NVIDIA Infra Controller
NVIDIA Infra Controller (NICo) is an open-source suite of microservices for site-local, zero-trust lifecycle management of bare-metal infrastructure.
What NVIDIA Infra Controller is
NVIDIA Infra Controller (NICo) is an open-source suite of microservices for site-local, zero-trust lifecycle management of bare-metal infrastructure. It automates hardware discovery, firmware checks, DPU provisioning, network isolation, tenant provisioning, and sanitization. During onboarding, it can discover systems through Redfish, validate SKUs, test hardware, and enforce UEFI and BMC firmware baselines. Tenant isolation spans Ethernet, InfiniBand, NVLink, and Spectrum-X. NICo exposes REST and gRPC APIs, an administrator CLI, and a debugging UI; the REST service can run alongside the site controller or centrally in the cloud. Documented integrations include Keycloak-compatible IAM, Prometheus, Grafana, Loki, OpenTelemetry-compatible stacks, and Kubernetes. It is licensed under Apache 2.0. Deployment uses Kubernetes in the managed datacenter, with at least three nodes specified for high availability; dependencies such as PostgreSQL, Vault, Temporal, cert-manager, and External Secrets Operator must be deployed first. NICo does not handle host OS patching, runtime configuration, workload scheduling, physical network underlay design, or UFM deployment and management. Attestation occurs during ingestion and after tenant release, not continuously during tenant use.
Good
- Automates hardware discovery and firmware validation.
- Supports tenant isolation across several network types.
- Provides REST and gRPC APIs.
- Open source under the Apache 2.0 license.
- Includes secure sanitization between tenant uses.
Watch out
- Requires a Kubernetes cluster in the managed datacenter.
- At least three nodes are specified for high availability.
- Host OS patching and runtime configuration remain external.
- Attestation is not continuous during tenant use.
Who it suits
NICo is aimed at NVIDIA Cloud Partner infrastructure operators and others managing bare-metal fleets. ISV developers and platform engineers can also integrate with its APIs.
Verdict
NICo covers bare-metal onboarding, provisioning, isolation, and sanitization for infrastructure operators. Its Kubernetes dependencies and explicit scope boundaries matter when assessing operational fit.
The facts
Each one read from NVIDIA Infra Controller's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- APIs and deployment
- NICo exposes REST and gRPC APIs to higher-level systems, and its REST service can run alongside the site controller or centrally in the cloud.checked 4 Oct 2026
- APIs and interfaces
- NICo provides REST and gRPC APIs, an administrator CLI, and a debugging UI; its REST API can be deployed alongside the site controller or centrally in the cloud.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Attestation limit
- Measured Boot attestation occurs during managed-host ingestion and after a host is released by a tenant; NICo says it does not attest hosts continuously during tenant use.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Deployment and support boundary
- NICo commonly runs as microservices on a Kubernetes cluster and can be deployed with Helm charts or Kubernetes Kustomize manifests; operating system patching, upgrades, and runtime configuration are the platform's responsibility.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Deployment requirements
- The documented architecture deploys NICo microservices on a Kubernetes cluster co-located in the managed datacenter and specifies at least three nodes for high availability.checked 3 Oct 2026
- DPU management
- NICo installs the DPU operating system, provisions HBN, manages DPU firmware, and runs an agent that retrieves desired configuration over gRPC.checked 4 Oct 2026
- External dependencies
- NICo requires externally deployed components including PostgreSQL, Vault, Temporal, cert-manager, External Secrets Operator, MetalLB, and the NVIDIA NGC Registry; telemetry and logging components are described as optional but strongly recommended.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Hardware compatibility
- The hardware compatibility list says it is not an exhaustive platform certification or qualification, and directs users to hardware manufacturers for that information.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Hardware limits
- NVIDIA says its Hardware Compatibility List identifies hardware currently supported from NICo's perspective and is not an exhaustive platform certification or qualification.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Hardware onboarding
- NICo discovers hardware through Redfish, validates machine SKUs, supports hardware burn-in and testing, and enforces firmware baselines during ingestion.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Hardware validation
- NICo supports Redfish discovery, SKU validation, hardware testing, and enforcement of UEFI and BMC firmware baselines before hosts become available to tenants.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- Documented integrations include Keycloak and compatible IAM solutions, Prometheus metrics, Grafana, Loki, OpenTelemetry-compatible stacks, and Kubernetes.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- The documentation identifies NVIDIA Cloud Partner infrastructure operators and infrastructure operators managing bare-metal fleets as users, and also addresses ISV developers and platform engineers integrating through NICo APIs.checked 4 Oct 2026
- License
- NICo is open source under the Apache 2.0 license.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Lifecycle management
- It automates hardware discovery, firmware validation, DPU provisioning, network isolation, tenant provisioning, and sanitization.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Network isolation
- NICo describes tenant isolation across Ethernet using BlueField HBN, InfiniBand using UFM P_Key assignments, NVLink using NMX-C, and Spectrum-X partitioning.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- NICo is an open-source suite of microservices for site-local, zero-trust bare-metal lifecycle management aimed at NVIDIA Cloud Partners and infrastructure operators.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Scope limits
- NICo does not manage host OS patching or runtime configuration, workload scheduling, physical network underlay design, or deployment and management of UFM.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Security
- The site controller's services communicate over mTLS/gRPC, and its operator debug web UI uses HTTPS with OIDC authentication.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Support model
- NICo documentation says operating-system management, including patching, configuration, and image generation, is the user's responsibility.checked 3 Oct 2026
- What it does
- NICo is an open-source suite of microservices for site-local, zero-trust bare-metal lifecycle management.checked 4 Oct 2026
The company
- Founded
- 1993checked 28 Sep 2026
- Headquarters
- Santa Clara, California, USAchecked 28 Sep 2026
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