yes	3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30

LinkX product family for Mellanox cables and transceivers

DAC, (passive) direct attach copper
- low price
- up to 2 meters (at HDR)
- simple copper wires
- no electronics
- consume (almost) zero power
- lowest latency
ACC, active copper cables (aka active DAC)
- consumes 4 to 5 Watts
- include signal-boosting integrated circuits (ICs)
- extend the reach up to 4 meters (at 200G HDR)
AOC, active optical cables

DAC-in-a-Rack connect servers and storage to top-of-rack (TOR) switches

(passive/active) splitter cables…

DAC/ACC
- typically used to connect HDR100 HCAs to a HDR TOR switch
- enabling a 40-port HDR switch to support 80-ports of 100G HDR100
- 1:2 splitter breakout cable in DAC copper… (QSFP56 to 2xQSFP56)
AOC …1:2 splitter optical breakout cable… (QSFP56 to 2xQSFP56)

Firmware

MFT (Mellanox firmware tools)…

Interface with the HCA firmware…
- …query firmware information
- …customize firmware images
- …burn firmware image to a device
Configuration…/etc/mft
References
- https://network.nvidia.com/products/adapter-software/firmware-tools/
- https://github.com/Mellanox/mstflint

Installation …MLNX_OFED include the required packages…

dnf install -y mft kmod-kernel-mft-mlnx usbutils

…packages include an init-script…

systemctd start mst.service

Devices

…can be accessed by their PCI ID

# ...find PCI ID using lxpci
>>> lspci -d 15b3:
21:00.0 Infiniband controller: Mellanox Technologies MT28908 Family [ConnectX-6]

# ...query the firmware on a device using the PCI ID
>>> mstflint -d 21:00.0 query
Image type:            FS4
FW Version:            20.32.1010

…when the IB driver is loaded…access a device by device name..

# ...find the device name
>>> ibv_devinfo | grep hca_id
hca_id: mlx5_0

# ...query the firmware on a device using the device name
>>> mstflint -d mlx5_0 query
...

PSID (Parameter-Set IDentification) of the channel adapter…

>>> mlxfwmanager --query | grep PSID
  PSID:             SM_2121000001000

…PSID used to download the correct firmware for a device
…start with MT_. SM_, or AS_ indicate vendor re-labeled cards

`mlxconfig`

Reboot for configuration changes to take effect

Change device configurations without reburning the firmware…

# ...only a single device is present...
mlxconfig query | grep LINK
         PHY_COUNT_LINK_UP_DELAY             DELAY_NONE(0)   
         LINK_TYPE_P1                        IB(1)           
         KEEP_ETH_LINK_UP_P1                 True(1)         
         KEEP_IB_LINK_UP_P1                  False(0)        
         KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_BOOT_P1             True(1)         
         KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_STANDBY_P1          False(0)        
         AUTO_POWER_SAVE_LINK_DOWN_P1        False(0)        
         UNKNOWN_UPLINK_MAC_FLOOD_P1         False(0)
# ...set configuration
mlxconfig -d $device set KEEP_IB_LINK_UP_P1=0 KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_BOOT_P1=1

Reset the device configuration to default…

mlxconfig -d $device reset

Upgrade Firmware

mlxfwmanager — Update HCA firmware¹

# get the current firmware version
mlxfwmanager --query | grep FW

# update the firmware
>>> mlxfwmanager --online -u
#...
  PSID:             MT_0000000222
  Versions:         Current        Available     
     FW             20.32.1010     20.35.1012    
     PXE            3.6.0502       3.6.0804      
     UEFI           14.25.0017     14.28.0015
#...

Decouple from the login terminal (useful for automation over SSH)

log_file=/var/log/mlxfwmanager-$(date +%Y%m%d).log
nohup mlxfwmanager --no-progress --online --update --yes \
    &>/dev/null >> $log_file & disown

Downgrade Firmware

Identify the device and download the correct firmware² archive:

# identify the device 
>>> mlxfwmanager --query | grep -e Part -e PSID
  Part Number:      MCX653105A-ECA_Ax
  PSID:             MT_0000000222
# download the firmware
>>> wget https://www.mellanox.com/downloads/firmware/fw-ConnectX6-rel-20_41_1000-MCX653105A-ECA_Ax-UEFI-14.34.12-FlexBoot-3.7.400.bin.zip
# extract the archive
>>> unzip fw-ConnectX6-rel-20_41_1000-MCX653105A-ECA_Ax-UEFI-14.34.12-FlexBoot-3.7.400.bin.zi

Identify the device path…

…using mst …make sure to select to correct device if there are multiple
…format of device name is /dev/mst/mt<dev_id>_pci{_cr0|conf0}

>>> mst start
# find the device name under the column MST
>>> mst status -v
MST modules:
------------
    MST PCI module is not loaded
    MST PCI configuration module loaded 
PCI devices:
------------
DEVICE_TYPE             MST                           PCI       RDMA            NET                                     NUMA  
ConnectX6(rev:0)        /dev/mst/mt4123_pciconf0      81:00.0   mlx5_0          net-ib0                                 1

Burn the firmware image:

>>> flint -d /dev/mst/mt4123_pciconf0 -i fw-ConnectX6-rel-20_41_1000-MCX653105A-ECA_Ax-UEFI-14.34.12-FlexBoot-3.7.400.bin burn             

    Current FW version on flash:  20.43.1014
    New FW version:               20.41.1000
    Note: The new FW version is older than the current FW version on flash.

 Do you want to continue ? (y/n) [n] : y

FSMST_INITIALIZE -   OK
Writing Boot image component -   OK
Restoring signature                     - OK
-I- To load new FW run mlxfwreset or reboot machine.

`mlxcables`

…work against the cables connected to the devices on the machine…

mst cable add…discover the cables that are connected to the local devices
mlxcables…access the cables…
- …get cable IDs…
- …upgrade firmware on the cables

>>> mlxcables -q
...
Cable name    : mt4123_pciconf0_cable_0
...
Identifier      : QSFP28 (11h)
Technology      : Copper cable unequalized (a0h)
Compliance      : 50GBASE-CR, ... HDR,EDR,FDR,QDR,DDR,SDR
...
Vendor          : Mellanox        
Serial number   : MT2214VS04725   
Part number     : MCP7H50-H01AR30 
...
Length [m]      : 1 m

`mlxlink`

mlxlink…check and debug link status

>>> mlxlink -d  mlx5_0 --show_device                                                                                         
Operational Info
----------------
State                           : Active
Physical state                  : LinkUp
Speed                           : IB-SDR
Width                           : 2x
FEC                             : No FEC
Loopback Mode                   : No Loopback
Auto Negotiation                : ON

Supported Info
--------------
Enabled Link Speed              : 0x00000001 (SDR)
Supported Cable Speed           : 0x0000007f (HDR,EDR,FDR,FDR10,QDR,DDR,SDR)
...

Footnotes

Firmware Downloads, Nvidia
https://network.nvidia.com/support/firmware ↩︎
Firmware Downloads, Nvidia
https://network.nvidia.com/support/firmware ↩︎

--- title: 'InfiniBand: Mellanox Hardware & Firmware' categories: - Hardware - HPC - Network - InfiniBand date: 2015/08/19 date-modified: 2025/01/30 toc-expand: 3 --- Nvidia [InfiniBand Networking Solutions](https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/networking/products/infiniband) ## Switches Switch | Config. | Ports | Speed -------|---------|-------|-------- SB7800 | fixed | 36 | EDR QM87xx | fixed | 40 | HDR QS8500 | modular | 800+ | HDR QM97xx | fixed | 64 | NDR Switches come in to configurations... * ...**fixed** ...number of port * ...**modular** ...gradually expandable port modules Switches come in two flavors... * ...**managed** ... * ...MLXN OS features unlocked * ...access over SSH, SNMP, HTTPs * ...enables monitoring and configuration * ...**unmanaged** ... * ...in-band management is possible * ...status via chassis LEDs Get information from unmanaged switches with [ibswinfo.sh](https://github.com/stanford-rc/ibswinfo/) ```sh # requires MST service >>> ./iwswinfo.sh -d lid-647 ================================================= Quantum Mellanox Technologies ================================================= part number | MQM8790-HS2F serial number | MT2202X19243 product name | Jaguar Unmng IB 200 revision | AK ports | 80 PSID | MT_0000000063 GUID | 0x1070fd030003af98 firmware version | 27.2008.3328 ------------------------------------------------- uptime (d-h:m:s) | 26d-20:16:01 ------------------------------------------------- PSU0 status | OK P/N | MTEF-PSF-AC-C S/N | MT2202X18887 DC power | OK fan status | OK power (W) | 165 PSU1 status | OK P/N | MTEF-PSF-AC-C S/N | MT2202X18881 DC power | OK fan status | OK power (W) | 148 ------------------------------------------------- temperature (C) | 63 max temp (C) | 63 ------------------------------------------------- fan status | OK fan#1 (rpm) | 5959 fan#2 (rpm) | 5251 fan#3 (rpm) | 6013 fan#4 (rpm) | 5251 fan#5 (rpm) | 5906 fan#6 (rpm) | 5293 fan#7 (rpm) | 6125 fan#8 (rpm) | 5293 fan#9 (rpm) | 5959 ------------------------------------------------- ``` ## Ethernet Gateway [Skyway](https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/networking/infiniband/skyway/) InfiniBand to Ethernet gateway... - MLXN-GW (gateway operating system) appliance - 16x ports (8 Infiniband EDR/HDR x 8 Ethernet 100/200Gb/s) - Max. bandwidth 1.6Tb/s - High-availability & load-Balancing > ...achieved by leveraging Ethernet **LAG** (Link Aggregation). **LACP** (Link > Aggregation Control Protocol) is used to establish the LAG and to verify > connectivity... ## Cables Cable part numbers... Cable | Speed | Type | Split | Length ----------------|-------|------|-------|--------- MC2207130 | FDR | DAC | no | .5, 1, 1.5, 2 MC220731V | FDR | AOC | no | 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 75, 100 MCP1600-E | EDR | DAC | no | .5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5 MFA1A00-E | EDR | AOC | no | 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 50, 100 MCP1650-H | HDR | DAC | no | .5, 1, 1.5, 2 MCP7H50-H | HDR | DAC | yes | 1, 1.5, 2 MCA1J00-H | HDR | ACC | no | 3, 4 MCA7J50-H | HDR | ACC | yes | 3, 4 MFS1S00-HxxxE | HDR | AOC | no | 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 50, 100, 130, 150 MFS1S50-HxxxE | HDR | AOC | yes | 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 LinkX product family for Mellanox cables and transceivers * **DAC**, (passive) direct attach copper - low price - up to 2 meters (at HDR) - simple copper wires - no electronics - consume (almost) zero power - lowest latency * **ACC**, active copper cables (aka active DAC) - consumes 4 to 5 Watts - include signal-boosting integrated circuits (ICs) - extend the reach up to 4 meters (at 200G HDR) * **AOC**, active optical cables DAC-in-a-Rack connect servers and storage to **top-of-rack (TOR)** switches (passive/active) **splitter cables**... * DAC/ACC - typically used to connect HDR100 HCAs to a HDR TOR switch - enabling a 40-port HDR switch to support 80-ports of 100G HDR100 - 1:2 splitter breakout cable in DAC copper... (QSFP56 to 2xQSFP56) * AOC ...1:2 splitter optical breakout cable... (QSFP56 to 2xQSFP56) ## Firmware **MFT** (Mellanox firmware tools)... * Interface with the HCA firmware... * ...query firmware information * ...customize firmware images * ...burn firmware image to a device * Configuration...`/etc/mft` * References - <https://network.nvidia.com/products/adapter-software/firmware-tools/> - <https://github.com/Mellanox/mstflint> Installation ...[MLNX_OFED](https://network.nvidia.com/products/infiniband-drivers/linux/mlnx_ofed/) include the required packages... ```sh dnf install -y mft kmod-kernel-mft-mlnx usbutils ``` ...packages include an init-script... ```sh systemctd start mst.service ``` ### Devices ...can be accessed by their **PCI ID** ```sh # ...find PCI ID using lxpci >>> lspci -d 15b3: 21:00.0 Infiniband controller: Mellanox Technologies MT28908 Family [ConnectX-6] # ...query the firmware on a device using the PCI ID >>> mstflint -d 21:00.0 query Image type: FS4 FW Version: 20.32.1010 ``` ...when the IB driver is loaded...access a device by **device name**.. ```sh # ...find the device name >>> ibv_devinfo | grep hca_id hca_id: mlx5_0 # ...query the firmware on a device using the device name >>> mstflint -d mlx5_0 query ... ``` **PSID** (Parameter-Set IDentification) of the channel adapter... ```sh >>> mlxfwmanager --query | grep PSID PSID: SM_2121000001000 ``` - ...PSID used to download the correct firmware for a device - ...start with `MT_`. `SM_`, or `AS_` indicate vendor re-labeled cards ### `mlxconfig` **Reboot for configuration changes to take effect** Change device configurations without reburning the firmware... ```sh # ...only a single device is present... mlxconfig query | grep LINK PHY_COUNT_LINK_UP_DELAY DELAY_NONE(0) LINK_TYPE_P1 IB(1) KEEP_ETH_LINK_UP_P1 True(1) KEEP_IB_LINK_UP_P1 False(0) KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_BOOT_P1 True(1) KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_STANDBY_P1 False(0) AUTO_POWER_SAVE_LINK_DOWN_P1 False(0) UNKNOWN_UPLINK_MAC_FLOOD_P1 False(0) # ...set configuration mlxconfig -d $device set KEEP_IB_LINK_UP_P1=0 KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_BOOT_P1=1 ``` Reset the device configuration to default... ```sh mlxconfig -d $device reset ``` ### Upgrade Firmware **`mlxfwmanager`** — Update HCA firmware[^hrnj5] [^hrnj5]: Updating Firmware After Installation, Nvidia Documentation <https://docs.nvidia.com/networking/display/MLNXOFEDv531001/Updating+Firmware+After+Installation> ```bash # get the current firmware version mlxfwmanager --query | grep FW # update the firmware >>> mlxfwmanager --online -u #... PSID: MT_0000000222 Versions: Current Available FW 20.32.1010 20.35.1012 PXE 3.6.0502 3.6.0804 UEFI 14.25.0017 14.28.0015 #... ``` Decouple from the login terminal (useful for automation over SSH) ```bash log_file=/var/log/mlxfwmanager-$(date +%Y%m%d).log nohup mlxfwmanager --no-progress --online --update --yes \ &>/dev/null >> $log_file & disown ``` ### Downgrade Firmware Identify the device and download the correct firmware[^hrnj5] archive: [^hrnj5]: Firmware Downloads, Nvidia <https://network.nvidia.com/support/firmware> ```bash # identify the device >>> mlxfwmanager --query | grep -e Part -e PSID Part Number: MCX653105A-ECA_Ax PSID: MT_0000000222 # download the firmware >>> wget https://www.mellanox.com/downloads/firmware/fw-ConnectX6-rel-20_41_1000-MCX653105A-ECA_Ax-UEFI-14.34.12-FlexBoot-3.7.400.bin.zip # extract the archive >>> unzip fw-ConnectX6-rel-20_41_1000-MCX653105A-ECA_Ax-UEFI-14.34.12-FlexBoot-3.7.400.bin.zi ``` Identify the device path… - …using `mst` …make sure to select to correct device if there are multiple - …format of device name is `/dev/mst/mt<dev_id>_pci{_cr0|conf0}` ```bash >>> mst start # find the device name under the column MST >>> mst status -v MST modules: ------------ MST PCI module is not loaded MST PCI configuration module loaded PCI devices: ------------ DEVICE_TYPE MST PCI RDMA NET NUMA ConnectX6(rev:0) /dev/mst/mt4123_pciconf0 81:00.0 mlx5_0 net-ib0 1 ``` Burn the firmware image: ```bash >>> flint -d /dev/mst/mt4123_pciconf0 -i fw-ConnectX6-rel-20_41_1000-MCX653105A-ECA_Ax-UEFI-14.34.12-FlexBoot-3.7.400.bin burn Current FW version on flash: 20.43.1014 New FW version: 20.41.1000 Note: The new FW version is older than the current FW version on flash. Do you want to continue ? (y/n) [n] : y FSMST_INITIALIZE - OK Writing Boot image component - OK Restoring signature - OK -I- To load new FW run mlxfwreset or reboot machine. ``` ### `mlxcables` ...work against the cables connected to the devices on the machine... - `mst cable add`...discover the cables that are connected to the local devices - `mlxcables`...access the cables... - ...get cable IDs... - ...upgrade firmware on the cables ```bash >>> mlxcables -q ... Cable name : mt4123_pciconf0_cable_0 ... Identifier : QSFP28 (11h) Technology : Copper cable unequalized (a0h) Compliance : 50GBASE-CR, ... HDR,EDR,FDR,QDR,DDR,SDR ... Vendor : Mellanox Serial number : MT2214VS04725 Part number : MCP7H50-H01AR30 ... Length [m] : 1 m ``` ### `mlxlink` `mlxlink`...check and debug link status ```bash >>> mlxlink -d mlx5_0 --show_device Operational Info ---------------- State : Active Physical state : LinkUp Speed : IB-SDR Width : 2x FEC : No FEC Loopback Mode : No Loopback Auto Negotiation : ON Supported Info -------------- Enabled Link Speed : 0x00000001 (SDR) Supported Cable Speed : 0x0000007f (HDR,EDR,FDR,FDR10,QDR,DDR,SDR) ... ```