Frequently Asked Questions for SR-IOV on Intel® Ethernet Server Adapters

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Product Information & Documentation

000005722

03/26/2021

Find answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ) about using Intel® Ethernet Adapters with single root I/O virtualization (SR-IOV).

Click or the topic for details:

Which Intel® Ethernet Adapters and Intel® Ethernet Controllers support SR-IOV?
  • Intel® Ethernet 800 Series
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter E810 (All Product SKUs)
  • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter X722 Series
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter X722-DA2
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter X722-DA4
  • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710 Series
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710-QDA1
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710-QDA2
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710-QDA1 for OCP
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710-QDA2 for OCP
  • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710 Series
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710-DA1
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710-DA2
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710-DA1 for OCP
    • Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710-DA2 for OCP
  • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X710 Series
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X710-DA2
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X710-DA4
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X710-T4
    • Intel® Ethernet Controller X710/X557-AT 10GBASE-T
  • Intel® Ethernet Connection X722
    • Intel® Ethernet Connection X722 for 10GBASE-T
    • Intel® Ethernet Connection X722 for 10GbE backplane
    • Intel® Ethernet Connection X722 for 10GbE QSFP+
    • Intel® Ethernet Connection X722 for 10GbE SFP+
  • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X550
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X550-T1
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X550-T2
  • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X540
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X540-T1
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X540-T2
  • Intel® 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
    • Intel® Ethernet 82599EB 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
    • Intel® Ethernet 82599ES 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
    • Intel® Ethernet 82599EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
  • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520-DA2
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520-SR1
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520-SR2
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520-LR1
    • Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520-T2
  • Intel® Ethernet Controller I350
    • Intel® Ethernet Controller I350-AM4
    • Intel® Ethernet Controller I350-AM2
    • Intel® Ethernet Controller I350-BT2
  • Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I350
    • Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I350-T2
    • Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I350-T4
    • Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I350-F2
    • Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I350-F4
Note PCI-SIG SR-IOV requires support from the operating system and hardware platform. Some systems support SR-IOV through some PCI Express* slots, but not on some other slots. Refer to your manufacturer's documentation for SR-IOV support on your system.
Which hypervisors support SR-IOV on Intel® Ethernet Adapters?
Which guest operating systems (GOS) have virtual function drivers?

Virtual function (VF) drivers for guest operating systems are available for:

  • Windows Server 2019*
  • Windows Server 2016*
  • Windows Server 2012*
  • Windows Server 2012* R2
  • Linux* 2.6.30 kernel or later
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.0* and later
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11* SP1 and later
  • Ubuntu* 14.04 LTS and 16.04 LTS
Where can I get the virtual function (VF) drivers?The Intel® Ethernet Software Package for Windows includes VF Drivers for Windows*:Linux* VF drivers are available from the following locations:

You can download FreeBSD VF drivers from:

How can I make SR-IOV work in Linux*?

Most Linux* distributions support SR-IOV with the Intel® Ethernet Network Adapters.

Can I use SR-IOV with Microsoft Hyper-V*?

Yes. Hyper-V* in Windows Server 2012*, Windows Server 2012* R2, Windows Server 2016*, and Windows Server 2019* include support for SR-IOV–capable network devices. An SR-IOV virtual function of a physical network adapter can assign directly to a virtual machine. Earlier versions of Hyper-V don't support SR-IOV.

Can I use SR-IOV with VMware* products?

VMware vSphere* 7.0, 6.7, and 6.5 supports SR-IOV.

Note VMware vSphere* 7.0, 6.7, and 6.5 don't support SR-IOV on 1Gb products.
Note VMware vSphere* doesn't Support Simultaneous FCoE and SR-IOV.
Intel® Ethernet Converged Network X520, X540, and X550 adapters support both Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) and SR-IOV. However, you cannot simultaneously configure FCoE and SR-IOV on the same physical port in VMware’s implementation of SR-IOV for Intel® Ethernet Adapters.
Related topics
Intel SR-IOV Explanation
PCI-SIG* SR-IOV Primer: An Introduction to SR-IOV Technology
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Connectivity
Technology Brief: Intel Virtualization Technology for Connectivity
Intel Ethernet Adapters Compatibility with VMware*
Intel Communities: Wired Ethernet
Compatibility Information for Intel® Ethernet Network Connections, Intel® Ethernet Controllers, and Intel® Ethernet Adapters Using VMware ESXi* Driver and NVM Image