Paul Waldo
2007-Nov-12 13:50 UTC
[Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
Hi all, I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works great, but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. I''m assuming this is because the video card is in use by the domU. Does this make sense and, if so, can I solve this by adding abother PCI video card and connecting the monitor to that? Thanks for helping! Paul _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
[STD]Ein
2007-Nov-12 22:03 UTC
RE: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card forconsole?
That would be one way to go about it. Alternatively you could connect to your dom0 via serial. You said it is working great, in my attempts I had a few gotchas. Any chance you could post the steps you took to get your nvidia card working in a domU? -----Original Message----- From: xen-users-bounces@lists.xensource.com [mailto:xen-users-bounces@lists.xensource.com] On Behalf Of Paul Waldo Sent: November 12, 2007 7:50 AM To: xen-users@lists.xensource.com Subject: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card forconsole? Hi all, I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works great, but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. I''m assuming this is because the video card is in use by the domU. Does this make sense and, if so, can I solve this by adding abother PCI video card and connecting the monitor to that? Thanks for helping! Paul _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
Flavio Visentin
2007-Nov-12 23:07 UTC
Re: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Paul Waldo wrote:> I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works great,Did you follow any howto? If yes which one? If no can you please explain how you made it work? I tried to have my video card working in a domU but without success until now. - -- Flavio Visentin GPG Key: http://www.zipman.it/gpgkey.asc There are only 10 types of people in this world: those who understand binary, and those who don''t. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org iD4DBQFHONyYusUmHkh1cnoRAqZ7AJdoN1UpnUEXL4EFP/x2I0BD2dfvAJ9qwuFn WWZ6HyZGKV9kRTgIL+enqQ==Ihj4 -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
Paul Waldo
2007-Nov-13 14:10 UTC
Re: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
Paul Waldo wrote:> Hi all, > > I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works > great, but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. I''m assuming > this is because the video card is in use by the domU. Does this make > sense and, if so, can I solve this by adding abother PCI video card > and connecting the monitor to that? Thanks for helping! > > PaulHi all, I have receive numerous requests for how I did this, so I''m glad to give back! I do have to provide a caveat, so don''t get your hopes up yet... My setup is that I have a 4 CPU Xeon box. It is a big, loud, hot unit, so it is in the computer closet. I am using a low-end machine on my desk as a fancy xterminal. The idea is that KDE runs on the Xen box, and I interact with it via the open source version of NX from nomachine.com, running on my low-end machine. NX allows desktop sharing as well as sound and printers to be seamlessly piped to the desktop box. The only thing I haven''t figured out is how to get peripherals attached to the desktop box (like a CF card reader or a USB DVD writer) to be automatically recognized on the Xen box... The idea behind getting the domU to use the nVidia card is not necessarily for games and such, although that may work OK... So anyway, here is what I did to make this all work: The first thing to do is hide the video card from the dom0. Here is the stanza from my GRUB menu.lst: title Xen 3.1 / Ubuntu 7.10, kernel 2.6.22-14-xen root (hd0,0) kernel /xen-3.1.gz dom0_mem=262144 module /vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen root=/dev/mapper/hydra-root ro xencons=xvc console=xvc0 console=tty1 *pciback.hide=(05:00.0)* module /initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen quiet The key here is "*pciback.hide=(05:00.0)*". The number is obtained using the lspci command on dom0: root@hydra:~# lspci|grep -i nvidia 05:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL [Quadro FX 1300] (rev a2) So, once the changes are made to the GRUB config, reboot the machine. *Be prepared to SSH into the box, as you won''t get a console!!!* The reason for this is that as far as the dom0 is concerned, the video card doesn''t exist. Actually, it may not be that dire. IIRC, I was still able to get a console at this point, and it is the next step that prevented the console. I know my memory, and would not rely on it too much if I were you. Just make sure that sshd is running before you do any of this... :-) OK, so now the video card has been unshackled from the dom0. How do you get a domU to claim it? Here is my domU''s config file: # # Configuration file for the Xen instance gutsy, created # by xen-tools 3.5 on Mon Nov 5 13:39:24 2007. # # # Kernel + memory size # kernel = ''/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen'' ramdisk = ''/boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen'' memory = ''1024'' vcpus = ''4'' extra = ''xencons=xvc'' *pci = [''05:00.0'']* # # Disk device(s). # root = ''/dev/sda1 ro'' disk = [ ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/disk.img,sda1,w'', ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/swap.img,sda2,w'' ] # # Hostname # name = ''gutsy'' # # Networking # dhcp = ''dhcp'' vif = [ '''' ] # # Behaviour # on_poweroff = ''destroy'' on_reboot = ''restart'' on_crash = ''restart'' The key line here is "*pci = [''05:00.0'']*". This tells the domU to claim the video card. Reboot the domU and you should then be able to see the video card: $ lspci 00:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL [Quadro FX 1300] (rev a2) At this point, you can use it just like a normal machine. Change your driver in xorg.conf from "nv" to "nvidia", "apt-get install nvidia-glx-new" to get the nVidia drivers, maybe do a reboot, and you are up and running! As pointed out in the caveat, I DO NOT get graphical output from the video card, nor am I even able to log into the box from the console. I am going to try putting an additional PCI video card into the machine for console logins, but I''m pretty happy with the setup. Feel free to let me know if you have questions, and by all means let me know if you have success. Good luck! Paul _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
Emre Erenoglu
2007-Nov-13 14:20 UTC
Re: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
Hi Paul, I didn''t really understand why you''re trying to hide your PCI card. In your NX based setup, the KDE or KDM on the remote DomU (if I understand right) does not need a physical graphic card anyway. They run without it very well. You can still use NX to have the user interface of KDE running inside a DomU. (Dom0 also) So why are you doing it? Best regards, Emre On Nov 13, 2007 3:10 PM, Paul Waldo <pwaldo@waldoware.com> wrote:> Paul Waldo wrote: > > Hi all, > > I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works great, > but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. I''m assuming this is because > the video card is in use by the domU. Does this make sense and, if so, can > I solve this by adding abother PCI video card and connecting the monitor to > that? Thanks for helping! > > Paul > > Hi all, > > I have receive numerous requests for how I did this, so I''m glad to give > back! > > I do have to provide a caveat, so don''t get your hopes up yet... My setup > is that I have a 4 CPU Xeon box. It is a big, loud, hot unit, so it is in > the computer closet. I am using a low-end machine on my desk as a fancy > xterminal. The idea is that KDE runs on the Xen box, and I interact with it > via the open source version of NX from nomachine.com, running on my > low-end machine. NX allows desktop sharing as well as sound and printers to > be seamlessly piped to the desktop box. The only thing I haven''t figured > out is how to get peripherals attached to the desktop box (like a CF card > reader or a USB DVD writer) to be automatically recognized on the Xen > box... The idea behind getting the domU to use the nVidia card is not > necessarily for games and such, although that may work OK... > > So anyway, here is what I did to make this all work: > The first thing to do is hide the video card from the dom0. Here is the > stanza from my GRUB menu.lst: > title Xen 3.1 / Ubuntu 7.10, kernel 2.6.22-14-xen > root (hd0,0) > kernel /xen-3.1.gz dom0_mem=262144 > module /vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen root=/dev/mapper/hydra-root ro > xencons=xvc console=xvc0 console=tty1 *pciback.hide=(05:00.0)* > module /initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen > quiet > > > The key here is "*pciback.hide=(05:00.0)*". The number is obtained using > the lspci command on dom0: > root@hydra:~# lspci|grep -i nvidia > 05:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL [Quadro FX > 1300] (rev a2) > > > So, once the changes are made to the GRUB config, reboot the machine. *Be > prepared to SSH into the box, as you won''t get a console!!!* The reason > for this is that as far as the dom0 is concerned, the video card doesn''t > exist. Actually, it may not be that dire. IIRC, I was still able to get a > console at this point, and it is the next step that prevented the console. > I know my memory, and would not rely on it too much if I were you. Just > make sure that sshd is running before you do any of this... :-) > > OK, so now the video card has been unshackled from the dom0. How do you > get a domU to claim it? Here is my domU''s config file: > # > # Configuration file for the Xen instance gutsy, created > # by xen-tools 3.5 on Mon Nov 5 13:39:24 2007. > # > # > # Kernel + memory size > # > kernel = ''/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen'' > ramdisk = ''/boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen'' > memory = ''1024'' > vcpus = ''4'' > extra = ''xencons=xvc'' > *pci = [''05:00.0'']* > # > # Disk device(s). > # > root = ''/dev/sda1 ro'' > disk = [ ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/disk.img,sda1,w'', '' > file:/root/domains/gutsy/swap.img,sda2,w'' ] > # > # Hostname > # > name = ''gutsy'' > # > # Networking > # > dhcp = ''dhcp'' > vif = [ '''' ] > # > # Behaviour > # > on_poweroff = ''destroy'' > on_reboot = ''restart'' > on_crash = ''restart'' > > > The key line here is "*pci = [''05:00.0'']*". This tells the domU to claim > the video card. Reboot the domU and you should then be able to see the > video card: > $ lspci > 00:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL [Quadro FX > 1300] (rev a2) > > > At this point, you can use it just like a normal machine. Change your > driver in xorg.conf from "nv" to "nvidia", "apt-get install > nvidia-glx-new" to get the nVidia drivers, maybe do a reboot, and you are up > and running! > > As pointed out in the caveat, I DO NOT get graphical output from the video > card, nor am I even able to log into the box from the console. I am going > to try putting an additional PCI video card into the machine for console > logins, but I''m pretty happy with the setup. > > Feel free to let me know if you have questions, and by all means let me > know if you have success. Good luck! > > Paul > > _______________________________________________ > Xen-users mailing list > Xen-users@lists.xensource.com > http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users >-- Emre Erenoglu erenoglu@gmail.com _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
Paul Waldo
2007-Nov-13 14:46 UTC
Re: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
Hi Emre, I''m doing it to speed up graphic operations in general, and for specific programs. pfstools generates tone-mapped images from high-dynamic-range images, but it is a slow process. The developers are working on the ability to use the video card''s GPU to do some of the complex calculations. I can''t recall what the exact numbers reported were, but my recollection is that using the GPU reduced the calculation time by at least one, if not two or three, orders of magnitude. Another reason is that the nVidia card is PCI-X, and this particular box is the only one I have with PCI-X. I hate to see good hardware go to waste... :-) Paul Emre Erenoglu wrote:> Hi Paul, > > I didn''t really understand why you''re trying to hide your PCI card. In > your NX based setup, the KDE or KDM on the remote DomU (if I > understand right) does not need a physical graphic card anyway. They > run without it very well. You can still use NX to have the user > interface of KDE running inside a DomU. (Dom0 also) > > So why are you doing it? > > Best regards, > > Emre > > > On Nov 13, 2007 3:10 PM, Paul Waldo <pwaldo@waldoware.com > <mailto:pwaldo@waldoware.com>> wrote: > > Paul Waldo wrote: >> Hi all, >> >> I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works >> great, but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. I''m >> assuming this is because the video card is in use by the domU. >> Does this make sense and, if so, can I solve this by adding >> abother PCI video card and connecting the monitor to that? >> Thanks for helping! >> >> Paul > Hi all, > > I have receive numerous requests for how I did this, so I''m glad > to give back! > > I do have to provide a caveat, so don''t get your hopes up yet... > My setup is that I have a 4 CPU Xeon box. It is a big, loud, hot > unit, so it is in the computer closet. I am using a low-end > machine on my desk as a fancy xterminal. The idea is that KDE > runs on the Xen box, and I interact with it via the open source > version of NX from nomachine.com <http://nomachine.com>, running > on my low-end machine. NX allows desktop sharing as well as sound > and printers to be seamlessly piped to the desktop box. The only > thing I haven''t figured out is how to get peripherals attached to > the desktop box (like a CF card reader or a USB DVD writer) to be > automatically recognized on the Xen box... The idea behind > getting the domU to use the nVidia card is not necessarily for > games and such, although that may work OK... > > So anyway, here is what I did to make this all work: > The first thing to do is hide the video card from the dom0. Here > is the stanza from my GRUB menu.lst: > title Xen 3.1 / Ubuntu 7.10, kernel 2.6.22-14-xen > root (hd0,0) > kernel /xen-3.1.gz dom0_mem=262144 > module /vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen root=/dev/mapper/hydra-root > ro xencons=xvc console=xvc0 console=tty1 *pciback.hide=(05:00.0)* > module /initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen > quiet > > > The key here is "*pciback.hide=(05:00.0)*". The number is > obtained using the lspci command on dom0: > root@hydra:~# lspci|grep -i nvidia > 05:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL > [Quadro FX 1300] (rev a2) > > > So, once the changes are made to the GRUB config, reboot the > machine. *Be prepared to SSH into the box, as you won''t get a > console!!!* The reason for this is that as far as the dom0 is > concerned, the video card doesn''t exist. Actually, it may not be > that dire. IIRC, I was still able to get a console at this point, > and it is the next step that prevented the console. I know my > memory, and would not rely on it too much if I were you. Just > make sure that sshd is running before you do any of this... :-) > > OK, so now the video card has been unshackled from the dom0. How > do you get a domU to claim it? Here is my domU''s config file: > # > # Configuration file for the Xen instance gutsy, created > # by xen-tools 3.5 on Mon Nov 5 13:39:24 2007. > # > # > # Kernel + memory size > # > kernel = ''/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen'' > ramdisk = ''/boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen'' > memory = ''1024'' > vcpus = ''4'' > extra = ''xencons=xvc'' > *pci = [''05:00.0'']* > # > # Disk device(s). > # > root = ''/dev/sda1 ro'' > disk = [ ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/disk.img,sda1,w'', > ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/swap.img,sda2,w'' ] > # > # Hostname > # > name = ''gutsy'' > # > # Networking > # > dhcp = ''dhcp'' > vif = [ '''' ] > # > # Behaviour > # > on_poweroff = ''destroy'' > on_reboot = ''restart'' > on_crash = ''restart'' > > > The key line here is "*pci = [''05:00.0'']*". This tells the domU > to claim the video card. Reboot the domU and you should then be > able to see the video card: > $ lspci > 00:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL > [Quadro FX 1300] (rev a2) > > > At this point, you can use it just like a normal machine. Change > your driver in xorg.conf from "nv" to "nvidia", "apt-get install > nvidia-glx-new" to get the nVidia drivers, maybe do a reboot, and > you are up and running! > > As pointed out in the caveat, I DO NOT get graphical output from > the video card, nor am I even able to log into the box from the > console. I am going to try putting an additional PCI video card > into the machine for console logins, but I''m pretty happy with the > setup. > > Feel free to let me know if you have questions, and by all means > let me know if you have success. Good luck! > > Paul > > _______________________________________________ > Xen-users mailing list > Xen-users@lists.xensource.com <mailto:Xen-users@lists.xensource.com> > http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users > > > > > -- > Emre Erenoglu > erenoglu@gmail.com <mailto:erenoglu@gmail.com> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Xen-users mailing list > Xen-users@lists.xensource.com > http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users_______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
Emre Erenoglu
2007-Nov-13 14:49 UTC
Re: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
OK now I understood. Good use :) Which also means that you don''t actually use the exported PCI-X card in your DomU to display user interface and play fancy Compiz and 3D games. I tried once, nvidia module failed to load with some memory map error, didn''t try after... Emre On Nov 13, 2007 3:46 PM, Paul Waldo <pwaldo@waldoware.com> wrote:> Hi Emre, > > I''m doing it to speed up graphic operations in general, and for specific > programs. pfstools generates tone-mapped images from high-dynamic-range > images, but it is a slow process. The developers are working on the ability > to use the video card''s GPU to do some of the complex calculations. I can''t > recall what the exact numbers reported were, but my recollection is that > using the GPU reduced the calculation time by at least one, if not two or > three, orders of magnitude. > > Another reason is that the nVidia card is PCI-X, and this particular box > is the only one I have with PCI-X. I hate to see good hardware go to > waste... :-) > > Paul > > Emre Erenoglu wrote: > > Hi Paul, > > I didn''t really understand why you''re trying to hide your PCI card. In > your NX based setup, the KDE or KDM on the remote DomU (if I understand > right) does not need a physical graphic card anyway. They run without it > very well. You can still use NX to have the user interface of KDE running > inside a DomU. (Dom0 also) > > So why are you doing it? > > Best regards, > > Emre > > > On Nov 13, 2007 3:10 PM, Paul Waldo <pwaldo@waldoware.com> wrote: > > > Paul Waldo wrote: > > > > Hi all, > > > > I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It works great, > > but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. I''m assuming this is because > > the video card is in use by the domU. Does this make sense and, if so, can > > I solve this by adding abother PCI video card and connecting the monitor to > > that? Thanks for helping! > > > > Paul > > > > Hi all, > > > > I have receive numerous requests for how I did this, so I''m glad to give > > back! > > > > I do have to provide a caveat, so don''t get your hopes up yet... My > > setup is that I have a 4 CPU Xeon box. It is a big, loud, hot unit, so it > > is in the computer closet. I am using a low-end machine on my desk as a > > fancy xterminal. The idea is that KDE runs on the Xen box, and I interact > > with it via the open source version of NX from nomachine.com, running on > > my low-end machine. NX allows desktop sharing as well as sound and printers > > to be seamlessly piped to the desktop box. The only thing I haven''t figured > > out is how to get peripherals attached to the desktop box (like a CF card > > reader or a USB DVD writer) to be automatically recognized on the Xen > > box... The idea behind getting the domU to use the nVidia card is not > > necessarily for games and such, although that may work OK... > > > > So anyway, here is what I did to make this all work: > > The first thing to do is hide the video card from the dom0. Here is the > > stanza from my GRUB menu.lst: > > title Xen 3.1 / Ubuntu 7.10, kernel 2.6.22-14-xen > > root (hd0,0) > > kernel /xen-3.1.gz dom0_mem=262144 > > module /vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen root=/dev/mapper/hydra-root ro > > xencons=xvc console=xvc0 console=tty1 *pciback.hide=(05:00.0)* > > module /initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen > > quiet > > > > > > The key here is "*pciback.hide=(05:00.0)*". The number is obtained > > using the lspci command on dom0: > > root@hydra:~# lspci|grep -i nvidia > > 05:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL [Quadro FX > > 1300] (rev a2) > > > > > > So, once the changes are made to the GRUB config, reboot the machine. *Be > > prepared to SSH into the box, as you won''t get a console!!!* The reason > > for this is that as far as the dom0 is concerned, the video card doesn''t > > exist. Actually, it may not be that dire. IIRC, I was still able to get a > > console at this point, and it is the next step that prevented the console. > > I know my memory, and would not rely on it too much if I were you. Just > > make sure that sshd is running before you do any of this... :-) > > > > OK, so now the video card has been unshackled from the dom0. How do you > > get a domU to claim it? Here is my domU''s config file: > > # > > # Configuration file for the Xen instance gutsy, created > > # by xen-tools 3.5 on Mon Nov 5 13:39:24 2007. > > # > > # > > # Kernel + memory size > > # > > kernel = ''/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen'' > > ramdisk = ''/boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen'' > > memory = ''1024'' > > vcpus = ''4'' > > extra = ''xencons=xvc'' > > *pci = [''05:00.0'']* > > # > > # Disk device(s). > > # > > root = ''/dev/sda1 ro'' > > disk = [ ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/disk.img,sda1,w'', '' > > file:/root/domains/gutsy/swap.img,sda2,w'' ] > > # > > # Hostname > > # > > name = ''gutsy'' > > # > > # Networking > > # > > dhcp = ''dhcp'' > > vif = [ '''' ] > > # > > # Behaviour > > # > > on_poweroff = ''destroy'' > > on_reboot = ''restart'' > > on_crash = ''restart'' > > > > > > The key line here is "*pci = [''05:00.0'']*". This tells the domU to > > claim the video card. Reboot the domU and you should then be able to see > > the video card: > > $ lspci > > 00:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL [Quadro FX > > 1300] (rev a2) > > > > > > At this point, you can use it just like a normal machine. Change your > > driver in xorg.conf from "nv" to "nvidia", "apt-get install > > nvidia-glx-new" to get the nVidia drivers, maybe do a reboot, and you are up > > and running! > > > > As pointed out in the caveat, I DO NOT get graphical output from the > > video card, nor am I even able to log into the box from the console. I am > > going to try putting an additional PCI video card into the machine for > > console logins, but I''m pretty happy with the setup. > > > > Feel free to let me know if you have questions, and by all means let me > > know if you have success. Good luck! > > > > Paul > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Xen-users mailing list > > Xen-users@lists.xensource.com > > http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users > > > > > > -- > Emre Erenoglu > erenoglu@gmail.com > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Xen-users mailing listXen-users@lists.xensource.comhttp://lists.xensource.com/xen-users > > >-- Emre Erenoglu erenoglu@gmail.com _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
Paul Waldo
2007-Nov-13 15:24 UTC
Re: [Xen-users] Exported PCI video to domU. Need another video card for console?
Yes and no. The part of the card that drives the monitor is unused, but the part of the card that speeds up graphical operations *does* get used by the nVidia driver. HTH! Paul Emre Erenoglu wrote:> OK now I understood. Good use :) > > Which also means that you don''t actually use the exported PCI-X card > in your DomU to display user interface and play fancy Compiz and 3D games. > > I tried once, nvidia module failed to load with some memory map error, > didn''t try after... > > Emre > > > On Nov 13, 2007 3:46 PM, Paul Waldo <pwaldo@waldoware.com > <mailto:pwaldo@waldoware.com>> wrote: > > Hi Emre, > > I''m doing it to speed up graphic operations in general, and for > specific programs. pfstools generates tone-mapped images from > high-dynamic-range images, but it is a slow process. The > developers are working on the ability to use the video card''s GPU > to do some of the complex calculations. I can''t recall what the > exact numbers reported were, but my recollection is that using the > GPU reduced the calculation time by at least one, if not two or > three, orders of magnitude. > > Another reason is that the nVidia card is PCI-X, and this > particular box is the only one I have with PCI-X. I hate to see > good hardware go to waste... :-) > > Paul > > Emre Erenoglu wrote: >> Hi Paul, >> >> I didn''t really understand why you''re trying to hide your PCI >> card. In your NX based setup, the KDE or KDM on the remote DomU >> (if I understand right) does not need a physical graphic card >> anyway. They run without it very well. You can still use NX to >> have the user interface of KDE running inside a DomU. (Dom0 also) >> >> So why are you doing it? >> >> Best regards, >> >> Emre >> >> >> On Nov 13, 2007 3:10 PM, Paul Waldo <pwaldo@waldoware.com >> <mailto:pwaldo@waldoware.com>> wrote: >> >> Paul Waldo wrote: >>> Hi all, >>> >>> I''m exporting my nVidia video card to one of my domUs. It >>> works great, but I am unable to get a console on the dom0. >>> I''m assuming this is because the video card is in use by the >>> domU. Does this make sense and, if so, can I solve this by >>> adding abother PCI video card and connecting the monitor to >>> that? Thanks for helping! >>> >>> Paul >> Hi all, >> >> I have receive numerous requests for how I did this, so I''m >> glad to give back! >> >> I do have to provide a caveat, so don''t get your hopes up >> yet... My setup is that I have a 4 CPU Xeon box. It is a >> big, loud, hot unit, so it is in the computer closet. I am >> using a low-end machine on my desk as a fancy xterminal. The >> idea is that KDE runs on the Xen box, and I interact with it >> via the open source version of NX from nomachine.com >> <http://nomachine.com>, running on my low-end machine. NX >> allows desktop sharing as well as sound and printers to be >> seamlessly piped to the desktop box. The only thing I >> haven''t figured out is how to get peripherals attached to the >> desktop box (like a CF card reader or a USB DVD writer) to be >> automatically recognized on the Xen box... The idea behind >> getting the domU to use the nVidia card is not necessarily >> for games and such, although that may work OK... >> >> So anyway, here is what I did to make this all work: >> The first thing to do is hide the video card from the dom0. >> Here is the stanza from my GRUB menu.lst: >> title Xen 3.1 / Ubuntu 7.10, kernel 2.6.22-14-xen >> root (hd0,0) >> kernel /xen-3.1.gz dom0_mem=262144 >> module /vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen >> root=/dev/mapper/hydra-root ro xencons=xvc console=xvc0 >> console=tty1 *pciback.hide=(05:00.0)* >> module /initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen >> quiet >> >> >> The key here is "*pciback.hide=(05:00.0)*". The number is >> obtained using the lspci command on dom0: >> root@hydra:~# lspci|grep -i nvidia >> 05:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL >> [Quadro FX 1300] (rev a2) >> >> >> So, once the changes are made to the GRUB config, reboot the >> machine. *Be prepared to SSH into the box, as you won''t get >> a console!!!* The reason for this is that as far as the dom0 >> is concerned, the video card doesn''t exist. Actually, it may >> not be that dire. IIRC, I was still able to get a console at >> this point, and it is the next step that prevented the >> console. I know my memory, and would not rely on it too much >> if I were you. Just make sure that sshd is running before >> you do any of this... :-) >> >> OK, so now the video card has been unshackled from the dom0. >> How do you get a domU to claim it? Here is my domU''s config >> file: >> # >> # Configuration file for the Xen instance gutsy, created >> # by xen-tools 3.5 on Mon Nov 5 13:39:24 2007. >> # >> # >> # Kernel + memory size >> # >> kernel = ''/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.22-14-xen'' >> ramdisk = ''/boot/initrd.img-2.6.22-14-xen'' >> memory = ''1024'' >> vcpus = ''4'' >> extra = ''xencons=xvc'' >> *pci = [''05:00.0'']* >> # >> # Disk device(s). >> # >> root = ''/dev/sda1 ro'' >> disk = [ ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/disk.img,sda1,w'', >> ''file:/root/domains/gutsy/swap.img,sda2,w'' ] >> # >> # Hostname >> # >> name = ''gutsy'' >> # >> # Networking >> # >> dhcp = ''dhcp'' >> vif = [ '''' ] >> # >> # Behaviour >> # >> on_poweroff = ''destroy'' >> on_reboot = ''restart'' >> on_crash = ''restart'' >> >> >> The key line here is "*pci = [''05:00.0'']*". This tells the >> domU to claim the video card. Reboot the domU and you should >> then be able to see the video card: >> $ lspci >> 00:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV38GL >> [Quadro FX 1300] (rev a2) >> >> >> At this point, you can use it just like a normal machine. >> Change your driver in xorg.conf from "nv" to "nvidia", >> "apt-get install nvidia-glx-new" to get the nVidia drivers, >> maybe do a reboot, and you are up and running! >> >> As pointed out in the caveat, I DO NOT get graphical output >> from the video card, nor am I even able to log into the box >> from the console. I am going to try putting an additional >> PCI video card into the machine for console logins, but I''m >> pretty happy with the setup. >> >> Feel free to let me know if you have questions, and by all >> means let me know if you have success. Good luck! >> >> Paul >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Xen-users mailing list >> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com >> <mailto:Xen-users@lists.xensource.com> >> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users >> >> >> >> >> -- >> Emre Erenoglu >> erenoglu@gmail.com <mailto:erenoglu@gmail.com> >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ >> _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing >> list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com >> <mailto:Xen-users@lists.xensource.com> >> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users > > > > > -- > Emre Erenoglu > erenoglu@gmail.com <mailto:erenoglu@gmail.com> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Xen-users mailing list > Xen-users@lists.xensource.com > http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users_______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@lists.xensource.com http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users