Nvidia Optimus
Encyclopedia
Nvidia Optimus is an optimization technology created by Nvidia
to save battery life by automatically switching the power of the graphics processing unit (GPU) off when it is not needed and switching it on when needed again. The technology mainly targets mobile PCs such as notebook
s. When the GPU power is off, the driver
redirects graphics commands to the integrated graphics chip (e.g. Intel GMA). Currently only Windows 7 is officially supported, however the open source project Bumblebee brings support to Linux.
In addition to lack of support for switching between GPU chipsets, the presence of Optimus can actually prevent the use of Nvidia chipset, even if installed GPU drivers support it. Some older systems contain a hardware switch (mux) to switch the output between the two video devices, which could be set in the BIOS. Modern systems lack the hardware muxer and output is often hardwired to integrated chipset's display controller. With Optimus, the output frames from the Nvidia card are therefore transferred over the PCIe bus to the integrated chipset's framebuffer, which is then displayed. This transfer is not working using official driver on anything except Windows 7 because of lacking architectural infrastructure of other operating systems.
The open-source project Bumblebee tries to support these kinds of graphics cards.
NVIDIA
Nvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles...
to save battery life by automatically switching the power of the graphics processing unit (GPU) off when it is not needed and switching it on when needed again. The technology mainly targets mobile PCs such as notebook
Notebook
A notebook is a book or binder composed of pages of notes, often ruled, made out of paper, used for purposes including recording notes or memoranda, writing, drawing, and scrapbooking....
s. When the GPU power is off, the driver
Device driver
In computing, a device driver or software driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device....
redirects graphics commands to the integrated graphics chip (e.g. Intel GMA). Currently only Windows 7 is officially supported, however the open source project Bumblebee brings support to Linux.
Linux support
Nvidia has no plans to support Optimus on Linux.In addition to lack of support for switching between GPU chipsets, the presence of Optimus can actually prevent the use of Nvidia chipset, even if installed GPU drivers support it. Some older systems contain a hardware switch (mux) to switch the output between the two video devices, which could be set in the BIOS. Modern systems lack the hardware muxer and output is often hardwired to integrated chipset's display controller. With Optimus, the output frames from the Nvidia card are therefore transferred over the PCIe bus to the integrated chipset's framebuffer, which is then displayed. This transfer is not working using official driver on anything except Windows 7 because of lacking architectural infrastructure of other operating systems.
The open-source project Bumblebee tries to support these kinds of graphics cards.