[Xen-devel] [REQUEST] Request for Xen Users to Attempt Jean David Techer's Xen 4.2-unstable VGA Passthrough Documentation

["Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)" <singapore.mr.teo.en.ming@xxxxxxxxx>]

Dear Xen Users,

I have partial (that is, less than 100%) success following Jean David Techer's Xen 4.2-unstable VGA Passthrough Documentation. In both Windows 8 Consumer Preview HVM and Windows XP Home Edition HVM, I get yellow exclamation mark besides NVIDIA Geforce 8400 GS in Device Manager. NVIDIA Geforce 8400 GS in Device Manager reports:

1) Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43)
2) This device isn't using any resources because it has a problem.

So, in Xen VGA Passthrough to Windows 8 Consumer Preview HVM and Windows XP Home Edition HVM, I can only surf the internet and watch Youtube videos but I cannot run 3D graphics benchmarks. This is very very important because you cannot play 3D games. I can only run 2D graphics benchmarks, meaning I can only play 2D games. But nobody plays 2D games nowadays.

Jean David Techer, who is French, told me that it is a NVIDIA driver problem. According to his documentation, you have to use NVIDIA drivers 275.33 and 275.50 strictly. Any other NVIDIA driver versions WILL NOT work. Hence, I have attempted to install NVIDIA drivers 275.33 WHQL and 275.50 BETA in Windows XP Home Edition HVM domU. Common sense tells you I did not install both driver versions at the same time, of course. Installing NVIDIA driver versions 275.33 and 275.50 causes Windows XP Home Edition HVM domU to be DESTROYED (in Xen speak) and also causes my domain 0 to crash.

But if I install the LATEST NVIDIA drivers above 280.XX, it WILL NOT cause my Windows XP HVM domU and domain 0 to crash. But there will be a yellow exclamation marks besides NVIDIA Geforce 8400 GS in Device Manager. Why do I keep complaining about the yellow exclamation mark? Is it because I have nothing better to do and irritate David Techer? It is because I simply CANNOT run 3D graphics benchmarks and play 3D games. I can only surf the web and play Youtube videos.

Jean David Techer's Xen 4.2-unstable VGA Passthrough documentation is available at the following URL:

Jean David Techer's Blog link: http://www.davidgis.fr/blog/index.php?2011/12/07/860-xen-42unstable-patches-for-vga-pass-through

Any Xen user with the following computer hardware specifications, please try out David Techer's documentation.

Intel Processor with Virtualization Technology
Motherboard with VT-d support
Motherboard BIOS with VT-d option to enable or disable
NVIDIA PCI Express x16 display card

Any Xen user who can attain 100% success with David Techer's Xen 4.2-unstable VGA Passthrough documentation, please let all of us at xen-users mailing list know.

Why do I keep on troubleshooting? Because I consider this to be a technical challenge, although I am not an expert programmer. I have only learnt very basic C programming more than 15 years ago at Singapore Polytechnic and I have forgotten most of it by now. I am a Linux/UNIX system administrator with experiences in Apache web server, qmail and Postfix Email Server, DNS Server, DHCP server, OpenLDAP server, phpBB forum, MySQL database, Xen virtualization, VirtualBox, VMware, Snort Intrusion Prevention Systems, OSSEC Host Intrusion Detection Systems, Nagios monitoring software, and various Linux and BSD distributions. But I am by no means a software developer. I did not study computer science. I studied mechanical engineering at National University of Singapore.

It is too bad software engineer Han Weidong has left Intel Corporation last year, otherwise he would be able to help me. I got 100% success with Xen 3.5-unstable VGA Passthrough 3 years ago, back in the year 2009. Han Weidong et al are the original developers of the Xen VGA Passthrough patches, which only worked with Xen 3.5-unstable. Jean David Techer forward ported Han Weidong's patches to Xen 4.2-unstable with his programming knowledge, C/C++ and Java. I have read his CV.

According to Intel engineers Zhang Xiantao and Ren Yongjie, Intel's current policy is to focus on IGD VGA passthrough, so it is understood that they won't be able to help me with my issue. It is company policy, so they cannot afford the time and resources to help me.

If everybody who follows Jean David Techer's Xen 4.2-unstable VGA Passthrough documentation with 100% success without glitches, then I must be technically incompetent.

I would like to thank Xen users in advance if they are able to lend a helping hand.

-- 
Yours sincerely,

Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
Singapore

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