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RE: [Xen-devel] Using VT-D to grant a Windows DomU access to aPCIExpress

To: "David Stone" <unclestoner@xxxxxxxxx>, "Han, Weidong" <weidong.han@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: RE: [Xen-devel] Using VT-D to grant a Windows DomU access to aPCIExpress graphics card?
From: "Guy Zana" <guy@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2007 09:03:16 -0500
Cc: Xen Developers <xen-devel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
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Thread-topic: [Xen-devel] Using VT-D to grant a Windows DomU access to aPCIExpress graphics card?
It's just that PCIe pass-through is not fully supported by Xen, so it is very 
card/driver dependant.
If you are not working with the graphic's card driver then what you describe 
sounds feasible and may actually work.

Thanks,
Guy.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: xen-devel-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
> [mailto:xen-devel-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of 
> David Stone
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 3:56 PM
> To: Han, Weidong
> Cc: Xen Developers
> Subject: Re: [Xen-devel] Using VT-D to grant a Windows DomU 
> access to aPCIExpress graphics card?
> 
> Thanks for your response.
> 
> > > graphics card I'd like to pass through is PCI Express.
> > > If so, what PCI devices do I have to hide from Dom0 and 
> pass to my 
> > > Windows DomU?  Do I need to do this for the "PCI Express 
> Root Port"
> > > AND "PCI Express Port 1" PCI devices as well has the 
> graphics card 
> > > itself?
> >
> > Graphices card is special. Many tricky things need to be 
> done, such as 
> > frame buffer, VGA guest bios, etc. So current VT-d in Xen doesn't 
> > support assigning graphics card yet.
> 
> I wonder if those complications (which I don't pretend to 
> understand) would go away if the graphics card did not have 
> to produce any output to a locally attached monitor?  My goal 
> is not to render the Windows DomU graphics to the local 
> monitor, but rather to just use the graphics device to do 
> work like rendering to an off-screen buffer.  I can then do 
> whatever I want with that buffer, such as send it over the 
> network to another machine for display.  The Windows DomU 
> would be running completely headless...I can RDP into it to 
> administer it.
> 
> Would that make it more feasible?
> 
> Thanks,
> Dave
> 
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