The terms of the software license agreement included with any software you download will control your use of the software.

INTEL SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT

Identify NIC driver and supported driver version for ESXi server August 12, 2014 April 15, 2014 Lately I troubleshoot some NIC driver problems in VMware ESXi 5.x. During the troubleshooting I needed to Identify the NIC driver, software version used and the latest driver version supported by VMware. Here are the steps outlined.

IMPORTANT - READ BEFORE COPYING, INSTALLING OR USING.

Do not use or load this software and any associated materials (collectively,

the 'Software') until you have carefully read the following terms and

conditions. By loading or using the Software, you agree to the terms of this

Agreement. If you do not wish to so agree, do not install or use the Software.

LICENSES: Please Note:

- If you are a network administrator, the 'Site License' below shall

apply to you.

- If you are an end user, the 'Single User License' shall apply to you.

- If you are an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), the 'OEM License'

shall apply to you.

SITE LICENSE. You may copy the Software onto your organization's computers

for your organization's use, and you may make a reasonable number of

back-up copies of the Software, subject to these conditions:

1. This Software is licensed for use only in conjunction with Intel

component products. Use of the Software in conjunction with non-Intel

component products is not licensed hereunder.

2. You may not copy, modify, rent, sell, distribute or transfer any part

of the Software except as provided in this Agreement, and you agree to

prevent unauthorized copying of the Software.

3. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software.

4. You may not sublicense or permit simultaneous use of the Software by

more than one user.

5. The Software may include portions offered on terms in addition to those

set out here, as set out in a license accompanying those portions.

SINGLE USER LICENSE. You may copy the Software onto a single computer for

your personal, noncommercial use, and you may make one back-up copy of the

Software, subject to these conditions:

1. This Software is licensed for use only in conjunction with Intel

component products. Use of the Software in conjunction with non-Intel

component products is not licensed hereunder.

2. You may not copy, modify, rent, sell, distribute or transfer any part

of the Software except as provided in this Agreement, and you agree to

prevent unauthorized copying of the Software.

3. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software.

4. You may not sublicense or permit simultaneous use of the Software by

more than one user.

5. The Software may include portions offered on terms in addition to those

set out here, as set out in a license accompanying those portions.

OEM LICENSE: You may reproduce and distribute the Software only as an

integral part of or incorporated in Your product or as a standalone

Software maintenance update for existing end users of Your products,

excluding any other standalone products, subject to these conditions:

1. This Software is licensed for use only in conjunction with Intel

component products. Use of the Software in conjunction with non-Intel

component products is not licensed hereunder.

2. You may not copy, modify, rent, sell, distribute or transfer any part

of the Software except as provided in this Agreement, and you agree to

prevent unauthorized copying of the Software.

3. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software.

4. You may only distribute the Software to your customers pursuant to a

written license agreement. Such license agreement may be a 'break-the-

seal' license agreement. At a minimum such license shall safeguard

Intel's ownership rights to the Software.

5. The Software may include portions offered on terms in addition to those

set out here, as set out in a license accompanying those portions.

NO OTHER RIGHTS. No rights or licenses are granted by Intel to You, expressly

or by implication, with respect to any proprietary information or patent,

copyright, mask work, trademark, trade secret, or other intellectual property

right owned or controlled by Intel, except as expressly provided in this

Agreement.

OWNERSHIP OF SOFTWARE AND COPYRIGHTS. Title to all copies of the Software

remains with Intel or its suppliers. The Software is copyrighted and

protected by the laws of the United States and other countries, and

international treaty provisions. You may not remove any copyright notices

from the Software. Intel may make changes to the Software, or to items

referenced therein, at any time without notice, but is not obligated to

support or update the Software. Except as otherwise expressly provided, Intel

grants no express or implied right under Intel patents, copyrights,

trademarks, or other intellectual property rights. You may transfer the

Software only if the recipient agrees to be fully bound by these terms and if

you retain no copies of the Software.

LIMITED MEDIA WARRANTY. If the Software has been delivered by Intel on

physical media, Intel warrants the media to be free from material physical

defects for a period of ninety days after delivery by Intel. If such a defect

is found, return the media to Intel for replacement or alternate delivery of

the Software as Intel may select.

EXCLUSION OF OTHER WARRANTIES. EXCEPT AS PROVIDED ABOVE, THE SOFTWARE IS

PROVIDED 'AS IS' WITHOUT ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTY OF ANY KIND

INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NONINFRINGEMENT, OR FITNESS FOR A

PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Intel does not warrant or assume responsibility for the

accuracy or completeness of any information, text, graphics, links or other

items contained within the Software.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. IN NO EVENT SHALL INTEL OR ITS SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE

FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOST PROFITS,

BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, OR LOST INFORMATION) ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OR

INABILITY TO USE THE SOFTWARE, EVEN IF INTEL HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE

POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME JURISDICTIONS PROHIBIT EXCLUSION OR

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL

DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. YOU MAY ALSO HAVE

OTHER LEGAL RIGHTS THAT VARY FROM JURISDICTION TO JURISDICTION.

TERMINATION OF THIS AGREEMENT. Intel may terminate this Agreement at any time

if you violate its terms. Upon termination, you will immediately destroy the

Software or return all copies of the Software to Intel.

APPLICABLE LAWS. Claims arising under this Agreement shall be governed by the

laws of California, excluding its principles of conflict of laws and the

United Nations Convention on Contracts for the Sale of Goods. You may not

export the Software in violation of applicable export laws and regulations.

Intel is not obligated under any other agreements unless they are in writing

and signed by an authorized representative of Intel.

GOVERNMENT RESTRICTED RIGHTS. The Software is provided with 'RESTRICTED

RIGHTS.' Use, duplication, or disclosure by the Government is subject to

restrictions as set forth in FAR52.227-14 and DFAR252.227-7013 et seq. or its

successor. Use of the Software by the Government constitutes acknowledgment

of Intel's proprietary rights therein. Contractor or Manufacturer is Intel

2200 Mission College Blvd., Santa Clara, CA 95052.

Various versions of VMware* ESXi widely support Intel® Ethernet devices.

VMware, Inc., maintains hardware compatibility guides for various versions of VMware ESXi.

Contact your system hardware vendor directly before adding an Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter to a certified system.

How do I find Intel Ethernet Network Adapters and drivers in the VMware Compatibility Guide?

1. Go to VMware Compatibility Guide: I/O Device Search.
2. Select Product Release Version: Pick the product version (optional).
3. Select Brand Name: Intel.
4. Select I/O Device Type: Network.
5. In Keyword, enter part of the device name in quotes. For example, X710.
6. Optional for SR-IOV: In Features, select SR-IOV.
7. In Search Results, click the adapter name in the model column.
8. In Model Release Details, view the list of all releases and compatible device drivers.
9. For details on the release and driver, including a link to the driver download site, click + to expand the row.

Note	Driver types are inbox or async: The inbox driver: Version included by VMware* in the ESXi ISO image The async driver: Posted on the VMware driver support site and updates the inbox driver

Where do I get technical support?

Technical support for VMware driver and operating system issues are provided by VMware Support or through the VMware Communities.

Check with Intel Customer Support about warranty service for defective retail Intel Ethernet Network Adapters.

The driver title lists supported Intel Ethernet Controllers. How do I know if the driver is correct for my Intel Ethernet Network Adapter?

Note

Intel recommends using the Native Mode API-based ESXi drivers for all Intel® Ethernet Network Adapters. Native Mode API-based ESXi drivers naming scheme ends with the letter n. For example, the Intel Ethernet 700 Series Network Adapter Native Mode API-based ESXi driver is named i40en. When selecting a driver from the VMware VCG site, use caution to select the Native Mode API-based ESXi driver since the version number may be lower than the legacy (VMKLinux API-based) driver.

See the table below for examples of the recent Intel Ethernet Network Adapters and how they're mapped to controllers and VMware Native Mode API-based ESXi drivers.

Driver	Controller / Connection	Adapter
i40en	Intel® Ethernet Controller XL710	Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710-QDA1 Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter XL710-QDA2 Intel® Ethernet I/O Module XL710-Q1 Intel® Ethernet I/O Module XL710-Q2
	Intel® Ethernet Controller X710	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 Controller XXV710	Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710-DA1 Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710-DA2 Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter XXV710 OCP
	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 Connection X722 for 1GbE
ixgben	Intel® Ethernet Controller X550	Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X550-T1 Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X550-T2
	Intel® Ethernet Controller X540	Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X540-T1 Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X540-T2
	Intel® 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller	Intel® Ethernet Converged Network Adapter X520 (-SR2, -SR1, -LR1, -DA2, -T2, and so on)
		Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter X520 (-SR2, -SR1, -LR1, -DA2, -T2, and so on)
	Intel® Ethernet Connection X552	Intel® Ethernet Connection X552 10 GbE Backplane Intel® Ethernet Connection X552 10 GbE SFP+ Intel® Ethernet Connection X552/X557-AT 10GBASE-T
igbn	Intel® Ethernet Controller I350	Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I350 (-T2, -T4, -F2, -F4)
	Intel® Ethernet Connection I354	Intel® Ethernet Connection I354 1.0 GbE Backplane Intel® Ethernet Connection I354 2.5 GbE Backplane
	Intel® 82580 Gigabit Ethernet Controller	Intel® Ethernet Server Adapter I340 (-T4, -F4)

Related topic

Guest Operating System Support for SR-IOV in VMware vSphere* 6.5 U1 and 6.7