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Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

developer.nvidia.com

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Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#91

Post by messe »

alksjdalkj wrote: post #89
marcodiego wrote: post #48

For those who didn't use Nvidia on linux in the old times: The driver was a proprietary binary. Since a kernel module requires interfacing with the kernel API, it could be considered a derivative work and a breach of the GPL license. So, Nvidia provided a small open source shim which interfaced between the kernel and the proprietary module. You had to compile that shim yourself with the right arcane command line inca…

If I remember correctly, the open source ATI drivers were always a bit buggy and it wasn't that easy getting them installed either. The tradeoff was always Nvidia: proprietary but works well, ATI: open but buggy.

As far as I'm aware, since AMD took over, they've been fairly stable (although occasionally omitting support for the latest features until the next kernel release)

Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#92

Post by jabl »

pixelmonkey wrote: post #75

> In this open-source release, support for GeForce and Workstation GPUs is alpha quality. GeForce and Workstation users can use this driver on Turing and NVIDIA Ampere architecture GPUs to run Linux desktops and use features such as multiple displays, G-SYNC, and NVIDIA RTX ray tracing in Vulkan and NVIDIA OptiX. Users can opt in using the kernel module parameter NVreg_EnableUnsupportedGpus as highlighted in the docu…

> Stable open source support for GTX 10xx GPU users may come later.

Nope, Turing or later gen GPU is a hard requirement.

Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#93

Post by messe »

pornel wrote: post #84
throw0101a wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The module was a proprietary binary. Since a kernel module requires interfacing with the kernel API, it could be considered a derivative work and a breach of the GPL license. I never quite understood this logic: the same (?) binary blob is used for the FreeBSD and Solaris drivers. * https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/drivers/unix/ So how can it be a 'derivative' of the GPL Linux if it it also used on non-GPL systems?

Because to make a driver work with Linux you have to add Linux-specific code that typically uses Linux's source code, and that combination of the driver and Linux-specific code could be considered a "derivative". Note that the word "derivative" is used here as defined by the license, not in its plain English meaning.

You quickly get into something similar the ship of theseus (or Trigger's broom) argument. You write some code that must link to a GPL library to functon; that code is now GPL because it's a derivative work of the library.

You rewrite that library under an MIT license, so now your code can link to that and run. Is your original code still a derivative work?

Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#95

Post by marcodiego »

alksjdalkj wrote: post #89
marcodiego wrote: post #48

For those who didn't use Nvidia on linux in the old times: The driver was a proprietary binary. Since a kernel module requires interfacing with the kernel API, it could be considered a derivative work and a breach of the GPL license. So, Nvidia provided a small open source shim which interfaced between the kernel and the proprietary module. You had to compile that shim yourself with the right arcane command line inca…

If I remember correctly, the open source ATI drivers were always a bit buggy and it wasn't that easy getting them installed either. The tradeoff was always Nvidia: proprietary but works well, ATI: open but buggy.

> the open source ATI drivers were always a bit buggy and it wasn't that easy getting them installed either.

No. Once mainlined, you had to do absolutely nothing to get the hardware working.

Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#98

Post by SemanticStrengh »

mlyle wrote: post #85
jjoonathan wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That might not even be overstatement. The last few big desktop linux crash-and-burns I've run into all had display drivers as a common component. I like back-foot, underdog NVIDIA. Ascendent AMD hasn't drawn my ire yet, let's hope power corrupts slowly.

> I like back-foot, underdog NVIDIA. Ascendent AMD hasn't drawn my ire yet, let's hope power corrupts slowly. That "back-foot" "underdog" nVidia has the edge in the video market still... and 3x the market cap of AMD.

APUs are eating the market of novideo, see e.g. the performance of the M1 iGPU

Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#99

Post by viksit »

23 years ago in middle school I made my first ever linux user group post [1] trying to shift from an nvidia geforce to the onboard cyrix mediagx drivers because they had closed source drivers.

It’s been a long time coming lol.

[1] https://www.spinics.net/lists/xf-xpert/msg04601.html

Re: Nvidia releases open-source GPU kernel modules

#100

Post by aftbit »

remexre wrote: post #86
geerlingguy wrote: post #35

With this announcement, I'm now interested in trying out some Nvidia graphics cards on the Pi again. Nouveau had some issues, and the official drivers had no source available, so I couldn't hack them to work. With the source available... it could be possible! Of course, CUDA support may never happen there, at least not using open source code.

Which ones are connectable to it? And does this rely on the "replace the USB3 controller with a PCIe bridge" hardware mod?

Parent is talking about the Compute Module 4, which can plug into (among other things) a first party IO board that has a PCIe 1x slot. With a simple hardware mod (cut the slot connector, cut the GPU, use a riser, etc etc), any GPU can physically fit. He's only gotten one to work so far though, an ancient ATI card. Lots of fun YouTube videos and GitHub issues about this if you search parent's name or look at links in his profile.
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