NVIDIA Virtual GPU Software v7.0 through 7.5 Revision 02

Nutanix AHV

Virtual GPU Software R410 for Nutanix AHV Release Notes

Release information for all users of NVIDIA virtual GPU software and hardware on Nutanix AHV.

These Release Notes summarize current status, information on validated platforms, and known issues with NVIDIA vGPU software and associated hardware on Nutanix AHV.

Note:

Release 7.5 of NVIDIA vGPU software is the last release in the NVIDIA vGPU software 7 release branch.

The releases in this release family of NVIDIA vGPU software include the software listed in the following table:

Software 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5
NVIDIA Virtual GPU Manager for the Nutanix AHV releases listed in Hypervisor Software Releases 410.68 410.91 410.107 410.122 410.137 410.137
NVIDIA Windows driver 411.81 412.16 412.31 412.38 412.45 412.47
NVIDIA Linux driver 410.71 410.92 410.107 410.122 410.137 410.141

CAUTION:

If you install the wrong NVIDIA vGPU software packages for the version of Nutanix AHV you are using, NVIDIA Virtual GPU Manager will fail to load.

The releases of the vGPU Manager and guest VM drivers that you install must be compatible. Different versions of the vGPU Manager and guest VM driver from within the same main release branch can be used together. For example, you can use the vGPU Manager from release 7.1 with guest VM drivers from release 7.0. However, versions of the vGPU Manager and guest VM driver from different main release branches cannot be used together. For example, you cannot use the vGPU Manager from release 7.1 with guest VM drivers from release 6.2.

See VM running older NVIDIA vGPU drivers fails to initialize vGPU when booted.

This requirement does not apply to the NVIDIA vGPU software license sever. All releases of NVIDIA vGPU software are compatible with all releases of the license server.

1.1. Updates in Release 7.0

New Features in Release 7.0

  • vGPU support for NVIDIA frame buffer capture metrics
  • vGPU support for render capture metrics from the hypervisor and guest VMs
  • Support for NVIDIA GPU Cloud (NGC) containers with NVIDIA vGPU software
  • Miscellaneous bug fixes

Hardware and Software Support Introduced in Release 7.0

  • Support for Nutanix AHV 5.9
  • Support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.6 as a guest OS
  • Support for CentOS 7.6 as a guest OS
  • Support for Windows 10 Spring Creators Update (1803) as a guest OS

Feature Support Withdrawn in Release 7.0

  • Nutanix AHV 5.6 is no longer supported.
  • 32-bit Windows guest operating systems are no longer supported.

1.2. Updates in Release 7.1

New Features in Release 7.1

  • Miscellaneous bug fixes

Hardware and Software Support Introduced in Release 7.1

  • Support for Nutanix AHV 5.10

1.3. Updates in Release 7.2

New Features in Release 7.2

1.4. Updates in Release 7.3

New Features in Release 7.3

  • Security updates
  • Miscellaneous bug fixes

1.5. Updates in Release 7.4

New Features in Release 7.4

  • Security updates
  • Miscellaneous bug fixes

1.6. Updates in Release 7.5

New Features in Release 7.5

  • Fix for bug 2708778: In GPU pass-through mode, the NVIDIA graphics drivers fail to load with error code 43.

This release family of NVIDIA vGPU software provides support for several NVIDIA GPUs on validated server hardware platforms, Nutanix AHV hypervisor software versions, and guest operating systems. It also supports the version of NVIDIA CUDA Toolkit that is compatible with R410 drivers.

2.1. Supported NVIDIA GPUs and Validated Server Platforms

This release of NVIDIA vGPU software provides support for the following NVIDIA GPUs on Nutanix AHV, running on validated Nutanix NX series server hardware platforms:

  • GPUs based on the NVIDIA Maxwell™ graphic architecture:
    • Tesla M10
    • Tesla M60
  • GPUs based on the NVIDIA Pascal™ architecture:
    • Since 7.1: Tesla P4
    • Tesla P40
  • GPUs based on the NVIDIA Volta architecture:
    • Tesla V100 PCIe
    • Since 7.1: Tesla V100 PCIe 32GB

For a list of validated server platforms, refer to NVIDIA GRID Certified Nutanix Servers.

Note:

Tesla M60 and M6 GPUs support compute mode and graphics mode. NVIDIA vGPU requires GPUs that support both modes to operate in graphics mode.

Recent Tesla M60 GPUs and M6 GPUs are supplied in graphics mode. However, your GPU might be in compute mode if it is an older Tesla M60 GPU or M6 GPU, or if its mode has previously been changed.

To configure the mode of Tesla M60 and M6 GPUs, use the gpumodeswitch tool provided with NVIDIA vGPU software releases.

2.2. Hypervisor Software Releases

This release is supported on the Nutanix AHV releases listed in the table.
Note:

Updates to a base release of Nutanix AHV are compatible with the base release and can also be used with this version of NVIDIA vGPU software unless expressly stated otherwise.

Software Releases Supported Notes
Nutanix AOS Hypervisor (AHV) 5.10 5.10 RTM and compatible 5.10.x updates Support for the following GPUs is introduced in release 5.10.1:
  • Tesla P4
  • Tesla V100 PCIe 32GB

5.10 RTM does not support Tesla P4 or Tesla V100 PCIe 32GB.

Nutanix AOS Hypervisor (AHV) 5.9 5.9 RTM and compatible 5.9.x updates Not supported on the following GPUs:
  • Tesla P4
  • Tesla V100 PCIe 32GB
Nutanix AOS Hypervisor (AHV) 5.8 5.8 RTM and compatible 5.8.x updates Not supported on the following GPUs:
  • Tesla P4
  • Tesla V100 PCIe 32GB
Nutanix AOS Hypervisor (AHV) 5.5 5.5 RTM and compatible 5.5.x updates Not supported on the following GPUs:
  • Tesla P4
  • Tesla V100 PCIe 32GB

2.3. Guest OS Support

NVIDIA vGPU software supports several Windows releases and Linux distributions as a guest OS. The supported guest operating systems depend on the hypervisor software version.

Note:

Use only a guest OS release that is listed as supported by NVIDIA vGPU software with your virtualization software. To be listed as supported, a guest OS release must be supported not only by NVIDIA vGPU software, but also by your virtualization software. NVIDIA cannot support guest OS releases that your virtualization software does not support.

NVIDIA vGPU software supports only 64-bit guest operating systems. No 32-bit guest operating systems are supported.


Windows Guest OS Support

NVIDIA vGPU software supports only the 64-bit Windows releases listed in the table as a guest OS on Nutanix AHV. The releases of Nutanix AHV for which a Windows release is supported depend on whether NVIDIA vGPU or pass-through GPU is used.
Note:

If a specific release, even an update release, is not listed, it’s not supported.

Guest OS NVIDIA vGPU - Nutanix AHV Releases Pass-Through GPU - Nutanix AHV Releases
Windows Server 2016 1607, 1709

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows Server 2012 R2

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows Server 2008 R2

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows 10 RTM (1507), November Update (1511), Anniversary Update (1607), Creators Update (1703), Fall Creators Update (1709), Spring Creators Update (1803) (64-bit)

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows 8.1 Update (64-bit)

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows 8.1 (64-bit)

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows 8 (64-bit)

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Windows 7 (64-bit)

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

2.3.2. Linux Guest OS Support

NVIDIA vGPU software supports only the Linux distributions listed in the table as a guest OS on Nutanix AHV. The releases of Nutanix AHV for which a Linux release is supported depend on whether NVIDIA vGPU or pass-through GPU is used.
Note:

If a specific release, even an update release, is not listed, it’s not supported.

Guest OS NVIDIA vGPU - Nutanix AHV Releases Pass-Through GPU - Nutanix AHV Releases
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.0-7.6

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

CentOS 7.0-7.6

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Ubuntu 14.04 LTS

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

Since 7.1: 5.10, 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

7.0 only: 5.9, 5.8, 5.5

2.4. NVIDIA CUDA Toolkit Version Support

The releases in this release family of NVIDIA vGPU software support NVIDIA CUDA Toolkit 10.0.

For more information about NVIDIA CUDA Toolkit, see CUDA Toolkit 10.0 Documentation.

Known product limitations for this release of NVIDIA vGPU software are described in the following sections.

3.1. Issues may occur with graphics-intensive OpenCL applications on vGPU types with limited frame buffer

Description

Issues may occur when graphics-intensive OpenCL applications are used with vGPU types that have limited frame buffer. These issues occur when the applications demand more frame buffer than is allocated to the vGPU.

For example, these issues may occur with the Adobe Photoshop and LuxMark OpenCL Benchmark applications:

  • When the image resolution and size are changed in Adobe Photoshop, a program error may occur or Photoshop may display a message about a problem with the graphics hardware and a suggestion to disable OpenCL.
  • When the LuxMark OpenCL Benchmark application is run, XID error 31 may occur.

Workaround

For graphics-intensive OpenCL applications, use a vGPU type with more frame buffer.

3.2. vGPU profiles with 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer support only 1 virtual display head on Windows 10

Description

To reduce the possibility of memory exhaustion, vGPU profiles with 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer support only 1 virtual display head on a Windows 10 guest OS.

The following vGPU profiles have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer:

  • Tesla M6-0B, M6-0Q
  • Tesla M10-0B, M10-0Q
  • Tesla M60-0B, M60-0Q

Workaround

Use a profile that supports more than 1 virtual display head and has at least 1 Gbyte of frame buffer.

3.3. NVENC requires at least 1 Gbyte of frame buffer

Description

Using the frame buffer for the NVIDIA hardware-based H.264/HEVC video encoder (NVENC) may cause memory exhaustion with vGPU profiles that have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer. To reduce the possibility of memory exhaustion, NVENC is disabled on profiles that have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer. Application GPU acceleration remains fully supported and available for all profiles, including profiles with 512 MBytes or less of frame buffer. NVENC support from both Citrix and VMware is a recent feature and, if you are using an older version, you should experience no change in functionality.

The following vGPU profiles have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer:

  • Tesla M6-0B, M6-0Q
  • Tesla M10-0B, M10-0Q
  • Tesla M60-0B, M60-0Q

Workaround

If you require NVENC to be enabled, use a profile that has at least 1 Gbyte of frame buffer.

3.4. VM running older NVIDIA vGPU drivers fails to initialize vGPU when booted

Description

A VM running a version of the NVIDIA guest VM drivers from a previous main release branch, for example release 4.4, will fail to initialize vGPU when booted on a Nutanix AHV platform running the current release of Virtual GPU Manager.

In this scenario, the VM boots in standard VGA mode with reduced resolution and color depth. The NVIDIA virtual GPU is present in Windows Device Manager but displays a warning sign, and the following device status:

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Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43)

Depending on the versions of drivers in use, the Nutanix AHV VM’s /var/log/messages log file reports one of the following errors:

  • An error message:
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    vmiop_log: error: Unable to fetch Guest NVIDIA driver information

  • A version mismatch between guest and host drivers:
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    vmiop_log: error: Guest VGX version(1.1) and Host VGX version(1.2) do not match

  • A signature mismatch:
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    vmiop_log: error: VGPU message signature mismatch.

Resolution

Install the current NVIDIA guest VM driver in the VM.

3.5. Virtual GPU fails to start if ECC is enabled

Description

Tesla M60, Tesla M6, and GPUs based on the Pascal GPU architecture, for example Tesla P100 or Tesla P4, support error correcting code (ECC) memory for improved data integrity. Tesla M60 and M6 GPUs in graphics mode are supplied with ECC memory disabled by default, but it may subsequently be enabled using nvidia-smi. GPUs based on the Pascal GPU architecture are supplied with ECC memory enabled.

However, NVIDIA vGPU does not support ECC memory. If ECC memory is enabled, NVIDIA vGPU fails to start.

The following error is logged in the Nutanix AHV host’s /var/log/messages log file:

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vmiop_log: error: Initialization: VGX not supported with ECC Enabled.


Resolution

Ensure that ECC is disabled on all GPUs.

Before you begin, ensure that NVIDIA Virtual GPU Manager is installed on your hypervisor.

  1. Use nvidia-smi to list the status of all GPUs, and check for ECC noted as enabled on GPUs.
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    # nvidia-smi -q ==============NVSMI LOG============== Timestamp : Tue Dec 19 18:36:45 2017 Driver Version : 384.99 Attached GPUs : 1 GPU 0000:02:00.0 [...] Ecc Mode Current : Enabled Pending : Enabled [...]

  2. Change the ECC status to off on each GPU for which ECC is enabled.
    • If you want to change the ECC status to off for all GPUs on your host machine, run this command:
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      # nvidia-smi -e 0

    • If you want to change the ECC status to off for a specific GPU, run this command:
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      # nvidia-smi -i id -e 0

      id is the index of the GPU as reported by nvidia-smi.

      This example disables ECC for the GPU with index 0000:02:00.0.

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      # nvidia-smi -i 0000:02:00.0 -e 0

  3. Reboot the host.
  4. Confirm that ECC is now disabled for the GPU.
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    # nvidia-smi -q ==============NVSMI LOG============== Timestamp : Tue Dec 19 18:37:53 2017 Driver Version : 384.99 Attached GPUs : 1 GPU 0000:02:00.0 [...] Ecc Mode Current : Disabled Pending : Disabled [...]

If you later need to enable ECC on your GPUs, run one of the following commands:

  • If you want to change the ECC status to on for all GPUs on your host machine, run this command:
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    # nvidia-smi -e 1

  • If you want to change the ECC status to on for a specific GPU, run this command:
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    # nvidia-smi -i id -e 1

    id is the index of the GPU as reported by nvidia-smi.

    This example enables ECC for the GPU with index 0000:02:00.0.

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    # nvidia-smi -i 0000:02:00.0 -e 1

After changing the ECC status to on, reboot the host.

3.6. Single vGPU benchmark scores are lower than pass-through GPU

Description

A single vGPU configured on a physical GPU produces lower benchmark scores than the physical GPU run in pass-through mode.

Aside from performance differences that may be attributed to a vGPU’s smaller frame buffer size, vGPU incorporates a performance balancing feature known as Frame Rate Limiter (FRL). On vGPUs that use the best-effort scheduler, FRL is enabled. On vGPUs that use the fixed share or equal share scheduler, FRL is disabled.

FRL is used to ensure balanced performance across multiple vGPUs that are resident on the same physical GPU. The FRL setting is designed to give good interactive remote graphics experience but may reduce scores in benchmarks that depend on measuring frame rendering rates, as compared to the same benchmarks running on a pass-through GPU.

Resolution

FRL is controlled by an internal vGPU setting. On vGPUs that use the best-effort scheduler, NVIDIA does not validate vGPU with FRL disabled, but for validation of benchmark performance, FRL can be temporarily disabled by setting the extra vGPU parameter frame_rate_limiter=0 through the ACLI when a vGPU type is assigned to a VM.

For example:

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vm.gpu_assign a7f24fc0-dd05-4595-a76f-8b1901942aae gpu=Nvidia_GRID_M60-4Q extra_param=frame_rate_limiter=0

The setting takes effect the next time any VM using the given vGPU type is started.

With this setting in place, the VM’s vGPU will run without any frame rate limit.

The FRL can be reverted back to its default setting by setting the extra vGPU parameter frame_rate_limiter=1

3.7. nvidia-smi fails to operate when all GPUs are assigned to GPU pass-through mode

Description

If all GPUs in the platform are assigned to VMs in pass-through mode, nvidia-smi will return an error:

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[root@vgx-test ~]# nvidia-smi Failed to initialize NVML: Unknown Error

This is because GPUs operating in pass-through mode are not visible to nvidia-smi and the NVIDIA kernel driver operating in the Nutanix AHVhost.

Resolution

N/A

Only resolved issues that have been previously noted as known issues or had a noticeable user impact are listed. The summary and description for each resolved issue indicate the effect of the issue on NVIDIA vGPU software before the issue was resolved.

Issues Resolved in Release 7.0

No resolved issues are reported in this release for Nutanix AHV.

Issues Resolved in Release 7.1

Bug ID Summary and Description
  • 2425350
  • 200492702

After a long stress test, a blue screen crash (BSOD) occurs

After a long stress test, the GPU hangs, causing severe performance issues or a blue screen crash in the VM.

200461544

Blue Screen crash during guest driver installation

During installation of the NVIDIA vGPU software graphics driver in guest VMs running some Microsoft Windows 10 releases, a blue screen crash occurs with the error VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE 116.


Issues Resolved in Release 7.2

No resolved issues are reported in this release for Nutanix AHV.

Issues Resolved in Release 7.3

No resolved issues are reported in this release for Nutanix AHV.

Issues Resolved in Release 7.4

No resolved issues are reported in this release for Nutanix AHV.

Issues Resolved in Release 7.5

Bug ID Summary and Description
2708778

7.4 Only: In GPU pass-through mode, the NVIDIA graphics drivers fail to load

In GPU pass-through mode with some hardware configurations, the NVIDIA graphics drivers fail to load with error code 43 and multiple assertion failures.

5.1. Since 7.2: Restricting Access to GPU Performance Counters

The NVIDIA graphics driver contains a vulnerability (CVE-2018-6260) that may allow access to application data processed on the GPU through a side channel exposed by the GPU performance counters. To address this vulnerability, update the driver and restrict access to GPU performance counters to allow access only by administrator users and users who need to use CUDA profiling tools.

The GPU performance counters that are affected by this vulnerability are the hardware performance monitors used by the CUDA profiling tools such as CUPTI, Nsight Graphics, and Nsight Compute. These performance counters are exposed on the hypervisor host and in guest VMs only as follows:

  • On the hypervisor host, they are always exposed. However, the Virtual GPU Manager does not access these performance counters and, therefore, is not affected.
  • In Windows and Linux guest VMs, they are exposed only in VMs configured for GPU pass through. They are not exposed in VMs configured for NVIDIA vGPU.

5.1.1. Windows: Restricting Access to GPU Performance Counters for One User by Using NVIDIA Control Panel

Perform this task from the guest VM to which the GPU is passed through.
Ensure that you are running NVIDIA Control Panel version 8.1.950.

  1. Open NVIDIA Control Panel:
    • Right-click on the Windows desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel from the menu.
    • Open Windows Control Panel and double-click the NVIDIA Control Panel icon.
  2. In NVIDIA Control Panel, select the Manage GPU Performance Counters task in the Developer section of the navigation pane.
  3. Complete the task by following the instructions in the Manage GPU Performance Counters > Developer topic in the NVIDIA Control Panel help.

5.1.2. Windows: Restricting Access to GPU Performance Counters Across an Enterprise by Using a Registry Key

You can use a registry key to restrict access to GPU Performance Counters for all users who log in to a Windows guest VM. By incorporating the registry key information into a script, you can automate the setting of this registry for all Windows guest VMs across your enterprise.

Perform this task from the guest VM to which the GPU is passed through.

CAUTION:

Only enterprise administrators should perform this task. Changes to the Windows registry must be made with care and system instability can result if registry keys are incorrectly set.


  1. Set the RmProfilingAdminOnly Windows registry key to 1.
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    [HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\nvlddmkm\Global\NVTweak] Value: "RmProfilingAdminOnly" Type: DWORD Data: 00000001

    The data value 1 restricts access, and the data value 0 allows access, to application data processed on the GPU through a side channel exposed by the GPU performance counters.

  2. Restart the VM.

5.1.3. Linux Guest VMs and Hypervisor Host: Restricting Access to GPU Performance Counters

On systems where unprivileged users don't need to use GPU performance counters, restrict access to these counters to system administrators, namely users with the CAP_SYS_ADMIN capability set. By default, the GPU performance counters are not restricted to users with the CAP_SYS_ADMIN capability.

Perform this task from the guest VM to which the GPU is passed through or from your hypervisor host machine.

In Linux guest VMs, this task requires sudo privileges. On your hypervisor host machine, this task must be performed as the root user on the machine.

  1. Log in to the guest VM or open a command shell on your hypervisor host machine.
  2. Set the kernel module parameter NVreg_RestrictProfilingToAdminUsers to 1 by adding this parameter to the /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia.conf file.
    • If you are setting only this parameter, add an entry for it to the /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia.conf file as follows:

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      options nvidia NVreg_RegistryDwords="NVreg_RestrictProfilingToAdminUsers=1"

    • If you are setting multiple parameters, set them in a single entry as in the following example:

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      options nvidia NVreg_RegistryDwords="RmPVMRL=0x0" "NVreg_RestrictProfilingToAdminUsers=1"

    If the /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia.conf file does not already exist, create it.

  3. Restart the VM or reboot your hypervisor host machine.

6.1. 7.4 Only: In GPU pass-through mode, the NVIDIA graphics drivers fail to load

Description

In GPU pass-through mode with some hardware configurations, the NVIDIA graphics drivers fail to load with error code 43 and multiple assertion failures.

Status

Resolved in NVIDIA vGPU software 7.5

Ref. #

2708778

6.2. 7.0 Only: After a long stress test, a blue screen crash (BSOD) occurs

Description

After a long stress test, the GPU hangs, causing severe performance issues or a blue screen crash in the VM.

This issue affects only supported GPUs based on the NVIDIA Pascal architecture or the NVIDIA Volta architecture.

The nvidia-smi -q command returns the following information, in which power readings and clocks data are shown as Unknown Error.

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Power Readings Power Management : Supported Power Draw : Unknown Error Power Limit : 250.00 W Default Power Limit : 250.00 W Enforced Power Limit : 250.00 W Min Power Limit : 125.00 W Max Power Limit : 250.00 W Clocks Graphics : Unknown Error SM : Unknown Error Memory : 3615 MHz Video : Unknown Error


Status

Resolved in release 7.1

Ref. #

  • 2425350
  • 200492702

6.3. Vulkan applications crash in Windows 7 guest VMs configured with NVIDIA vGPU

Description

In Windows 7 guest VMs configured with NVIDIA vGPU, applications developed with Vulkan APIs crash or throw errors when they are launched. Vulkan APIs require sparse texture support, but in Windows 7 guest VMs configured with NVIDIA vGPU, sparse textures are not enabled.

In Windows 10 guest VMs configured with NVIDIA vGPU, sparse textures are enabled and applications developed with Vulkan APIs run correctly in these VMs.

Status

Open

Ref. #

200381348

6.4. Host core CPU utilization is higher than expected for moderate workloads

Description

When GPU performance is being monitored, host core CPU utilization is higher than expected for moderate workloads. For example, host CPU utilization when only a small number of VMs are running is as high as when several times as many VMs are running.

Workaround

Disable monitoring of the following GPU performance statistics:

  • vGPU engine usage by applications across multiple vGPUs
  • Encoder session statistics
  • Frame buffer capture (FBC) session statistics
  • Statistics gathered by performance counters in guest VMs

Status

Open

Ref. #

2414897

6.5. Frame capture while the interactive logon message is displayed returns blank screen

Description

Because of a known limitation with NvFBC, a frame capture while the interactive logon message is displayed returns a blank screen.

An NvFBC session can capture screen updates that occur after the session is created. Before the logon message appears, there is no screen update after the message is shown and, therefore, a black screen is returned instead. If the NvFBC session is created after this update has occurred, NvFBC cannot get a frame to capture.

Workaround

Press Enter or wait for the screen to update for NvFBC to capture the frame.

Status

Not a bug

Ref. #

2115733

6.6. RDS sessions do not use the GPU with some Microsoft Windows Server releases

Description

When some releases of Windows Server are used as a guest OS, Remote Desktop Services (RDS) sessions do not use the GPU. With these releases, the RDS sessions by default use the Microsoft Basic Render Driver instead of the GPU. This default setting enables 2D DirectX applications such as Microsoft Office to use software rendering, which can be more efficient than using the GPU for rendering. However, as a result, 3D applications that use DirectX are prevented from using the GPU.

Version

  • Windows Server 2016
  • Windows Server 2012

Solution

Change the local computer policy to use the hardware graphics adapter for all RDS sessions.

  1. Choose Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Remote Desktop Services > Remote Desktop Session Host > Remote Session Environment.

  2. Set the Use the hardware default graphics adapter for all Remote Desktop Services sessions option.

6.7. Cloned VMs configured with a vGPU type different than the type in the master image fail to start

Description

Cloned VMs configured with a vGPU type different than the type in the master image fail to start.

When a Windows 10 VM is booted, the VM becomes stuck in a loop and alternately displays Getting devices ready: 50% and Preparation in progress.

Workaround

Create one master image for each vGPU type that you want to use. Do not attempt to configure a cloned VM with a vGPU type different than the type in the master image.

Status

Not an NVIDIA bug

Ref. #

2285306

6.8. 7.0 Only: Blue Screen crash during guest driver installation

Description

During installation of the NVIDIA vGPU software graphics driver in guest VMs running some Microsoft Windows 10 releases, a blue screen crash occurs with the error VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE 116.

Version

This issue affects the following Microsoft Windows 10 releases:

  • RTM (1507)
  • November Update (1511)

Workaround

  1. Identify the NVIDIA GPU for which the Hardware Ids property contains values that start with PCI\VEN_10DE.

    1. Open Device Manager and expand Display adapters.
    2. For each NVIDIA GPU listed under Display adapters, double-click the GPU and in the Properties window that opens, click the Details tab and select Hardware Ids in the Property list.
  2. For the device that you identified in the previous step, display the value of the Class Guid property.

    The value of this property is a string, for example, 4d36e968-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318.

  3. Open the Registry Editor and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\class-guid\, where class-guid is the value of the Class Guid property that you displayed in the previous step.

    Under class-guid, multiple adapters numbered as four-digit numbers starting from 0000 are listed, for example, 0000 and 0001.

  4. For each adapter listed, create the EnableVGXFlipQueue Windows registry key with type REG_DWORD and a value of 0.

  5. Install the NVIDIA vGPU software graphics driver.

Status

Resolved in NVIDIA vGPU software release 7.1.

Ref. #

200461544

6.9. Even when the scheduling policy is equal share, unequal GPU utilization is reported

Description

When the scheduling policy is equal share, unequal GPU engine utilization can be reported for the vGPUs on the same physical GPU.

For example, GPU engine usage for three P40-8Q vGPUs on a Tesla P40 GPU might be reported as follows:

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[root@localhost:~] nvidia-smi vgpu Wed Jun 27 10:33:18 2018 +-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | NVIDIA-SMI 390.59 Driver Version: 390.59 | |-------------------------------+--------------------------------+------------+ | GPU Name | Bus-Id | GPU-Util | | vGPU ID Name | VM ID VM Name | vGPU-Util | |===============================+================================+============| | 0 Tesla P40 | 00000000:81:00.0 | 52% | | 2122661 GRID P40-8Q | 2122682 centos7.4-xmpl-211... | 19% | | 2122663 GRID P40-8Q | 2122692 centos7.4-xmpl-211... | 0% | | 2122659 GRID P40-8Q | 2122664 centos7.4-xmpl-211... | 25% | +-------------------------------+--------------------------------+------------+ | 1 Tesla P40 | 00000000:85:00.0 | 58% | | 2122662 GRID P40-8Q | 2122689 centos7.4-xmpl-211... | 0% | | 2122658 GRID P40-8Q | 2122667 centos7.4-xmpl-211... | 59% | | 2122660 GRID P40-8Q | 2122670 centos7.4-xmpl-211... | 0% | +-------------------------------+--------------------------------+------------+

The vGPU utilization of the vGPU 2122658 is reported as 59%. However, the expected vGPU utilization should not exceed 33%.

This behavior is a result of the mechanism that is used to measure GPU engine utilization.

Status

Open

Ref. #

2175888

6.10. When the scheduling policy is fixed share, GPU utilization is reported as higher than expected

Description

When the scheduling policy is fixed share, GPU engine utilization can be reported as higher than expected for a vGPU.

For example, GPU engine usage for six P40-4Q vGPUs on a Tesla P40 GPU might be reported as follows:

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[root@localhost:~] nvidia-smi vgpu Mon Aug 20 10:33:18 2018 +-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | NVIDIA-SMI 390.42 Driver Version: 390.42 | |-------------------------------+--------------------------------+------------+ | GPU Name | Bus-Id | GPU-Util | | vGPU ID Name | VM ID VM Name | vGPU-Util | |===============================+================================+============| | 0 Tesla P40 | 00000000:81:00.0 | 99% | | 85109 GRID P40-4Q | 85110 win7-xmpl-146048-1 | 32% | | 87195 GRID P40-4Q | 87196 win7-xmpl-146048-2 | 39% | | 88095 GRID P40-4Q | 88096 win7-xmpl-146048-3 | 26% | | 89170 GRID P40-4Q | 89171 win7-xmpl-146048-4 | 0% | | 90475 GRID P40-4Q | 90476 win7-xmpl-146048-5 | 0% | | 93363 GRID P40-4Q | 93364 win7-xmpl-146048-6 | 0% | +-------------------------------+--------------------------------+------------+ | 1 Tesla P40 | 00000000:85:00.0 | 0% | +-------------------------------+--------------------------------+------------+

The vGPU utilization of vGPU 85109 is reported as 32%. For vGPU 87195, vGPU utilization is reported as 39%. And for 88095, it is reported as 26%. However, the expected vGPU utilization of any vGPU should not exceed approximately 16.7%.

This behavior is a result of the mechanism that is used to measure GPU engine utilization.

Status

Open

Ref. #

2227591

6.11. Benign warnings during Virtual GPU Manager installation or uninstallation after hypervisor upgrade

Description

If the Virtual GPU Manager is installed or uninstalled after the hypervisor is upgraded, several warning messages about missing files are displayed.

The messages are similar to the following examples:

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WARNING: Can't read module /lib/modules/4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64/weak-updates/ixgbevf.ko: No such file or directory WARNING: Can't read module /lib/modules/4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64/weak-updates/i40evf.ko: No such file or directory ... egrep: /lib/modules/4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64//weak-updates/ixgbevf.ko: No such file or directory egrep: /lib/modules/4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64//weak-updates/i40evf.ko: No such file or directory ... gzip: /boot/initramfs-4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64.tmp: not in gzip format WARNING: Can't read module /lib/modules/4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64/weak-updates/ixgbevf.ko: No such file or directory WARNING: Can't read module /lib/modules/4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.124.x86_64/weak-updates/i40evf.ko: No such file or directory ...

After a hypervisor upgrade, files that are the targets of some symbolic links no longer exist. Although these missing files cause warning messages to be displayed during the installation or uninstallation of the Virtual GPU Manager, the installation or uninstallation is completed without errors.

Workaround

Ignore these messages as they are benign.

Status

Open

Ref. #

200423757

6.12. Benign not in gzip format messages during Virtual GPU Manager installation or uninstallation

Description

During the installation or uninstallation of the Virtual GPU Manager, the warning messages are displayed:

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gzip: /boot/initramfs-4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.100726.x86_64.img: not in gzip format gzip: /boot/initramfs-4.4.77-1.el6.nutanix.20170830.100726.x86_64.tmp: not in gzip format


Workaround

Ignore these messages as they are benign.

Status

Open

Ref. #

200405700

6.13. License is not acquired in Windows VMs

Description

When a windows VM configured with a licensed vGPU is started, the VM fails to acquire a license.

Error messages in the following format are written to the NVIDIA service logs:

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[000000020.860152600 sec] - [Logging.lib] ERROR: [nvGridLicensing.FlexUtility] 353@FlexUtility::LogFneError : Error: Failed to add trusted storage. Server URL : license-server-url - [1,7E2,2,1[7000003F,0,9B00A7]] System machine type does not match expected machine type..


Workaround

This workaround requires administrator privileges.

  1. Stop the NVIDIA Display Container LS service.
  2. Delete the contents of the folder %SystemDrive%:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\Grid Licensing.
  3. Start the NVIDIA Display Container LS service.

Status

Closed

Ref. #

200407287

6.14. nvidia-smi reports that vGPU migration is supported on all hypervisors

Description

The command nvidia-smi vgpu -m shows that vGPU migration is supported on all hypervisors, even hypervisors or hypervisor versions that do not support vGPU migration.

Status

Closed

Ref. #

200407230

6.15. Resolution is not updated after a VM acquires a license and is restarted

Description

In a Red Enterprise Linux 7.3 guest VM, an increase in resolution from 1024×768 to 2560×1600 is not applied after a license is acquired and the gridd service is restarted. This issue occurs if the multimonitor parameter is added to the xorg.conf file.

Version

Red Enterprise Linux 7.3

Status

Open

Ref. #

200275925

6.16. A segmentation fault in DBus code causes nvidia-gridd to exit on Red Hat Enterprise Linux and CentOS

Description

On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.8 and 6.9, and CentOS 6.8 and 6.9, a segmentation fault in DBus code causes the nvidia-gridd service to exit.

The nvidia-gridd service uses DBus for communication with NVIDIA X Server Settings to display licensing information through the Manage License page. Disabling the GUI for licensing resolves this issue.

To prevent this issue, the GUI for licensing is disabled by default. You might encounter this issue if you have enabled the GUI for licensing and are using Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.8 or 6.9, or CentOS 6.8 and 6.9.

Version

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.8 and 6.9

CentOS 6.8 and 6.9

Status

Open

Ref. #

  • 200358191
  • 200319854
  • 1895945

6.17. No Manage License option available in NVIDIA X Server Settings by default

Description

By default, the Manage License option is not available in NVIDIA X Server Settings. This option is missing because the GUI for licensing on Linux is disabled by default to work around the issue that is described in A segmentation fault in DBus code causes nvidia-gridd to exit on Red Hat Enterprise Linux and CentOS.

Workaround

This workaround requires sudo privileges.

Note:

Do not use this workaround with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.8 and 6.9 or CentOS 6.8 and 6.9. To prevent a segmentation fault in DBus code from causing the nvidia-gridd service from exiting, the GUI for licensing must be disabled with these OS versions.

  1. If NVIDIA X Server Settings is running, shut it down.
  2. If the /etc/nvidia/gridd.conf file does not already exist, create it by copying the supplied template file /etc/nvidia/gridd.conf.template.

  3. As root, edit the /etc/nvidia/gridd.conf file to set the EnableUI option to TRUE.

  4. Start the nvidia-gridd service.

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    # sudo service nvidia-gridd start

When NVIDIA X Server Settings is restarted, the Manage License option is now available.

Status

Open

6.18. Licenses remain checked out when VMs are forcibly powered off

Description

NVIDIA vGPU software licenses remain checked out on the license server when non-persistent VMs are forcibly powered off.

The NVIDIA service running in a VM returns checked out licenses when the VM is shut down. In environments where non-persistent licensed VMs are not cleanly shut down, licenses on the license server can become exhausted. For example, this issue can occur in automated test environments where VMs are frequently changing and are not guaranteed to be cleanly shut down. The licenses from such VMs remain checked out against their MAC address for seven days before they time out and become available to other VMs.

Resolution

If VMs are routinely being powered off without clean shutdown in your environment, you can avoid this issue by shortening the license borrow period. To shorten the license borrow period, set the LicenseInterval configuration setting in your VM image. For details, refer to Virtual GPU Client Licensing User Guide.

Status

Closed

Ref. #

1694975

6.19. Memory exhaustion can occur with vGPU profiles that have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer

Description

Memory exhaustion can occur with vGPU profiles that have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer.

This issue typically occurs in the following situations:

  • Full screen 1080p video content is playing in a browser. In this situation, the session hangs and session reconnection fails.
  • Multiple display heads are used with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops or VMware Horizon on a Windows 10 guest VM.
  • Higher resolution monitors are used.
  • Applications that are frame-buffer intensive are used.
  • NVENC is in use.

To reduce the possibility of memory exhaustion, NVENC is disabled on profiles that have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer.

The following vGPU profiles have 512 Mbytes or less of frame buffer:

  • Tesla M6-0B, M6-0Q
  • Tesla M10-0B, M10-0Q
  • Tesla M60-0B, M60-0Q

The root cause is a known issue associated with changes to the way that recent Microsoft operating systems handle and allow access to overprovisioning messages and errors. If your systems are provisioned with enough frame buffer to support your use cases, you should not encounter these issues.

Workaround

  • Use an appropriately sized vGPU to ensure that the frame buffer supplied to a VM through the vGPU is adequate for your workloads.
  • Monitor your frame buffer usage.
  • If you are using Windows 10, consider these workarounds and solutions:

Status

Open

Ref. #

  • 200130864
  • 1803861

6.20. GNOME Display Manager (GDM) fails to start on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.2 and CentOS 7.0

Description

GDM fails to start on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.2 and CentOS 7.0 with the following error:

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Oh no! Something has gone wrong!


Workaround

Permanently enable permissive mode for Security Enhanced Linux (SELinux).

  1. As root, edit the /etc/selinux/config file to set SELINUX to permissive.
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    SELINUX=permissive

  2. Reboot the system.
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    ~]# reboot

For more information, see Permissive Mode in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 SELinux User's and Administrator's Guide.

Status

Not an NVIDIA bug

Ref. #

200167868

Notice

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