Non-server virtualization software that supports Intel VT-d?

RetroGamer · 21 Jul 2012

Does anyone know of a Non server virtualization software that supports Intel's Vt-d, I want to have my host Operating system as Ubuntu/Debian and want to run Windows 7 Ultimate in a VM to run games and other programs. To run games, I need the vt-d support to get I/O passthrough so the Windows 7 VM can access the Nvidia 555m. I'm running on a 64 bit install of Ubuntu 12.04 with Windows 7 Ultimate (Also x64) in a VirtualBox VM, but Virtualbox does not support VT-d yet making it useless for gaming. I could do a server, but since I'm running this on a laptop, I want to be able to use it when I'm away. Currently I have tried ESXi Hypervisor and Proxmox VE (Both support VT-d) but the server interface means I have to access the laptop from another system. I want to be able to run a Windows 7 VM with VT-d on top of an Ubuntu host so that I can get the full features of Windows 7 (Or just about) without having to reboot.

emaraszek · 23 Jul 2012

Try Xen hypervisor, it should do what you're looking to accomplish. Depending on what you're doing with the Linux install, I would suggest that you instead run Ubuntu in a VM to get better performance with games, etc. in Windows 7

Xen Hypervisor

Edit: Sorry I didn't completely read your post. You may not be able to directly access this from the machine it's installed on. I've heard VirtualBox is getting Vt-d support in the future so you may want to just wait for that. However, support for vt-d doesn't necessarily guarantee the experience you're expecting with your video card. This is due to various design constraints.

The best way to guarantee support for what you want to do would still be to run win 7 natively and have a linux vm (in my opinion)

RetroGamer · 27 Jul 2012

Yeah, that was the problem I had before, I had to use my laptop as a server and connect to it from another machine. I'd rather have Ubuntu as the host OS instead of Windows 7 because it is faster, open-source, and all around works better then Windows, except when it comes to 3D gaming, mostly due to Nvidia Optimus which barely works with Bumblebee (A program to get Optimus working in Ubuntu) and I've yet to get it working at all with Wine (A program to run Windows executables) programs. Not only is Virtualbox supposedly getting Vt-d in version 5.0, but Valve will be releasing Steam for Ubuntu soon, so I may not a VM at all since all my non-steam games work in DOSBox. Plus my laptop is more then powerful enough to run games in a Windows 7 VM and run the Ubuntu host at the same time, so I don't care if there is a slight performance decrease cause none of my games have ever used more then 2gb of ram and 1 core, except for Minecraft which runs natively on Linux, so I don't think the difference will be even noticeable.

pparks1 · 27 Jul 2012

games in a VM .... just not a good idea.

cclnxw · 01 Aug 2012

Look at LynxSecure for laptops. It's a type zero hypervisor (loads on bare metal without a host OS requirement) that runs on 64-bit Intel VT laptops. Requires/leverages VT-x, VT-d and EPT but you can run just about any OS as a VM guest(s); Windows, Linux, etc. and all in native mode: Data sheets at www.lynuxworks.com/virtualization/hypervisor.php and www.lynuxworks.com/virtualization/secure-client-virtualization.php

emaraszek · 01 Aug 2012

LynxSecure won't work either because the OP wants to run the Win 7 VM within a Linux host and still get VT-d support. If that weren't a stipulation, I would have suggested to simply set up a dual boot.

I just don't think the technology is there yet. Like I said, future releases of VirtualBox will allegedly support this at some point, but as of now there really isn't a way to do it.

I agree with pparks, trying to do anything that intense in a VM will not work well. The only exception would be in a native boot scenario, but certainly not while running on top of another OS.

cclnxw · 01 Aug 2012

OK but just an FYI: LynxSecure is not an OS (it's a type zero hypervisor - unhosted) and each VM is running in native mode (full virtualization without any modifications to the guest OSs). The VM's are not running on top of another OS like it is in the case with type 2 and type1 hypervisors. Additionally LynxSecure is real-time (deterministic) and supports RTOSs as well. For example LynxSecure supports intense RT applications such as DO-178B Level A apps used in FAA applications.

Kebero · 05 Aug 2012

Um, in a Type-1 hypervisor, the VMs aren't running on top of another OS.

Hypervisor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

cclnxw · 06 Aug 2012

Um? Of course all Type 1's run on an OS; an embedded OS. They all use some type of an embedded OS that runs transparent to the end-user and hence why you might think that the VM's are not running on top of another OS.

Type-2 hypervisors are computer emulation applications that run on general purpose operating systems [Windows, Linux, etc.]Type-1 hypervisors are computer emulation software tightly integrated with embedded OSs [monolithic or microkernel] that run transparent to the end-user.
Type Zero are based on a new architecture that allows for higher levels of performance, reliability, and security over Type-1 hypervisors. The Type Zero architecture removes the need for an embedded host OS to support virtualization, allowing the hypervisor to run in an "Un-Hosted" environment. This drastically differs from Type-1 monolithic architectures where the hypervisor is integrated into a host OS, or Type-1 microkernel architectures where the hypervisor is controlled and assisted by a root or parent operating system.

further details can be found in whitepapers that are available by contacting me directly at ccrinklaw at lnxw dot com