VMDirectPath I/O GPU Pass-through

[mailey]

Here is my setup and scenario I am facing:

I am running ESXI 5.0 on a single host with a single Win7 64bit VM (Testing/POC). We are trying to prove that it is possible to virtualize engineering workstations using GPU passthrough.

So, I successfully configured the NVIDIA Quatro 2000 GPU to passthrough to the VM. The latest NVIDIA driver is installed and recognizes the Quatro 2000 card. However, I can not seem to make the VM use the 2000 card as the default video adapter, it always defaults to the VMware VGA adapter. I have followed the advise in this thread http://communities.vmware.com/message/1850334?tstart=0 by delaying the VMTools service with a dependancy with zero result.

Here is the strange part of the situation though. I happen to have a physical monitor plugged into the host from initial setup of ESXi, and when i turn the VM on from inside the VI client it displays on this phyisical monitor while having a halfway extended desktop on the VI client console. As soon as you unplug the physical monitor from the host it reverts back to the VMware defualt video adapter.

I don't understand how to make the VM defaut to the passthrough NVIDIA Quatro 2000 card. Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

[mailey]

Found the answer, with a little help from friends!

All you have to do is go into the NVIDIA Graphics Properties --> Graphics Topology --> Select the monitor's EDID and export it --> Save it --> then import it back into the Graphics Properties --> DONE SON!

No more keeping the monitor plugged in!

Hope this helps someone, because it was driving me insane!!!!

[abeleski]

Hi mate. This has been driving me insane too. Unlike you though I still cant get mine to work.

I am using View 5.2 and Grid K1 card

The only way I can make the K1 card activate is if I unistall the svga card from device manager and for rest of that session the k1 card is used. If I restart, it detects the svga card and defaults to it and I have the problem again.

I have gone into the Workstation>View system topology>EDID Monitor.   But it does not allow me to export. Only import. This does not exactly correspond to what you were saying. Any ideas?

[aBBy007]

Mailey,

A qq for you. When you say you were able to passthrough your

mailey wrote:

So, I successfully configured the NVIDIA Quatro 2000 GPU to passthrough to the VM. The latest NVIDIA driver is installed and recognizes the Quatro 2000 card.

Did you have that GPU as your primary graphic source on in your BIOS settings? I have a similar setup, and 'm trying to install a Windows 7 VM on ESXi 5.5, but can't passthrough my GPU (GT610). When I modify that in the VMWare Client, and configure the GPU as passthrough, the startup would crash.

It would be really helpful to understand your setup (BIOS settings for VGA output).

Thanks,

aBBy007