I’m setting up an NVIDIA BlueField-2 on a host running VMware ESXi 8 , and I need to confirm the correct BIOS/UEFI configuration on the DPU for full compatibility with SR-IOV .1 VF from port P0 and 1 VF from port P1 to each VM.
Key questions:
Which operation mode should be used for ESXi 8 — Embedded , Host , Separated , or Switchdev ?
In the DPU BIOS, which options must be enabled or disabled for SR-IOV? (e.g., SR-IOV Enable , IOMMU , PXE Boot , Secure Boot , Hardware Offload ).
What is the recommended firmware/BFB version for proper VF detection under ESXi 8?
Should the PFs be set to Host-visible or Embedded-visible so ESXi can detect the VFs?
My setup:
Thanks
Jose
If someone needs guidance on the compatible settings for using this card with ESXi 8.0.3, I can share the configuration details.
root@localhost:/lib/modules/5.15.0-1074-bluefield/updates/dkms# sudo mlxconfig -d /dev/mst/mt41686_pciconf0 q
Device #1:
----------
Device type: BlueField2
Name: MBF2H332A-AECO_Ax_Bx
Description: BlueField-2 P-Series DPU 25GbE Dual-Port SFP56; PCIe Gen4 x8; Crypto and Secure Boot Enabled; 16GB on-board DDR; 1GbE OOB management; HHHL
Device: /dev/mst/mt41686_pciconf0
Configurations: Next Boot
ACCURATE_TX_SCHEDULER False(0)
ADVANCED_PCI_SETTINGS False(0)
AES_XTS_TWEAK_INC_64 False(0)
ALLOW_RD_COUNTERS True(1)
ATS_ENABLED False(0)
AUTO_POWER_SAVE_LINK_DOWN_P1 False(0)
AUTO_POWER_SAVE_LINK_DOWN_P2 False(0)
BOOT_DBG_LOG False(0)
BOOT_INTERRUPT_DIS False(0)
BOOT_LACP_DIS False(0)
BOOT_PKEY 0
BOOT_UNDI_NETWORK_WAIT 0
BOOT_VLAN_EN False(0)
BOOT_VLAN 1
CLAMP_TGT_RATE_AFTER_TIME_INC_P1 True(1)
CLAMP_TGT_RATE_AFTER_TIME_INC_P2 True(1)
CLAMP_TGT_RATE_P1 False(0)
CLAMP_TGT_RATE_P2 False(0)
CNP_802P_PRIO_P1 6
CNP_802P_PRIO_P2 6
CNP_DSCP_P1 48
CNP_DSCP_P2 48
CQE_COMPRESSION BALANCED(0)
CRYPTO_POLICY UNRESTRICTED(1)
DCBX_CEE_P1 False(0)
DCBX_CEE_P2 False(0)
DCBX_IEEE_P1 False(0)
DCBX_IEEE_P2 False(0)
DCBX_WILLING_P1 False(0)
DCBX_WILLING_P2 False(0)
DCE_TCP_G_P1 1019
DCE_TCP_G_P2 1019
DCE_TCP_RTT_P1 1
DCE_TCP_RTT_P2 1
DCR_LIFO_SIZE 16384
DO_NOT_CLEAR_PORT_STATS_P1 False(0)
DO_NOT_CLEAR_PORT_STATS_P2 False(0)
DPU_RESET_NOTIFICATION_ENABLED DISABLED(0)
DUP_MAC_ACTION_P1 LAST_CFG(0)
DUP_MAC_ACTION_P2 LAST_CFG(0)
DYNAMIC_VF_MSIX_TABLE False(0)
ECPF_ESWITCH_MANAGER ECPF(1)
ECPF_PAGE_SUPPLIER ECPF(1)
ESWITCH_HAIRPIN_DESCRIPTORS Array\[0..7\]
ESWITCH_HAIRPIN_TOT_BUFFER_SIZE Array\[0..7\]
ETH_ETS_GRANULARITY_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ETH_ETS_GRANULARITY_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ETS_SCHED_MODE_P1 device_default(0)
ETS_SCHED_MODE_P2 device_default(0)
EXP_ROM_NVME_UEFI_x86_ENABLE True(1)
EXP_ROM_PXE_ENABLE True(1)
EXP_ROM_UEFI_ARM_ENABLE True(1)
EXP_ROM_UEFI_x86_ENABLE True(1)
EXP_ROM_VIRTIO_BLK_UEFI_ARM_ENABLE False(0)
EXP_ROM_VIRTIO_BLK_UEFI_x86_ENABLE False(0)
EXP_ROM_VIRTIO_NET_PXE_ENABLE False(0)
EXP_ROM_VIRTIO_NET_UEFI_ARM_ENABLE False(0)
EXP_ROM_VIRTIO_NET_UEFI_x86_ENABLE False(0)
FLEX_IPV4_OVER_VXLAN_PORT 0
FLEX_PARSER_PROFILE_ENABLE 0
HAIRPIN_DATA_BUFFER_LOCK False(0)
HIDE_PORT2_PF False(0)
HOST_CHAINING_CACHE_DISABLE False(0)
HOST_CHAINING_DESCRIPTORS Array\[0..7\]
HOST_CHAINING_MODE DISABLED(0)
HOST_CHAINING_TOTAL_BUFFER_SIZE Array\[0..7\]
HOST_PRIV_FLASH_ACCESS DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_FW_UPDATE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_NIC_RESET DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_NV_GLOBAL DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_NV_HOST DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_NV_INTERNAL_CPU DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_NV_PORT DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
HOST_PRIV_PCC_UPDATE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
IB_ETS_GRANULARITY_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
IB_ETS_GRANULARITY_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
IB_ROUTING_MODE_P1 LID(1)
IB_ROUTING_MODE_P2 LID(1)
ICM_CACHE_MODE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
INITIAL_ALPHA_VALUE_P1 1023
INITIAL_ALPHA_VALUE_P2 1023
INTERNAL_CPU_ESWITCH_MANAGER ECPF(0)
INTERNAL_CPU_IB_VPORT0 ECPF(0)
INTERNAL_CPU_MODEL EMBEDDED_CPU(1)
INTERNAL_CPU_OFFLOAD_ENGINE ENABLED(0)
INTERNAL_CPU_PAGE_SUPPLIER ECPF(0)
INTERNAL_CPU_RSHIM ENABLED(0)
INT_LOG_MAX_PAYLOAD_SIZE AUTOMATIC(0)
IP_OVER_VXLAN_EN False(0)
IP_VER IPv6(1)
KEEP_ETH_LINK_UP_P1 True(1)
KEEP_ETH_LINK_UP_P2 True(1)
KEEP_IB_LINK_UP_P1 False(0)
KEEP_IB_LINK_UP_P2 False(0)
KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_BOOT_P1 True(1)
KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_BOOT_P2 True(1)
KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_STANDBY_P1 False(0)
KEEP_LINK_UP_ON_STANDBY_P2 False(0)
LAG_RESOURCE_ALLOCATION PRE_ALLOCATION(1)
LARGE_MTU_TWEAK_64 False(0)
LEGACY_BOOT_PROTOCOL NONE(0)
LLDP_NB_DCBX_P1 True(1)
LLDP_NB_DCBX_P2 True(1)
LLDP_NB_RX_MODE_P1 OFF(0)
LLDP_NB_RX_MODE_P2 OFF(0)
LLDP_NB_TX_MODE_P1 OFF(0)
LLDP_NB_TX_MODE_P2 OFF(0)
LOG_DCR_HASH_TABLE_SIZE 11
LOG_MAX_OUTSTANDING_READ_ATOMIC 0
LOG_MAX_OUTSTANDING_WQE 7
LOG_MAX_QUEUE 17
LOG_TX_PSN_WINDOW 7
LRO_LOG_TIMEOUT0 6
LRO_LOG_TIMEOUT1 7
LRO_LOG_TIMEOUT2 8
LRO_LOG_TIMEOUT3 13
MANAGEMENT_PF_MODE MNG_PF_ENABLE(1)
MAX_PACKET_LIFETIME 0
MCTP_I3C_DISABLE False(0)
MEMIC_BAR_SIZE 0
MEMIC_SIZE_LIMIT \_256KB(1)
MIN_TIME_BETWEEN_CNPS_P1 4
MIN_TIME_BETWEEN_CNPS_P2 4
MKEY_BY_NAME False(0)
MKEY_BY_NAME_RANGE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
MPFS_MC_LOOPBACK_DISABLE_P1 False(0)
MPFS_MC_LOOPBACK_DISABLE_P2 False(0)
MPFS_UC_LOOPBACK_DISABLE_P1 False(0)
MPFS_UC_LOOPBACK_DISABLE_P2 False(0)
MULTIPATH_DSCP DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
MULTI_PCI_RESOURCE_SHARING DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
MULTI_PORT_VHCA_EN False(0)
NON_PREFETCHABLE_PF_BAR False(0)
NUM_OF_PFC_P1 8
NUM_OF_PFC_P2 8
NUM_OF_PF 3
NUM_OF_TC_P1 \_8_TCs(0)
NUM_OF_TC_P2 \_8_TCs(0)
NUM_OF_VFS 0
NUM_OF_VL_P1 \_4_VLs(3)
NUM_OF_VL_P2 \_4_VLs(3)
NUM_PF_MSIX 127
NUM_PF_MSIX_VALID True(1)
NUM_VF_MSIX 11
NVME_EMULATION_CLASS_CODE 67586
NVME_EMULATION_DEVICE_ID 24577
NVME_EMULATION_ENABLE False(0)
NVME_EMULATION_MAX_QUEUE_DEPTH 0
NVME_EMULATION_NUM_MSIX 0
NVME_EMULATION_NUM_PF 1
NVME_EMULATION_NUM_VF 0
NVME_EMULATION_REVISION_ID 0
NVME_EMULATION_SUBSYSTEM_ID 0
NVME_EMULATION_SUBSYSTEM_VENDOR_ID 0
NVME_EMULATION_VENDOR_ID 5555
P2P_ORDERING_MODE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
PARTIAL_RESET_EN False(0)
PCC_INT_EN False(0)
PCC_INT_NP_RTT_DATA_MODE RTT_V0(64)
PCC_INT_NP_RTT_DSCP_EN False(0)
PCC_INT_NP_RTT_DSCP 26
PCC_INT_SYSTEM_RTT 0
PCIE_CREDIT_TOKEN_TIMEOUT 0
PCIE_IN_BAND_VDM_DISABLE False(0)
PCIE_SMBUS_DISABLE False(0)
PCI_ATOMIC_MODE PCI_ATOMIC_DISABLED_EXT_ATOMIC_ENABLED(0)
PCI_DOWNSTREAM_PORT_OWNER Array\[0..15\]
PCI_SWITCH_EMULATION_ENABLE False(0)
PCI_SWITCH_EMULATION_NUM_PORT 0
PCI_WR_ORDERING per_mkey(0)
PER_PF_NUM_SF True(1)
PF_BAR2_ENABLE False(0)
PF_BAR2_SIZE 0
PF_DEVICE_ID_ENABLE False(0)
PF_DEVICE_ID 41686
PF_LOG_BAR_SIZE 5
PF_NUM_OF_VF 0
PF_NUM_OF_VF_VALID True(1)
PF_NUM_PF_MSIX 63
PF_NUM_PF_MSIX_VALID False(0)
PF_SD_GROUP 0
PF_SF_BAR_SIZE 10
PF_TOTAL_SF 0
PHY_AUTO_NEG_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
PHY_AUTO_NEG_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
PHY_COUNT_LINK_UP_DELAY DELAY_NONE(0)
PHY_FEC_OVERRIDE_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
PHY_FEC_OVERRIDE_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
PHY_RATE_MASK_OVERRIDE_P1 False(0)
PHY_RATE_MASK_OVERRIDE_P2 False(0)
PLDM_FW_UPDATE_DISABLE False(0)
PORT_OWNER True(1)
PRIO_TAG_REQUIRED_EN False(0)
PROG_PARSE_GRAPH False(0)
QOS_TRUST_STATE_P1 TRUST_PCP(1)
QOS_TRUST_STATE_P2 TRUST_PCP(1)
RATE_REDUCE_MONITOR_PERIOD_P1 4
RATE_REDUCE_MONITOR_PERIOD_P2 4
RATE_TO_SET_ON_FIRST_CNP_P1 0
RATE_TO_SET_ON_FIRST_CNP_P2 0
RBT_DISABLE False(0)
RDE_DISABLE False(0)
RDMA_SELECTIVE_REPEAT_EN False(0)
REAL_TIME_CLOCK_ENABLE False(0)
RENEG_ON_CHANGE True(1)
RESET_WITH_HOST_ON_ERRORS False(0)
ROCE_ADAPTIVE_ROUTING_EN False(0)
ROCE_CC_CNP_MODERATION_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ROCE_CC_CNP_MODERATION_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ROCE_CC_DCQCN_COMPATIBILITY_MODE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ROCE_CC_LEGACY_DCQCN False(0)
ROCE_CC_PRIO_MASK_P1 255
ROCE_CC_PRIO_MASK_P2 255
ROCE_CONTROL ROCE_ENABLE(2)
ROCE_NEXT_PROTOCOL 254
ROCE_RTT_RESP_DSCP_MODE_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ROCE_RTT_RESP_DSCP_MODE_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ROCE_RTT_RESP_DSCP_P1 0
ROCE_RTT_RESP_DSCP_P2 0
RPG_AI_RATE_P1 5
RPG_AI_RATE_P2 5
RPG_BYTE_RESET_P1 32767
RPG_BYTE_RESET_P2 32767
RPG_GD_P1 11
RPG_GD_P2 11
RPG_HAI_RATE_P1 50
RPG_HAI_RATE_P2 50
RPG_MAX_RATE_P1 0
RPG_MAX_RATE_P2 0
RPG_MIN_DEC_FAC_P1 50
RPG_MIN_DEC_FAC_P2 50
RPG_MIN_RATE_P1 1
RPG_MIN_RATE_P2 1
RPG_THRESHOLD_P1 1
RPG_THRESHOLD_P2 1
RPG_TIME_RESET_P1 300
RPG_TIME_RESET_P2 300
RT_PPS_ENABLED_ON_POWERUP False(0)
SAFE_MODE_ENABLE False(0)
SILENT_MODE False(0)
SM_DISABLE False(0)
SRIOV_EN False(0)
SRIOV_IB_ROUTING_MODE_P1 LID(1)
SRIOV_IB_ROUTING_MODE_P2 LID(1)
STEERING_CACHE_REFRESH 0
STRICT_VF_MSIX_NUM False(0)
SWITCH_COMPT_FEATURE_MASK 0x0(0)
TLS_OPTIMIZE False(0)
TRACER_ENABLE True(1)
TUNNEL_ECN_COPY_DISABLE False(0)
TUNNEL_IP_PROTO_ENTROPY_DISABLE False(0)
TX_PCI_DATA_FETCH_LATENCY 40
TX_SCHEDULER_BURST 0
TX_SCHEDULER_FWS_REACTIVITY DIRECT(1)
TX_SCHEDULER_LOCALITY_FACTOR 0
TX_SCHEDULER_LOCALITY_MODE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
UCTX_EN True(1)
UEFI_HII_EN True(1)
UEFI_LOGS DISABLED(0)
UNKNOWN_UPLINK_MAC_FLOOD_P1 False(0)
UNKNOWN_UPLINK_MAC_FLOOD_P2 False(0)
UPT_EMULATION_ENABLE True(1)
USER_PROGRAMMABLE_CC False(0)
VF_LOG_BAR_SIZE 1
VF_MIGRATION_MODE DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
VF_NODNIC_ENABLE False(0)
VF_VPD_ENABLE False(0)
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_ENABLE False(0)
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_NUM_MSIX 2
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_NUM_PF 0
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_NUM_VF 0
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_PF_PCI_LAYOUT VIRTIO_1_X(0)
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_SUBSYSTEM_ID 4162
VIRTIO_BLK_EMULATION_VF_PCI_LAYOUT VIRTIO_1_X(0)
VIRTIO_BLK_EMU_SUBS_VENDOR_ID 6900
VIRTIO_EMULATION_HOTPLUG_TRANS False(0)
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_ENABLE False(0)
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_NUM_MSIX 2
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_NUM_PF 0
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_NUM_VF 0
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_PF_PCI_LAYOUT VIRTIO_1_X(0)
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_SUBSYSTEM_ID 4161
VIRTIO_NET_EMULATION_VF_PCI_LAYOUT VIRTIO_1_X(0)
VIRTIO_NET_EMU_SUBSYSTEM_VENDOR_ID 6900
VL15_BUFFER_SIZE_P1 0
VL15_BUFFER_SIZE_P2 0
VL_BUFFER_ALLOCATION_P1 FULL_DYNAMIC(1)
VL_BUFFER_ALLOCATION_P2 FULL_DYNAMIC(1)
VL_ISOLATION_MODE_P1 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
VL_ISOLATION_MODE_P2 DEVICE_DEFAULT(0)
ZERO_TOUCH_TUNING_ENABLE False(0)
These settings enable both ports in ESXi for use with a vSwitch and hardware offload when using OVS.
system
November 2, 2025, 9:17pm
3
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