QNAP QXG-2G1T-I225 Single-Port 2.5GbE PCIe Network Expansion Card

Overview

The QXG-2G1T-I225 is a single-port 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet PCIe network expansion card designed to lift NAS appliances, workstations, and small servers from 1GbE to 2.5 Gbps throughput without new cabling. Powered by the Intel I225 controller, it delivers a 2.5x bandwidth increase over standard Gigabit — meaningful on multi-drive NAS setups where read/write aggregation regularly saturates a 1GbE uplink. The card's low-profile form factor (64.8 mm PCB length, 1-slot width) fits both standard and slim chassis, making it a practical upgrade path for QNAP NAS units that ship with 1GbE ports but offer PCIe expansion slots.

Compatibility

The QXG-2G1T-I225 is designed for QNAP NAS appliances with available PCIe expansion slots, including the TVS-x72XT, TVS-hx88, TS-x73A, and TS-x77 series, as well as compatible QNAP desktop and tower NAS models that accept PCIe Gen 3 x1 or x4 cards. It is also compatible with standard Windows, Linux, and macOS (where supported by OS drivers) workstations or servers with an open PCIe slot. The single RJ-45 port supports 2.5GbE network switches and is backward-compatible with 1GbE, 100Mbps, and 10Mbps infrastructure — so existing Cat5e or Cat6 runs carry full 2.5 Gbps without replacement. Before installing, verify your specific NAS model's PCIe network card compatibility list on the QNAP product page, as slot availability and lane support vary by chassis generation.

Installation Notes

The card ships in low-profile configuration with PCB dimensions of 64.8 mm length × 1-slot width — confirm your chassis clearance before ordering if installing in a compact NAS enclosure. A full-height bracket may be required for standard ATX desktop installations; verify bracket inclusion against your chassis type. Driver installation on QNAP QTS/QuTS hero NAS is typically automatic via the network driver package in the App Center. On Windows and Linux hosts, use the Intel I225 driver package available from Intel's support site.