Mellanox Voltaire Grid Director 4036E (VLT-30034) 36-Port QDR InfiniBand Edge Switch: This is a 1U fully managed 36-port QDR InfiniBand edge switch operating at 40 Gb/s per port with an integrated 10 Gigabit Ethernet gateway. This is a professionally refurbished unit. It is NOT an FDR, EDR, or HDR switch and it does NOT support InfiniBand speeds above QDR (40 Gb/s per port).
Engineering Context
The VLT-30034 (Grid Director 4036E) provides 36 QSFP ports each operating at 40 Gb/s QDR for an aggregate switching capacity of 2.88 Tb/s in a fully non-blocking architecture. The integrated Ethernet gateway bridges between the InfiniBand fabric and 10 Gigabit Ethernet networks without requiring a separate gateway appliance. The switch supports subnet management, VLAN segmentation, packet filtering, IPv4/IPv6, RADIUS authentication, and jumbo frames. It ships in a 1U rack-mountable form factor with redundant power supplies. Voltaire was acquired by Mellanox Technologies in 2010, and this product was subsequently sold under the Mellanox brand.
Deployment and Use Cases
The VLT-30034 is deployed as an edge or leaf switch in QDR InfiniBand fabrics for HPC clusters running MPI workloads, financial trading systems requiring low-latency interconnects, and research computing environments. The integrated Ethernet gateway enables iSCSI or NFS storage access from InfiniBand-attached compute nodes without additional networking equipment. Legacy QDR clusters can also retain these switches at the edge tier for backward-compatible connectivity to older ConnectX-2 and ConnectX-3 HCAs.
Technical Specifications
- Model: VLT-30034 (Voltaire Grid Director 4036E)
- Manufacturer: Voltaire (acquired by Mellanox Technologies, 2010)
- Switch Type: InfiniBand QDR Edge Switch with Ethernet Gateway
- Ports: 36 x QSFP (40 Gb/s per port)
- Aggregate Bandwidth: 2.88 Tb/s (full bisection)
- InfiniBand Speed: QDR (40 Gb/s)
- Ethernet Gateway: Integrated 10 GbE
- Management: Fully managed (Subnet Manager, CLI, SNMP)
- Features: VLAN, packet filtering, IPv4/IPv6, RADIUS, jumbo frames
- Form Factor: 1U rack-mountable
- Power Supply: Redundant
- Condition: Refurbished
Compatibility and Hard Constraints
The VLT-30034 uses QSFP connectors and requires QSFP InfiniBand cables (passive copper or active fiber) rated for QDR speeds. It is NOT compatible with QSFP28 or QSFP56 cables at higher per-port speeds; cables negotiate down to QDR only. It does NOT support FDR (56 Gb/s), EDR (100 Gb/s), or HDR (200 Gb/s) InfiniBand speeds. It is compatible with Mellanox ConnectX-2, ConnectX-3, and ConnectX-3 Pro HCA adapters with QSFP ports. The VLT-30013 (Voltaire 4036) is the variant without the Ethernet gateway. Airflow direction must be matched with compatible fan and PSU modules.
Why Choose T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS
T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS provides this VLT-30034 as a professionally refurbished unit with full functional testing including port validation, management interface verification, and power supply confirmation. Technical consultation is available to verify compatibility with your specific InfiniBand fabric and cabling infrastructure. Global shipping with 1-3 business day handling time.
Frequently Asked Questions
What ports does the VLT-30034 have?
The VLT-30034 ports are 36 x QSFP (40 Gb/s per port), as listed in the specifications for VLT-30034.
What is the VLT-30034 NOT compatible with?
It is NOT an FDR, EDR, or HDR switch and it does NOT support InfiniBand speeds above QDR (40 Gb/s per port). Confirm fitment against your platform before ordering VLT-30034.
What condition is the VLT-30034 supplied in, and who sells it?
The VLT-30034 is supplied in Refurbished condition by T.E.S IT-SOLUTIONS from EU stock, with 1-3 business day handling and worldwide B2B shipping. See https://www.tes-itsolutions.com/product-page/mellanox-vlt-30034-4036e-36-ports-40gb-s-infiniband-qdr-edge-switch.
