linux-drivers/
drivers/net/ethernet/huawei/hinic3

Huawei HiNIC3 SPx data-center Ethernet adapters

Huawei's HiNIC3-generation server NICs, marketed as the SPx series (SP670, SP680, SP681, SP623Q, SP226D), covering 10, 25, 100, and 200 Gbps Ethernet PCIe cards aimed at modern data-center and cloud deployments with SR-IOV virtual functions for guest VMs.

keep conf=0.89 deploy=medium replacement=none subsystem=net category=networking-ethernet
89%

recommendation

It should stay in the kernel because the hardware is current Huawei data-center silicon: Huawei was still publishing new firmware and driver packages for the SP670/SP680/SP681/SP623Q/SP226D adapters in April 2025, the upstream code is receiving feature work and fixes, and a matching DPDK poll-mode driver was being merged in 2025. This is a newly upstreamed, actively maintained driver for hardware that is shipping today.

repository signals

45 files
13,415 source lines
48 commits, 5y
+13,794 / −332 lines added / removed, 5y
9 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 48 total · active in 7/61 months
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sources

  1. docs.kernel.org

    Kernel documentation describes hinic3 as a current data-center NIC family supporting 10/25/100GE and multiple form factors, with PF/VF PCI IDs 19e5:0222 and 19e5:375f.

  2. support.huawei.cn

    Huawei published hinic3 source package 'IN220 2.4.0.1' on 2025-04-28 for SP670/SP680/SP681/SP623Q/SP226D, indicating active vendor support for shipping hardware in 2025.

  3. mails.dpdk.org

    DPDK accepted/iterated a 2025 hinic3 PMD series for Huawei SPx adapters, describing 25/100/200Gbps support and showing active ecosystem enablement rather than retirement.

  4. cateee.net

    LKDDb shows CONFIG_HINIC3 present in recent upstream kernels and identifies the Huawei PCI device family handled by the driver.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Shell inspection of Kconfig and hinic3_lld.c confirmed this is a real PCI Ethernet driver for Huawei HiNIC3. Shell `git -c safe.directory=... log -- drivers/net/ethernet/huawei/hinic3` showed the directory is very new, with feature additions and fixes continuing through 2026-02-07; `git log --diff-filter=D --summary -- ...` showed no removal/deletion history. Web `search_query` found the kernel docs page, Huawei support download page, DPDK mailing-list archive, and LKDDb page. The combined evidence points to an actively maintained, newly upstreamed data-center NIC driver with current vendor-backed hardware, so deprecation/removal is not justified.