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Frequently Asked Questions About NVIDIA PC (non-EFI) Graphics Cards

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I just installed an EVGA GF680 2GB card into my 2010 MP today. I installed the NV drivers, and also their CUDA drivers.

First, I was surprised to see a CUDA applet in System Preferences but nothing for the card itself.

Second, what's the secret to searching for the latest drivers from NV? I see the links in the OP but there has to be a way to search their site an I've not figured it out.

When updates are available, is there a way to remove the old driver? Is that necessary?

Thanks
 
Currently, to find latest driver on Nvidia site, you do a google serach for "Nvidia Driver"

It should get you to their driver search page.

Choose "Quadro" and "Mac Quadro 4000" then your version of Mac OS.

If you don't see choices for Mac, you haven't choosen right Quadro section from the top.

Basically, depending on your choices on top part, the choices below will change.

Hopefully this will change soon when the (delayed) K5000 for Mac is released.
 
brentsg said:
When updates are available, is there a way to remove the old driver? Is that necessary?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Not necessary, if a Software Update contains new drivers it will overwrite the existing ones. Same with the NVIDIA installer.
 
MDangerous said:
Gotcha!
1. Mac Pro 3,1
2. 10.8.2 and 304.00.05f02
3. What exactly am I looking for in /var/log/system.log? I went to Console and System Logs and filtered NVDA. I see the following error repeated over and over but not sure if this is what I'm looking for....

Nov 1 20:57:18 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA(OpenGL): Channel exception! exception type = 0x1f = Fifo: MMU Error

Edit: I also see these...
Oct 31 15:55:14 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA: Unable to use shared channel!
Oct 31 15:55:14 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA: Calling glrKillClient for task 0xffffff802eb4d1a8


Oct 31 18:30:28 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA(OpenGL): Channel timeout!
Oct 31 18:30:28 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA(OpenGL): Channel exception! exception type = 0xd = GR: SW Notify Error
Click to expand...

The some more errors I got this morning after trying to run Google Earth 7.0.1.8244 (beta) again.

Nov 3 10:23:15 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA(OpenGL): Channel exception! exception type = 0x8 = Fifo: Watchdog Timeout Error
Nov 3 10:23:15 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA(OpenGL): Channel exception! exception type = 0x20 = PBDMA Error
Nov 3 10:25:05 my-name-mac-pro-2 kernel[0]: NVDA(OpenGL): Channel timeout!
Click to expand...
 
MDangerous said:
The some more errors I got this morning after trying to run Google Earth 7.0.1.8244 (beta) again.
Click to expand...

Right, so there's definitely something going wrong, all of those errors point to memory access problems by the GPU. Could be an app bug, a driver bug, who knows.
 
There's a new driver for 10.7.5 up:

295.00.05f03

Interestingly enough, it lists the MacPro1,1 (2006) and MacPro2,1 (2007) as officially supported. Might be worth updating, especially if you're using a PC card in one of those systems. I'm going to try my GTS 450 to see if that hang bug has been fixed later today.
 
Asgorath said:
I'm going to try my GTS 450 to see if that hang bug has been fixed later today.
Click to expand...

Confirming that this driver does appear to contain the same fix that shipped in the 10.8.1 web driver, my GTS 450 handles sleep/wake and modesets just fine. Good news for anyone stuck on Lion that was using one of those cards.
 
Asgorath said:
There's a new driver for 10.7.5 up:

295.00.05f03

Interestingly enough, it lists the MacPro1,1 (2006) and MacPro2,1 (2007) as officially supported. Might be worth updating, especially if you're using a PC card in one of those systems. I'm going to try my GTS 450 to see if that hang bug has been fixed later today.
Click to expand...

Hey Asgorath, it might be good to update the OP with the fact that you need to select Quadro and Quadro 4000 as the card type when checking the nvidia website for the latest and greatest drivers (as MacVidCards just noted).

I kept scratching my head for a few days when I selected selected my actual card (gtx 670) and couldn't find Mac as a suitable OS. Once I backtracked a bit from the links you provided, I figured out what was going on. Might save some people a little bit of grief.

Either way, thanks for consolidating all that information. Friggin' beautiful.
 
combo said:
Hey Asgorath, it might be good to update the OP with the fact that you need to select Quadro and Quadro 4000 as the card type when checking the nvidia website for the latest and greatest drivers (as MacVidCards just noted).

I kept scratching my head for a few days when I selected selected my actual card (gtx 670) and couldn't find Mac as a suitable OS. Once I backtracked a bit from the links you provided, I figured out what was going on. Might save some people a little bit of grief.

Either way, thanks for consolidating all that information. Friggin' beautiful.
Click to expand...

Well, that's why I have all the drivers listed in the OP, to avoid any confusion. Don't forget that the drivers won't show up for cards like the GTX 670 because they're not officially supported, they just happen to mostly work pretty well. I'll update the OP with the Quadro 4000 info just in case, though.
 
LOL I think my question has been overlooked so I apologise for asking again... but..

Are there any 670 or 680 cards with two display ports?

I'd love to run my twin 24" Cinema Displays without the need for a converter box for DVI > MDP.

Scottie
 
Asgorath said:
Confirming that this driver does appear to contain the same fix that shipped in the 10.8.1 web driver, my GTS 450 handles sleep/wake and modesets just fine. Good news for anyone stuck on Lion that was using one of those cards.
Click to expand...


Can also confirm that my GT 520 works with sleep/wake and modesets just fine in Lion.
 
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new 10.7.5 drivers

Hi Asgorath,

Thanks first and foremost for all the effort you have put into this thread.

Curious if you or anyone had a chance to test any Kepler 6xx series cards in a Mac Pro 1,1 or 2,1 using the new drivers you posted about in this thread on 7 November.

Thanks again!
 
stmp said:
Hi Asgorath,

Thanks first and foremost for all the effort you have put into this thread.

Curious if you or anyone had a chance to test any Kepler 6xx series cards in a Mac Pro 1,1 or 2,1 using the new drivers you posted about in this thread on 7 November.

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

I don't have access to a MacPro1,1 or MacPro2,1 so no, unfortunately not. AFAIK there aren't any Kepler GPUs that work with Lion (10.7.5 + 295.00.05f03), even though the MBPs shipped with Lion to begin with. Fermi GPUs should work fine though, including the 6xx cards based on them.

Edit: TBH I'd just get a GTX 560 Ti or a GTX 570 if you have a MacPro1,1 or MacPro2,1.
 
i recently put a GTX570 2.5gb in my 09 pro, the install went flawlessly on all fronts...CUDA, OpenCL, etc. My one question i have here though is what ports work/dont work on the card? i am looking to hook up a spare 32" HDTV i have to the HDMI port on the GPU, will that work out for me?
 
zerb said:
i recently put a GTX570 2.5gb in my 09 pro, the install went flawlessly on all fronts...CUDA, OpenCL, etc. My one question i have here though is what ports work/dont work on the card? i am looking to hook up a spare 32" HDTV i have to the HDMI port on the GPU, will that work out for me?
Click to expand...

Why don't you plug it in and see if it works? You can't damage anything by trying this. To be clear, everything we've learned has come from trial and error, my FAQ post is just an up-to-date summary of all this information.
 
makaveli559m said:
Hi I was wondering what are the best Nvidia cards that are known to work on a Mac Pro 2.1?
Click to expand...

What OS are you running? If Lion, then pretty much any Fermi generation card will work. If Snow Leopard, then your options are very limited.

Assuming you are running Lion, then:

- Get a GTX 570 if you have an unlimited budget
- Otherwise, get a GTX 560 or GTX 560 Ti

A quick NewEgg search suggests the 560s are down in the $170 range, which is great for a card of that generation.

Edit: When I have some time, I'll update the OP with more details for MacPro1,1 and MacPro2,1 owners such as yourself.
 
Asgorath said:
Why don't you plug it in and see if it works? You can't damage anything by trying this. To be clear, everything we've learned has come from trial and error, my FAQ post is just an up-to-date summary of all this information.
Click to expand...

Good call. I only have one monitor at the moment but I can confirm that the HDMI out on the GTX570 2.5gb (non flashed) works on my 09 pro. Once I get my second monitor I will play with plugging things into other ports at the same time and see what works and what doesn't.
 
Asgorath said:
What OS are you running? If Lion, then pretty much any Fermi generation card will work. If Snow Leopard, then your options are very limited.

Assuming you are running Lion, then:

- Get a GTX 570 if you have an unlimited budget
- Otherwise, get a GTX 560 or GTX 560 Ti

A quick NewEgg search suggests the 560s are down in the $170 range, which is great for a card of that generation.

Edit: When I have some time, I'll update the OP with more details for MacPro1,1 and MacPro2,1 owners such as yourself.
Click to expand...

Hi yes I am running Lion, so pretty much just in play and they should work out of the box? Wow thanks I would sure like some more details this is my first Mac Pro :)
 
MacPro 3,1 with GTX 560 Fermi

Thanks for this post Asgorath,

I installed a Gigabyte GTX 560 Fermi as I was on a budget but wanted a card that was quiet and ran cool! Runs great! I have been using my ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT since 2008! I was way overdue for an upgrade!

This is the one I installed http://ca.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3881#ov

FSX runs great and X-plane 10 runs very well.

Cheers
 
No EFI so no boot screen but with my SSD in the MP it's okay.
 
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