Review on 🔌 Enhanced Syba I/O Crest SI-MPE24046 2-Port Gigabit Mini PCI-e Ethernet Network Interface Card by Luis Green

This was exactly what I needed with a potentially big problem (I'll mention it in the cons ). I needed a dual-port Gigabit NIC that would fit in the ASRock Z87E-ITX's half-length mini PCIe slot. I am using this machine as a server running Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials. The built-in Intel I217V is not technically compatible with Win Server, but by editing the information you can install it. This meant I never updated the driver as it would have been a pain. It worked fine, but I have a new router (ASUS RT-AC88U Wireless-AC3100 Dual Band Gigabit Router, AiProtection with Trend Micro for Complete Network Security) that supports two Gigabit NIC teaming for 2Gbps. I wanted a GBe NIC that supports Win Server 2012 R2, is teamable, and supports other technologies like jumbo frames. Although I could get a standard PCIe NIC (up to x16), I wanted to avoid that if I could because of the limited space on my server. I didn't use the minimum PCIe slot as it usually has a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth card and I don't need it for the server. I haven't had much luck finding dual port mini PCIe cards that I thought might support teaming. I came across an Intel I350T2V2 variant somewhere on the internet but not on reputable sites and didn't want to risk it. Then I came across it at Revain. I thought for $30 it was worth a try and I could probably return it if I had a problem. I'm sure I'm glad I tried it as it exceeded my expectations. Pros: - Well packaged, looks good visually - Cables are long enough but not too long (may be an issue on a larger ATX or larger, but on an ITX or even a mATX build I think that's reasonable) - Ports are well spaced. - Show as 2 separate network adapters in device manager - Win Server 2012 R2 installed drivers automatically (as of 2013 for me) - Realtek website didn't have a driver installer until 2016, no other junk was installed as a bonus. - Support 9k Jumbo Frames, WOL etc. Half size mini PCIe card. This is full size from my understanding of the terminology/spec. Half size is 26/27mm long and full size is 51mm. I didn't measure it exactly but my wifi card that I removed is exactly 26mm long and it was about twice that length. He barely got in and didn't stand up with the screw halfway up. It seems cozy enough and I never move my server so I'm not worried. Other thoughts: worth it. For large files, 112 MB / s xfer from desktop to server was obtained. I am now getting 118 MB/s (9k jumbo frames included) with this card. I'm also sure that my server can deliver 2 Gb/s to multiple devices at the same time. So far very glad I found this.