Dual GPU doesn't have full output (kind of a folding question too)

[Mt_Goat]

Recently I installed 2 9800GT's on my DFI LanParty NF4 SLI-DR (http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=118&type=expert) to increase my folding output. I am running a PC P&C Turbo 510 SLI which according to my voltage readings is sufficient as my 12v line is 11.87 @ full load and well within the threshold of stability. I am not having any stability issues at all! This board has jumpers for configuring the 2 16x PCIe slots and I have tried both. This is where it gets interesting though. In the single mode (top slot @16x / lower slot @2x) I get the same points as if I was only running one card. I have run both cards individually and both run fine @4200 ppd. but get 1800 ppd each for 3600 ppd total with both. When I tried running in dual mode (both slots @8x each) I got no display when monitor connected to top card. I just realized I did not try dual mode and connect to bottom card. OOOps! :O Ther is also a molex on the mobo for extra power but it doesn't o any better with it connected or not.

Any help is appreciated! Do I just need to move to a newer system?

[Thrax]

Are you SURE SLI isn't being enabled?

[Mt_Goat]

Are you SURE SLI isn't being enabled?

The jumpers are set to single VGA and the bios option for SLI is blacked out.

[_k_]

But what does the NVidia control center say.

[Mt_Goat]

But what does the NVidia control center say.

I don't see anything about SLI. ?????

I might add that these are the first NVidia cards I have run in a very long time so I might be a bit of a dope here. :tim:

[_k_]

Right click on your desktop>NVidia Control Panel. The top set expand, one section should be SLi settings(or something relating to SLi). Just check in there that the SLi not enabled box is checked.

You shouldn't have to but throw the bridge on the cards, SLi bridge. See if you can get SLi working and then just disable it and retry setting up your dual GPU2 folding. You know you have to extend the desktop for it to work? If you want to double check your GPU2 install check the article up top it is fairly straight forward.

For folding the lane setting, 8x-16x-2x, dont matter as long as I have read and heard but generally for SLi use its 8x if you can't run full 16.

[Leonardo]

Mt_Goat, I think it may be pretty simple: your motherboard just has limitations in it's design. I don't think anything is defective, I think your settings are right, and I think your hardware configuration is as 'right' as it can be.

[Mt_Goat]

I appreciate everyone's help but I am going to go another route. I did some research and Leonardo is right that this mobo has reached its limitations. I can get it into sli with the jumpers moved (only way to enable it on this board) and the bridge installed. Then I see the sli option in the NVidia control panel with some related options. I can not get display with either card with the jumpers in sli (dual mode) with the monitor connected to either card. My other rig which I just put a new board in yesterday is going back to be exchanged for an Asus P5Q Pro tomorrow and these cards will swap with the 4830 from that rig to go in this one. That seems to be the best option right now. Again, thank you all for your help! Now it's beer 30!!!

[Mt_Goat]

OK, I just picked up an Asus P5Q Pro. I am putting the (2) 9800GT's in that system and moving the 4830 to the DFI/Opteron system system.

Mods: Please move this to the proper location as I accidently pu this in the wrong forum.

[Mt_Goat]

I got everything swapped around and settled in. BUT..........
The problem is now worse!!!

4830 went from 2600 ppd to 302 ppd
9800GT's went from 1700 ppd each to 1500 ppd each

New configs are as follows;

DFI 939 Opty dual core/ 1 gig pc3200/ HD4830/ PC P&C Turbo 510 SLI
Asus P5Q Pro/ Q9300/ 4 gig pc8500/ msi 9800GT + evga 9800 GT/ Corsair TX650

I am almost bald from scratching my head on this one.

[scott]

Hey ya old goat... how ya been ?

I am also running an older 939 DFI board. No problems.
It sound like it is confused. Couple of questions.

Is the "extend my desktop" button checked in windows display properties ?
Do both clients have different machine ID's ?

Check the first few lines of the log files for each client and make sure they reflect different directories and machine ID's.

It almost sounds like 1 card is trying to run both clients.

If you are also running an SMP client it too needs a seperate machine ID.

On my DFI Ultra D with a 4400+ I get 3620 ppd on each 8800gs on proj. 5760 :)
and 800 ppd on the SMP client on the 4400 :(

Also the nvidia control panel is reporting that one card is 16X and the other 2x , they are producing exactly they same so that obviously does not matter.

I hope it was something as simple as this.

Good luck


Scott

[Mt_Goat]

Hi Scott,

I have been doing well. Well except for this little problem.

I am very happy to see you chime in here. For some reason My 4830 didn't like it in my 939 system and the Nvidia cards didn't play well with my TV so I swapped the cards back but still have the new board in my Media system. Everything there is back to normal and then some. So that is a good start. I have smp and one Nvidia card running on the 939 system now and am back to roughly 10,000 ppd total for the 2 rigs. Now to get Nvidia card #2 running on the 939 system. Seeing that you have basically the same board for all intens and purposes gives me hope. That and the cards not playing nice swapped out was enough to get me to try the 2 9800's in the 939 rig again.

Answering your questions;
yes, extended desktop is checked
Machine ID's for GPU are 2 + 3 with SMP being #1
I had already wiped out the GPU insalls so I can't say what those were for sure.
Nvidia control panel reports my cards as 16x and 2x


It almost sounds like 1 card is trying to run both clients.
That is where I am finally at. So I need to make sure each client is assigned to each card. I am now starting from the beginning with setting up the second GPU client.

[Leonardo]

Nvidia control panel reports my cards as 16x and 2xI'm sure you already explained, but maybe it went over my head: what's up with the 2X? You 2X will definitely slow down Folding for a device on that port. But, then, what you describe does indeed sound like on GPU is attempting to run two clients.

[scott]

I followed the guide that Leo linked to here http://icrontic.com/forum/showthread.php?t=80281and it worked fine.
I did think it was odd that the GPU client installs to 2 different places and you only " clone " one of them for the second client. I think it was the "start in " parameters that were the same for both shortcuts.

The "Dual" card instructions were at the bottom of the page at the folding forum Stanfords official guide (http://folding.stanford.edu/English/WinGPUGuide)

Let us know how you make out

Scott

Leo . my second card is running on a 2x slot and getting the exact same ppd as the 16x slot.
I am getting the 2x-16x info from the nvidia control panel " system info"

[Leonardo]

my second card is running on a 2x slot and getting the exact same ppd as the 16x slot.Are you sure it's not a 4X slot? Most secondary PCI-e video slots are 4X or higher, except for old motherboards, oh....

[Mt_Goat]

Are you sure it's not a 4X slot? Most secondary PCI-e video slots are 4X or higher, except for old motherboards, oh....

But we do have old motherboards! :crazy:

Now I get the first to run and the second gives me an error when I try to start it.

http://icrontic.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26636&stc=1&d=1232150738

[scott]

Are you sure it's not a 4X slot? Most secondary PCI-e video slots are 4X or higher, except for old motherboards, oh....

The manual says

SLI mode- when bridge is connected both slots run 8x
single VGA mode- 1@16x and the other will run at 2x

Scott

[Leonardo]

Mt_Goat, that error message you attached is the same error message that appears if SLI is turned on. I know that you already checked and have turned off SLI, just...

I don't know what to say.

Please post screenshots of three Folders: the main GPU2 folder in C:\Program Files and both client Folders in C:\Documents and Settings\user~\Application Data

[scott]

I just thought of somthing that may be relevent

My board is not an SLI board. But I modded it to be. So when it boots the post screen says "SLI Enabled" But I am not using a bridge between cards. Nvidia control panel shows no options for SLI.

Maybe try setting the jumper on the board to SLI but don't use a bridge.

I think the SLI mod that I did is just like "Setting the jumper" on the SLI board.

Grasping at straws


Scott

[Mt_Goat]

I just thought of somthing that may be relevent

My board is not an SLI board. But I modded it to be. So when it boots the post screen says "SLI Enabled" But I am not using a bridge between cards. Nvidia control panel shows no options for SLI.

Maybe try setting the jumper on the board to SLI but don't use a bridge.

I think the SLI mod that I did is just like "Setting the jumper" on the SLI board.

Grasping at straws


Scott

But didn't you say Nvidia Control Panel lists your cards @16x & 2x? It would say 8x & 8x. When I tried putting the SLI jumpers to SLI without the bridge I didn't get any display. Which card do you have the monitor connected to? I am going to try uninstalling that particular driver, reboot, re-install and reboot then try again.

[scott]

But didn't you say Nvidia Control Panel lists your cards @16x & 2x? It would say 8x & 8x. When I tried putting the SLI jumpers to SLI without the bridge I didn't get any display. Which card do you have the monitor connected to? I am going to try uninstalling that particular driver, reboot, re-install and reboot then try again.

Hmmm
I just checked with Gpu-z and it also reports 16x and 2x . It also says "SLI avalable but not enabled"
My manual says that In SLI both cards run at 8x. But I am not using the bridge. Maybe Dual mode without the bridge is weird.

This is also my Media center PC it has a TV and a monitor hooked up to right now. I have been messing with it for several days now playing with windows 7.
The TV is on component and the monitor is on the same card (DVI). I have tried one on each and both on each. And I have at times gotten a black screen but windows ( XP ) would load you could hear the welcome sound. I would do a Windows key - u - r ( Restart ) and all would be fine. It would usually only happen after a major change ( Driver update-monitor switch ) Maybe it was working and you just couldn't see it. Do you have sound ?
What do you mean by " that paticular driver" ?

Scott

[Mt_Goat]

Mt_Goat, that error message you attached is the same error message that appears if SLI is turned on. I know that you already checked and have turned off SLI, just...

I don't know what to say.

Please post screenshots of three Folders: the main GPU2 folder in C:\Program Files and both client Folders in C:\Documents and Settings\user~\Application Data

here are my screens

[Mt_Goat]

here are my shortcuts

[Leonardo]

Your second client's operating Folder, the second GPU Folding folder in Documents and Settings, does NOT have the "Work" Folder. You must be Folding both clients of the same GPU core! I think both of your shortcuts are pointing to the same .exe.

The screenshots of your Folding shortcuts' properties do not show the complete "Start In" address. Scroll to the end of each of the Start In fields and ensure that each one points to the correct respective folder.

I've attached a screenshot of two of mine:

[_k_]

Usually the easiest way to check to see if a card is being given its work load is to watch them temps on it and know what it is suppose to be under 100% load.

[Leonardo]

that too

[Mt_Goat]

GPU-z says one card is running @ 73C and the other is @ 85C. I tried switching the GPU in the target box of the shortcut, GPU 0 runs and GPU 1 won't. So the clients are set-up right but it is a hardware issue. GPU 0 is listed as running @ x16 and GPU 1 is listed as running @ x2. Tomorrow I am going to se wildlife so Sunday I will get back to this.

[_k_]

Are you going to go see any Goats.!?

[scott]

Tomorrow I am going to see wildlife ....

For me that is a family reunion with the inlaws..:eek:


Scott

[Mt_Goat]

Quoting Mt_Goat
Tomorrow I am going to see wildlife ....


For me that is a family reunion with the inlaws..:eek:Scott

I just got back and thought I would share.

http://icrontic.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26648&stc=1&d=1232257379

[_k_]

Thats not a very good photo we can't see anything.

[Mt_Goat]

Thats not a very good photo we can't see anything.

This is a family kind of place!

[Mt_Goat]

I finally got back to it again. So far no go. So far I have;

checked all the things listed in this thread so far!
uninstalled, rebooted and reinstalled CUDA DRIVERS
hooked up a display to the second card to see if that changed anything (stranger thigs have worked b4) NEVER COULD GET DISPLAY TO WORK ON SECOND CARD/ either as second display or solo!
switched cards in slots/ no difference, did verify that both cards wok just fine
switched target in shorcut boxes/ changed GPU1 box target from -GPU 0 to -GPU 1, got same error as GPU2 box was getting all along, changed GPU2 target box from -GPU 1 to GPU 0 and it worked just fine
switched jumpers for 16x PCI express slots from 16x and 2x to 8x and 8x/ did not make second card work, first card foled slower
tried SLI to see if anything changed/ did verify that SLI worked, but did not meet my expectations

I am currently removing all chipset and video drivers then going to reinstall and try again.

[Mt_Goat]

Did the reinstall of system and video drivers and still the same. ;( Also tried different drivers with no luck. At this point I am ready to give it up! This sure has been playing hell with my points production!!!

[Leonardo]

One other thing you could try:

For the second folding client, in the start up, set the flag "-forcegpu nvidia_g80" (space between ~u and g~). This was used quite a bit only multi clients with older drivers, but you could try now as well. Note: yes, G80, even though your GPUs are all G92 core. It's just a signal to tell Windows that there is another Nvidia GPU that must be tasked separately from the primary GPU.

So assuming the startup for the FIRST GPU is designate "-gpu 0," then the second GPU-client-startup will be "-gpu 1 -forcegpu nvidia_g80."

[Mt_Goat]

All I get is this...