Adding Thunderbolt to a NAS server for ultra fast local connectivity - 40 Gbps?

[cbergeron]

I just put together a post about adding a Thunderbolt PCIe card to a DIY NAS server for ultra fast point to point connectivity.  I'm only getting around 20 Gbps now, but if anyone has any suggestions on how I might be able to get closer to the 40Gbps that TB is rated for (theoretical).

 

Technically it's not a NAS itself, but it's also not a DAS because it's not using native Thunderbolt.  It's using Ethernet over Thunderbolt, so I guess it is a NAS but in a bridge / token ring style network layout.

 

I appreciate any feedback or suggestions!  Thanks!

[Pixel5]

PCI-E 3.0 4x only has a little over 30Gbps maximum bandwidth you would need an 8x PCI-E 3.0 thunderbolt card to get more than that.

 

this is also why every single 40Gbe network card you can find needs an 8x slot and usually it would be cheaper and easier to just get two used 40Gbe network cards and setup a direct connection between the server and the client that needs the performance.