How to check a used H100 before you buy

A used H100 is a specific piece of hardware with a form factor, a memory size, and a history. The checks below apply to an H100 and, with the model name changed, to any data center GPU listed on BreezeWish. You are asking the seller for evidence. BreezeWish does not run these checks.

Know which H100 you are buying

NVIDIA's H100 table separates the SXM module from the PCIe cards. The SXM product is listed at 80 GB, 3.35 TB/s, and up to 700 W, with NVLink at 900 GB/s, and it ships on HGX boards and in the DGX H100. The H100 NVL on the same page is a 94 GB PCIe card [S1]. An 80 GB PCIe H100 is a third product, described in NVIDIA's H100 datasheet, and it does not drop onto an HGX baseboard. Before you talk about price, get the seller to say SXM5, PCIe 80 GB, or NVL 94 GB, and to point at a part number. The SXM and PCIe guide is the longer version of that split, and the scam notes cover payment and title.

Ask for identity, not a screenshot of a listing

Ask for the part number on the module or card, the serial numbers, and the quantity that those serials add up to. If the lot is an HGX board, ask for the board part number as well as the GPU serials. A count of "eight H100s" without serials is not enough to receive against. Keep the list. You will match it to the freight later.

Ask the seller to run nvidia-smi

nvidia-smi is NVIDIA's system management interface. The documented query output includes the product name, the serial number if the driver can read it, the memory size, and the persistence and power readings the driver exposes [S2]. Ask the seller to run it on the machine the GPUs are in, to save the text, and to send you that file. Read the product name and the memory. An H100 SXM line that reports 80 GB is what you expect. A report that says a different product, or that omits GPUs the seller counted, is a reason to stop.

You can ask for a longer dump: nvidia-smi -q. That query is also documented by NVIDIA and includes ECC and remapped-row fields when the GPU and the driver support them [S2]. Retired pages and remapped rows are the seller's facts to explain. You are not required to treat a non-zero count as a failed GPU. You are required to see the number before you pay.

Ask for DCGM when the seller has a cluster

NVIDIA's Data Center GPU Manager is the tool operators use for health and diagnostics on supported data center GPUs [S3]. If the seller decommissioned a cluster, ask for the DCGM health output they already have, or for them to run it. A seller who only has loose modules on a bench may only be able to run nvidia-smi. That is a smaller report. Say so in the deal notes rather than assuming a full cluster diagnostic exists.

Match the report to the form factor

An SXM module has to go back onto a compatible HGX board. A PCIe card needs the slot, the power leads, and, for a pair, the NVLink bridge NVIDIA describes for that card [S1]. Ask which of those parts are in the price. A box of SXM modules without the baseboard is not an eight-GPU server.

Warranty, liens, and who signs

Ask what warranty the seller will put in the contract: none, a seller warranty for a stated number of months, or a remaining OEM warranty, and whether it transfers. Ask whether a lender or a lessor still has a claim on the hardware. Title paperwork is the seller's to provide. BreezeWish does not take title.

Payment and freight

Agree how you will pay and who insures the truck. Independent escrow services are the parties' choice. They are not a BreezeWish service. For an HGX board or a server, ask about the crate, the shock sensors, and the Incoterm the seller is willing to use. A card in a small box and a 700 W baseboard do not ship the same way.

Export and end use

BreezeWish hardware deals are for buyers in the United States. H100-class GPUs are export-controlled under ECCN 3A090 [S4]. If your plan is to reexport, stop and consult counsel. This guide is not legal advice.

What BreezeWish will and will not do

The listing you read is the seller's statement. The price index, when it appears, counts verified completed deals. The index does not test the GPU in front of you. Business verification and an end-user certification happen before a deal proceeds. They are not a report on the silicon.