linux-drivers/
drivers/net/ethernet/mellanox/mlxsw

Mellanox/NVIDIA Spectrum Ethernet switch ASICs

Drives Mellanox (now NVIDIA) Spectrum-family data-center Ethernet switch ASICs, spanning the original Spectrum through Spectrum-4 generations used in products like the SN2000, SN3000, SN4000, and current SN5000 series. These are high-port-count 10/25/100/200/400/800 GbE switches deployed in cloud, HPC, and enterprise data-center fabrics, typically running Linux on the switch CPU.

keep conf=0.95 deploy=medium replacement=none subsystem=net category=networking-ethernet
95%

recommendation

It should stay in the kernel because the hardware is current, actively sold, and the code is actively maintained. Hundreds of substantive commits over the last five years, fixes landing as recently as late 2025 and early 2026, and no sign of a deprecation discussion all point to a healthy in-tree driver with no replacement on the horizon.

repository signals

81 files
88,620 source lines
769 commits, 5y
+23,094 / −13,730 lines added / removed, 5y
70 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 769 total · active in 55/61 months
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2021-04: 0 commits · +0 −0 2021-05: 15 commits · +346 −2,483 2021-06: 15 commits · +257 −185 2021-07: 5 commits · +26 −14 2021-08: 7 commits · +167 −84 2021-09: 36 commits · +1,278 −498 2021-10: 35 commits · +1,268 −332 2021-11: 6 commits · +13 −15 2021-12: 24 commits · +1,369 −571 2022-01: 26 commits · +818 −239 2022-02: 17 commits · +346 −194 2022-03: 7 commits · +357 −49 2022-04: 47 commits · +3,362 −547 2022-05: 17 commits · +210 −474 2022-06: 66 commits · +2,245 −2,982 2022-07: 54 commits · +3,320 −864 2022-08: 25 commits · +682 −357 2022-09: 3 commits · +4 −74 2022-10: 3 commits · +72 −163 2022-11: 13 commits · +161 −85 2022-12: 5 commits · +154 −147 2023-01: 11 commits · +131 −51 2023-02: 7 commits · +171 −217 2023-03: 8 commits · +64 −146 2023-04: 1 commit · +1 −1 2023-05: 6 commits · +56 −29 2023-06: 33 commits · +666 −300 2023-07: 41 commits · +1,541 −238 2023-08: 12 commits · +83 −50 2023-09: 13 commits · +54 −42 2023-10: 21 commits · +336 −232 2023-11: 37 commits · +1,018 −173 2023-12: 3 commits · +40 −0 2024-01: 11 commits · +168 −156 2024-02: 2 commits · +9 −9 2024-03: 10 commits · +371 −91 2024-04: 36 commits · +585 −397 2024-05: 1 commit · +1 −1 2024-06: 22 commits · +450 −171 2024-07: 15 commits · +61 −70 2024-08: 3 commits · +36 −87 2024-09: 1 commit · +6 −20 2024-10: 6 commits · +88 −53 2024-11: 0 commits · +0 −0 2024-12: 4 commits · +22 −6 2025-01: 6 commits · +195 −278 2025-02: 4 commits · +15 −56 2025-03: 6 commits · +86 −58 2025-04: 1 commit · +1 −1 2025-05: 3 commits · +55 −76 2025-06: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-07: 3 commits · +3 −3 2025-08: 2 commits · +4 −1 2025-09: 2 commits · +3 −4 2025-10: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-11: 3 commits · +8 −3 2025-12: 3 commits · +16 −13 2026-01: 1 commit · +0 −12 2026-02: 5 commits · +295 −328 2026-03: 0 commits · +0 −0 2026-04: 0 commits · +0 −0

sources

  1. git.kernel.org

    Recent upstream bug-fix activity in mlxsw (Dec 4, 2025) shows the driver is actively maintained, not pending removal.

  2. git.kernel.org

    The directory was still being touched in mainline in February 2026, indicating current upstream attention.

  3. cateee.net

    LKDDb identifies mlxsw as support for Mellanox Technologies Switch ASICs and shows current kernel presence.

  4. cateee.net

    LKDDb lists Spectrum through Spectrum-4 PCI IDs under mlxsw_spectrum, tying the driver to current Spectrum hardware generations.

  5. nvidia.com

    NVIDIA's current Ethernet product page shows Spectrum Ethernet remains an actively marketed switch platform.

  6. docs.nvidia.com

    NVIDIA documentation for the SN5000 series describes Spectrum-4 switches as current data-center products, supporting continued new deployments.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Real driver directory confirmed locally via module_init/module driver markers and Kconfig. Recent activity came from local `git log` on the directory; canonical kernel.org commit URLs were then constructed from the observed hashes. LKDDb URLs were obtained via web search (`site:cateee.net LKDDb CONFIG_MLXSW*`). NVIDIA product/docs URLs were obtained via web search (`site:nvidia.com Spectrum-4`, `site:docs.nvidia.com SN5000`). Limited lore-targeted web search found no removal/deprecation discussion; combined with 757 substantive commits in 5y and fresh 2025-2026 fixes, this points strongly to keep. No natural upstream replacement driver exists for the same ASIC family.