14 DAY TRIAL // Motherboards all have one or two Gigabit Ethernet ports, so those PCI Express x1 and x4 slots usually available aren't used for networking, usually. There are some who still make special LAN cards though.
And I have to admit that the PCI Express interface, when used properly, can definitely allow for a throughput well beyond what normal LAN can permit.
The new add-in board that Thecus has formally launched is clear proof of that, since it lets owners of mainboards with PCI Express x4 or x8 slots tap into 100M, 1G, and 10G networks.
That's right, under the correct circumstances, this card, called Thecus C10GTR NIC, can move data at 10 Gbps, ten times better than the regular interface. The Tehuti TN4010 controller makes it happen.
Thecus aims the thing at NAS servers and any computers, personal or business/enterprise-centric, that people may own. 802.3az, IEEE 802.3ad Link Aggregation, and IEEE 802.1q VLAN. Protocols are supported.
As for operating systems, the following are supported: Windows Storage Server 2012, WSS 2008 R2, Windows 8, Windows 7, Linux 2.6, Linux 3.x, VMWare 5.x, and Hyper-V. Sadly, the price of the Thecus C10GTR is not mentioned in the press release.