Recently, I received an ethernet card for free. It is a sample.  TP-link TX401, 10Gigabit PCIe Network Adapter. There are not many choices on the market for 10Gbe RJ45 network cards. This is, I believe, the most affordable one.

Amazon.com Link https://amzn.to/3W6x61A

TP-link TX401
TP-link TX401

Let me open it and see what is inside.

TX-401 Items
TX-401 Items

Inside the box, you can see the picture above, a TX401 adapter, a low-profile bracket, a 1.5m CAT6A cable, and one CD with driver software.

There is a big heatsink attached to the front of the card. It covers the chipset.

TX401 Heatsink
TX401 Heatsink

 

I also have the back picture for record.

TX401 back
TX401 back

 

  • 10 Gbps PCIe Network Card: With the latest 10GBase-T Technology, TX401 delivers extreme speeds of up to 10 Gbps, which is 10× faster than typical Gigabit adapters, guaranteeing smooth data transmissions for both internet access and local data transmissions[1]
  • Versatile Compatibility: With extreme speed and ultra-low latency, 10GBase-T is backwards compatible with multiple data rates (10 Gbps, 5 Gbps, 2.5 Gbps, 1 Gbps, 100 Mbps), automatically negotiating between higher and lower speed connections
  • QoS: Quality of Service technology delivers prioritized performance for gamers and ensures to avoid network congestion for PC gaming
  • Free CAT6A Ethernet Cable: To maximize TX401’s performance, a 1.5 m CAT6A Ethernet Cable is included—rated for up to 10 Gbps while a regular cable is only rated for 1 Gbps
  • Low-Profile and Full-Height Brackets: In addition to the standard bracket, a low-profile bracket is provided for mini tower computer cases
  • Comprehensive System Support – Fully compatible with Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7, Windows Servers 2019/2016/2012 R2, and Linux to meet your diverse operating system needs
  • Industry leading 2-year warranty and free 24/7 technical support

I don’t have another 10Gbe device in my network, but I have 2.5Gbe network card. So, I put the 2.5Gbe adapter into a PVE system. The 10Gbe TX401 is installed in my PC, or desktop running Windows 11. Both of them connect to the 2.5G switch through CAT5e cables.

I have to say TX401 needs to install the driver coming with the CD.

Networking in Windows 11
Networking in Windows 11

Windows 11 can recognize it as a Marvell AQtion 10Gbit Network Adapter. The connection speed is 2500Mbps or 2.5G.

The version of the driver is 3.1.7.0.

I run a few commands to double-check the interface of the network in the PVE system.

root@pve:~# lshw -class network -short
H/W path            Device     Class          Description
=========================================================
/0/100/1.2/0.2/0/0  eno1       network        RTL8125 2.5GbE Controller
/0/100/1.2/0.2/1/0  enp4s0     network        RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Giga

eno1 is the 2.5Gbe PCIe network adapter.

enp4s0 is the onboard gigabit ethernet port. I am not using it.

root@pve:~# ethtool eno1
Settings for eno1:
        Supported ports: [ TP    MII ]
        Supported link modes:   10baseT/Half 10baseT/Full
                                100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
                                1000baseT/Full
                                2500baseT/Full
        Supported pause frame use: Symmetric Receive-only
        Supports auto-negotiation: Yes
        Supported FEC modes: Not reported
        Advertised link modes:  10baseT/Half 10baseT/Full
                                100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
                                1000baseT/Full
                                2500baseT/Full
        Advertised pause frame use: Symmetric Receive-only
        Advertised auto-negotiation: Yes
        Advertised FEC modes: Not reported
        Link partner advertised link modes:  100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
                                             1000baseT/Full
                                             2500baseT/Full
        Link partner advertised pause frame use: No
        Link partner advertised auto-negotiation: Yes
        Link partner advertised FEC modes: Not reported
        Speed: 2500Mb/s
        Duplex: Full
        Auto-negotiation: on
        master-slave cfg: preferred slave
        master-slave status: slave
        Port: Twisted Pair
        PHYAD: 0
        Transceiver: external
        MDI-X: Unknown
        Supports Wake-on: pumbg
        Wake-on: d
        Link detected: yes

I use the iperf3 to test the speed between two hosts through a 2.5g switch with CAT5e cables. I did multiple tests, almost in the same range.

$ iperf3 -c 192.168.100.4
Connecting to host 192.168.100.4, port 5201
[  4] local 192.168.100.147 port 11221 connected to 192.168.100.4 port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bandwidth
[  4]   0.00-1.00   sec   282 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   1.00-2.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   2.00-3.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   3.00-4.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   4.00-5.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   5.00-6.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   6.00-7.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   7.00-8.00   sec   282 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   8.00-9.00   sec   283 MBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec
[  4]   9.00-10.00  sec   282 MBytes  2.36 Gbits/sec
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bandwidth
[  4]   0.00-10.00  sec  2.76 GBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec                  sender
[  4]   0.00-10.00  sec  2.76 GBytes  2.37 Gbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

I can tell the TX401 card is great. At least in the 2.5G connection speed, it meets my expectation.

I have a plan, If I have another TX401 adapter, I can do a Peer to Peer test for 10G speed. Or, if I have an SFP+ network card and a DAC cable to connect one host to the switch. An SFP+ to RJ45 module in my switch SFP+ port, I can test the 10G speed too.

OK, for now, my 2.5G speed test on the TP-Link TX401 is done here.  If you planning to make your 10Gigabits network in the future, I recommend TX401 .

List of the test equipment:

 

David Yin

David is a blogger, geek, and web developer — founder of FreeInOutBoard.com. If you like his post, you can say thank you here

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