Network Cards Used For My VMware ESX Home Lab

# VMware

I often get asked to to recommend a network card for use in a work or home VMware ESX(i) home lab.  As well as the onboard NICs of my HP Proliant ML110/ML115’s,  that I generally use for the service console traffic, I use either a PCIe based dual port Intel Pro 1000 PT or HP NC380T.  Both are on the VMware ESX I/O compatibility list.

I have used both in anger for sometime now and have found them both to offer solid performance event under heavy load.  I bought my cards off of EBay which I found to regularly have both cards available for sale.

Can’t beat a picture of kit (brings out the anorak in me :) ) so here they are (even took the photos myself)…

Intel Pro 1000 PT

Intel-Pro-1000-PT

HP NC380T

HP-NC380T

 

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  2. QLogic Converged Network Adapter (CNA) Range During my recent trip to VMworld 2009 I had the...
  3. Using Jumbo Frames on an HP Proliant ML115 G5 A question I have been asked a couple of times...

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2 Responses to “Network Cards Used For My VMware ESX Home Lab”

  1. [...] Simon Seagrave’s home lab (TechHead.Co.Uk) [...]

  2. [...] to add a PCI or PCIe based network adapter which has the jumbo frames functionality.  I use these two VMware ESX/ESXi approved network cards mentioned in my earlier post here, both of which support jumbo frames and can be picked up for a [...]

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