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T500 compat q : 4500MHD Optimus ends > 306.97WHQL


Orowheat

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I think internal LCD support for older integrated graphics chips has been removed in newer NVIDIA graphics driver versions.

A while back, when I didn't have a monitor, I had an eGPU setup (GTX 550 Ti) driving the internal LCD of my laptop, which is a Lenovo X200. This functionality was provided by modded Verde drivers, and after that 301.42. Then I got a monitor and haven't used the internal LCD since. Recently, however, I attempted a portable build which again required the internal LCD, but found that the eGPU was incapable of running the internal LCD until I rolled the driver version back to 301.42.

robynasi has also been unable to use the internal LCD, unless he/she has succeeded and just hasn't updated the thread (Thinkpad T400 + GTX 650 Ti 2Gb)

Both the X200 and T400 use the old (4-5 years) 4500MHD integrated graphics chip.

This is all the proof I have right now, I'll try to find more after my exams.

I really hope this isn't the case, but if someone could find some more information on the subject that would be nice.

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I think internal LCD support for older integrated graphics chips has been removed in newer NVIDIA graphics driver versions.

A while back, when I didn't have a monitor, I had an eGPU setup (GTX 550 Ti) driving the internal LCD of my laptop, which is a Lenovo X200. This functionality was provided by modded Verde drivers, and after that 301.42. Then I got a monitor and haven't used the internal LCD since. Recently, however, I attempted a portable build which again required the internal LCD, but found that the eGPU was incapable of running the internal LCD until I rolled the driver version back to 301.42.

robynasi has also been unable to use the internal LCD, unless he/she has succeeded and just hasn't updated the thread (Thinkpad T400 + GTX 650 Ti 2Gb)

Both the X200 and T400 use the old (4-5 years) 4500MHD integrated graphics chip.

This is all the proof I have right now, I'll try to find more after my exams.

I really hope this isn't the case, but if someone could find some more information on the subject that would be nice.

Do you have the the "preferred graphics processor" option appearing in Manage 3D? That indicates that Optimus functionality is enabled.

recap_2014_crash2.png

AppInit_DLLs needs to be set for internal LCD mode to work

For games to launch on the internal LCD on systems with an intel iGPU using the eGPU to render, the AppInit_DLLs needs to route via a DLL. NVidia sets this to nvinit.dll. Lucid Logix Virtu sets this to it's own appinit_dll.dll. During my tinkerings I have seen this registry setting missing so internal LCD mode didn't work.

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows]
"AppInit_DLLs"="C:\\Windows\\SysWOW64\\nvinit.dll"

Check this too. If they both check out then you may indeed be finding NVidia have stopped older iGPUs being supported in the newer Optimus driver. I'd suggest going back and modding the Verde (mobile) driver to see if it too has seen this occur.

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I've modded the newer mobile drivers already, and nothing worked if I remember correctly

Will do a check on the init dll's later this week

EDIT: Forgot to mention the 3D settings

They did indeed appear when running off another monitor, but disappeared when switching to the internal LCD

Nvidia Control Panel only displayed system information on the internal LCD

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I've modded the newer mobile drivers already, and nothing worked if I remember correctly

Will do a check on the init dll's later this week

EDIT: Forgot to mention the 3D settings

They did indeed appear when running off another monitor, but disappeared when switching to the internal LCD

Nvidia Control Panel only displayed system information on the internal LCD

How are you switching to using the internal LCD? I assume you are hotplugging the eGPU after boot OR using the PCI Reset Delay. I believe a X200 would otherwise use the eGPU as the primary video device and not enable the iGPU. Without the iGPU there will be no Optimus. So when you say the internal LCD doesn't work, please make sure the iGPU is active and the primary device and the eGPU appears with no error 12/43/other against it.

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How are you switching to using the internal LCD? I assume you are hotplugging the eGPU after boot OR using the PCI Reset Delay. I believe a X200 would otherwise use the eGPU as the primary video device and not enable the iGPU. Without the iGPU there will be no Optimus. So when you say the internal LCD doesn't work, please make sure the iGPU is active and the primary device and the eGPU appears with no error 12/43/other against it.

Definitely made sure that the iGPU was active, by hotplugging after sleeping and with DIY eGPU setup

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Hello everyone,

I saw user Snakecharmed post#2709 in the "DIY eGPU experiences" thread about having problems getting the Lenovo Thinkpad T500 to work. Does anyone here have a successful story with this laptop? Does Snakecharmed have an update on his/her build? I am a new member and cannot send PM yet.

My specs

T500 W7 Pro 64-bit/ dual boot Ubuntu 13.10

Core 2 Duo p8700 2.53 ghz

2 gb Ram

Intel 4500hd graphics

*broken - Mobility Radeon 3650, I have this disabled in BIOS, laptop was previously switchable

I was considering the PE4L EC060A (v2.1) with Nvdia 750 Ti

Edit: eventually got Radeon 7770

I don't think I get a benefit from PE4L "gen 2", but it is the same price as PE4L v1.5

This would be a big investment for me, so I am really want to make sure it works.

Thanks for reading

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I have some bad news. I can get video output and run games, but performance is terrible in Simbin's GTR2 (2006), the game I bought the eGPU to play. GTR2 is a DX9 racing game and in situations where there are several cars on the screen, even my Intel GMA 4500mhd outperforms the eGPU. For example, on low settings, vs 10 AI cars, Intel = 25fps, eGPU = 5 fps. This means with eGPU online racing is impossible.

The eGPU is good at stuff like high textures/resolution, and some newer games like Bioshock 2 and Starcraft 2 have good performance, but its GTR2 performance is unacceptable to me.

Does the eGPU hog CPU resources? That is my guess because in GTR2, changing resolution/AA/textures has little impact on framerate. I am using latest AMD drivers. Whats your experience with older games guys?

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I have some bad news. I can get video output and run games, but performance is terrible in Simbin's GTR2 (2006), the game I bought the eGPU to play. GTR2 is a DX9 racing game and in situations where there are several cars on the screen, even my Intel GMA 4500mhd outperforms the eGPU. For example, on low settings, vs 10 AI cars, Intel = 25fps, eGPU = 5 fps. This means with eGPU online racing is impossible.

The eGPU is good at stuff like high textures/resolution, and some newer games like Bioshock 2 and Starcraft 2 have good performance, but its GTR2 performance is unacceptable to me.

Does the eGPU hog CPU resources? That is my guess because in GTR2, changing resolution/AA/textures has little impact on framerate. I am using latest AMD drivers. Whats your experience with older games guys?

I've tested NFS Shift on a HD5750 and a GTX460. Massive difference favoring the GTX460. Since you have a GMA4500MHD, the NVidia drivers will engage x1 pci-e compression that sees a big difference in DX9 performance on NVidia cards.

I'd suggest borrow a NVidia card from a friend and test. Can be a GTS450 or better. Though there was some concern that NVidia may have dropped GM4500MHD Optimus support in the latest drivers. In which case try the 285.71 driver as tested at http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/2904-%5Bguide%[email protected] .

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Thanks for your reply. Unfortunately, I don't have access to any other graphics cards for testing.

Can you specify the performance of the 5750? I believe the 5750 is already a bit slower than the 460. My gut feeling is that the single-digit fps is because of a software error.

I thought maybe the driver would be the problem, but I installed Catalyst 12.3 and 13.6 in addition to 13.12 which I originally used, and there was no difference in-game.

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Thanks for your reply. Unfortunately, I don't have access to any other graphics cards for testing.

Can you specify the performance of the 5750? I believe the 5750 is already a bit slower than the 460. My gut feeling is that the single-digit fps is because of a software error.

I thought maybe the driver would be the problem, but I installed Catalyst 12.3 and 13.6 in addition to 13.12 which I originally used, and there was no difference in-game.

It's unfortunate that you don't have access to a NVidia GTX4xx/GTX5xx/GTX6xx/GTX77x card as your Lenovo T500 is x1.Opt capable giving x1 pci-e compression and internal LCD displaying of eGPU rendered image.

I believe your single-digit FPS issue with Simbin's GTR2 would be solved by such a NVidia eGPU.

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I bought an Asus Nvidia GTX 750 (not TI) from my local electronics store and now my performance is much better in GTR2, as well as Wings of Prey, which I believe is a DX9 game. In same settings in GTR2, I can get 40+ fps now, compared to 8 with 7770. I am using 335.23 drivers, the latest from the website. How should I try to enable Optimus? The links here to older drivers no longer work. DIY eGPU experiences - Page 122

I wish I had gotten the GTX to start with now. In my opinion, AMD cards are awful for eGPU + older games.

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@Snakecharmed:

Just wanted to see if there was more performance to be gained, especially since my game is DX9. Playing competitively, every frame is important.

A non-critical bug: My laptop cannot resume from sleep or hibernation if I turn off or unplug the PE4L. Sometimes there is a blue error screen about display driver, other times just black screen. Either way, my computer reboots itself and windows complains it was not shut down correctly. I also must have eGPU plugged in before powering on my computer. Switching the order also causes reboot.

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Try this one. Click "INF Modified" for the inf file.

I downloaded the driver and inf file. I was able to install the driver, but I don't think Optimus is enabled. I made sure to uninstall previous driver. In Nvidia Control Panel, there is no option for "preferred graphics card" and I have no option to run programs with a different gpu.

Maybe driver 335.23 doesn't support Intel 4500mhd? Do you know a driver that can support 4500mhd and GTX 750?

Edit: This 335.23 notebook driver fixed my sleep/hibernation problem, so it's an improvement over desktop driver.

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Sorry if I was unclear, I have a monitor connected to the 750 through DVI.

So I edited the nvam.inf of driver 285.62, seeing how Nando used that with a 4500mhd and 560 Ti http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/2905-[guide]-13-dell-latitude-e4300-gtx560ti-%40x1-opt-pe4h-2-4-a.html#post40077

However, after successfully installing 285.62, I get error 43 in Device Manager and no video output to monitor.

Edit: decided against trying with 270.61; no reason an even older driver will work

Is error 43 fixable in my situation? My 750 is recognized as such and there were no errors when installing the driver, even though 750 is not supported by this version.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Im looking into an eGPU for a dell 6430 with express card slot. Thinking PE4L-EC060A with a Nvidia GTX 750 Ti. This is for use with an Oculus Rift (Laptop gpus are to slow for good performance) With your Nvidia GTX 750 setup did you need an external PC power supply or can you just use a power adapter (the GTX 750 series is supposed to be power efficient)

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4500MHD Optimus discontinued > 306.97WHQL

I investigated the concerns raised in this thread about missing Optimus functionality when paired with a 4500MHD iGPU finding:

306.97WHQL : R304 driver - the last version with Optimus functionality when using a 4500MHD. x1 pci-e compression and internal LCD mode work as expected. See the Supported Products tab of the 306.97WHQL driver documentation to see which video cards are supported.

310.70WHQL or newer : R310 driver - no longer has Optimus functionality. Poor performance, particularly DX9 since no more x1 pci-e compression.

This finding applies to both the standard desktop driver or if modding the mobile driver.

The 306.97 -> 310.70 is a single WHQL driver increment. Meaning there might be some other beta drivers between those two versions that may still preserve 4500MHD Optimus functionality. Though I haven't checked those beta drivers.

UPDATE: The last R304 driver is 307.83WHQL. That didn't come up when I did a WHQL search on NVidia website. No wonder really. It's a bizarre installation with no setup INF files so I copied across the 306.97 ones to be able to do an install. Found it too has Optimus disabled for 4500MHD!

It looks like the switching for the Optimus component is done in the c:\windows\system32\drivers\nvlddmkm.sys file. Eg: I could copy the 310.70 version of that file over the 306.97 install and then the x1 pci-e compression disengaged. Doing a 310.70 install and copying over the 306.97 version unfortunately resulted in DX9/10 cannot initialize type errors so I can't run say 3dmk06. However one program that starts with Optimus (rw.exe - mistakenly believed to be Rogue Warrior) does go through the Optimus switching when I do this copy. So definitely nvlddmkm.sys is the file that's controlling what hardware is needed for Optimus to engage.

Seems that someone has previously modified nvlddmkm.sys to extend SLI functionality: https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/608018/sli/sli-with-different-cards-how-to-links-and-discussion-on-nvlddmkm-sys-modifying-/ . Wonder if someone will try to mod the PCIe IDs to allow 4500MHD functionality on newer driver releases?

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