IO CREST M.2 M-Key PCI-e 3.0 Interface Single Port 5.0 Gigabit Ethernet Modules

I installed this on a repurposed HP willow 2 motherboard with an AMD A10 chip running ZimaOS and it was recognized as 5G Ethernet device immediately. I needed at least a 2.5G solution, since my pcie was populated with a 10G SFP as I plan to use this machine as an OPNsense router on my 2G fiber network. I am very happy with this device since I now have room to upgrade my network in the future without the need to upgrade my hardware

Used my 2nd PCIe 4.0 m.2 slot to install the IO CREST M.2 M-Key PCI-e 3.0 Interface Single Port 5.0 Gigabit Ethernet adapter. Connected it up to an 8 port NicGiga 10GBe switch and it initially connected at 100mbit. Downloaded the Realtek RTL8126 drivers and installed the Windows 11 .exe and rebooted. Was able to connect at 5gbps automatically. Need to order my 2nd 10GBe switch and then a 10GBe router and a Wifi 7 access point to complete the upgrade, but this will do for now. Recommended if you have a mini motherboard with no spare PCIe slots.