Is Nvidia having trouble acquiring a Intel Common Serial Interface License?

[Eastcoasthandle]

If rumours about Nvidia’s inability to get a license to produce Intel Common Serial Interface (CSI) bus compatible chipsets are correct, its multi-GPU technology SLI may either disappear from the market or Nvidia may change its SLI licensing policy and open up the technology for others.

At present Nvidia SLI multi-GPU systems may feature two, three or even four graphics processing units (GPUs) by Nvidia Corp. to speed up graphics rendering speed in games. One substantial peculiarity of Nvidia SLI multi-GPU technology is that several graphics cards have to be installed on a mainboard that is based on Nvidia nForce SLI core-logic.

Even though two graphics cards may technically function on any mainboard with any chipset provided that there are several PCI Express x16 slots, Nvidia does not allow system logic sets developed by companies like Advanced Micro Devices or Intel Corp. to power multi-GPU systems carrying two or more Nvidia GeForce-based add-in-cards. In order to enable SLI technology for its Intel Dual Socket Extreme Desktop Platform (DSEDP) Intel had to install certain PCI Express hub chips from Nvidia onto its Intel Desktop Board D5400XS mainboard. By contrast, ATI CrossFire and CrossFire X multi-GPU technologies that allow several ATI Radeon graphics cards to work in cooperation can be enabled on any third-party chipset, but not Nvidia’s (due to prohibition of Nvidia)...

According to a news-story by The Inquirer web-site, Intel “is refusing to provide Nvidia with a vital piece of CSI technology”, which may indicate that Nvidia loses ability to produce Intel-compatible chipsets late in 2008, which may be a huge blow to Nvidia’s chipset business division.

With no in-house developed Intel-compatible chipsets, Nvidia will have to either allow SLI technology to function on third-party chipsets, or its multi-GPU technology will only function on chipsets supporting microprocessors by AMD, which currently cannot offer the same level of performance as Intel’s CPUs and are usually not gamers’ processors of choice. As a consequence, Nvidia SLI multi-GPU platform may find itself unpopular or may even cease to exist. On the other hand, even if Nvidia fails to get CSI license at any cost, the company may focus on creating graphics cards with several GPUs on them, which do not require any special chipsets.

Source

[kromosto]

amd give money to control ati's moves but intel is trying to use its power instead of money to control nvidia

[safan80]

This is the same thing intel did to via to get it's way, but in this case I'm for it. I don't want to have to use a Nvidia chipset just for SLI.

[Helmore]

This is the same thing intel did to via to get it's way, but in this case I'm for it. I don't want to have to use a Nvidia chipset just for SLI.

I do agree with that last part yeah, although I won't believe this until I see it....

[Crazystang01]

All I can say is "Good" Intel stick it to them and lets see if they ( Nvidia ) open's up SLI on all MB's not likely but "Good". Now AMD do the same that put Nvidia in a pinch.

[ABXG]

So if Intel gets nVidia to surrender its hold on SLI, would this allow for some older Intel chipsets to use SLI? I would like SLI on my P35

[hecktic]

So if Intel gets nVidia to surrender its hold on SLI, would this allow for some older Intel chipsets to use SLI? I would like SLI on my P35

yeah I would imagine so..

[GripS]

I simply cannot understand nvidia holding out on intel. If SLI were available on intel chipset motherboards they would sell more video cards. Yes. The motherboards would take a hit but i think selling more video cards would make them more money in the long run.

Look at AMD. They allow intel to run crossfire.

[GripS]

So if Intel gets nVidia to surrender its hold on SLI, would this allow for some older Intel chipsets to use SLI? I would like SLI on my P35

No. It's at the hardware level. Skulltrail has SLI capability only because of special chips from nvidia(nforce 100). Existing P35/X38 motherboards do not have these chips so no. You will never see SLI on your P35/X38 based motherboard.

[initialised]

Nvidia loses ability to produce Intel-compatible chipsets late in 2008, which may be a huge blow to Nvidia’s chipset business division.

I thought they already had, 650i (wont boot with E8400) & 680i (not stable over ~1250MHz) are terrible at dealling with 45nm chips, 780i isn't much better. 750i ASUS P5ND seems to be the best nVidia board out at the moment. Apart from SLi and the now ageing 8800 series and Physx and a killer midrange card what have they got?

[Nedjo]

so xbit decided to folow the ways of some well established yellow e-pages... rumours are the only thing that's lefto for today e-IT-news sites for spining the couters...

[RAW-Raptor22]

I simply cannot understand nvidia holding out on intel. If SLI were available on intel chipset motherboards they would sell more video cards. Yes. The motherboards would take a hit but i think selling more video cards would make them more money in the long run.

Look at AMD. They allow intel to run crossfire.

Intel ran crossfire before AMD was even in the picture.... since the 955X and 945P chipsets.

[zabomb4163]

No. It's at the hardware level. Skulltrail has SLI capability only because of special chips from nvidia(nforce 100). Existing P35/X38 motherboards do not have these chips so no. You will never see SLI on your P35/X38 based motherboard.

the only thing stopping SLI on intel chipsets is the drivers. not hardware. hacked drivers way back when would allow it to work and actually worked better on intel chipsets.

[Blauhung]

the only thing stopping SLI on intel chipsets is the drivers. not hardware. hacked drivers way back when would allow it to work and actually worked better on intel chipsets.

yup, all the bridge chips do is split 16 pcie 2.0's into 32 pcie 1.0's.

and on topic, I would be glad to see this happen.

A prost to making Nvidia sweat.

[xlink]

No. It's at the hardware level. Skulltrail has SLI capability only because of special chips from nvidia(nforce 100). Existing P35/X38 motherboards do not have these chips so no. You will never see SLI on your P35/X38 based motherboard.

no, it's a software thing, SLI is blocked in drivers, not the hardware.

FYI hacked drivers= SLI on P35 .

[Warboy]

no, it's a software thing, SLI is blocked in drivers, not the hardware.

FYI hacked drivers= SLI on P35 .

Hacked Drivers for the X38 would be better.

[xlink]

Hacked Drivers for the X38 would be better.

well duh you'de have raped PCI bandwidth due to the 4x slot.

from my understanding though hacked drivers = it works for any board

though with the cost of the 8800s/9600s and with the hacked drivers out only working for GF7 ad under... well it's not really worth it to not just go with the latest and greatest.

[FischOderAal]

seems like I'm not the only one to say: haaahaaaaa

[jarthel]

No. It's at the hardware level. Skulltrail has SLI capability only because of special chips from nvidia(nforce 100). Existing P35/X38 motherboards do not have these chips so no. You will never see SLI on your P35/X38 based motherboard.

you must be confused. if nvidia gives intel the license, then those special chips aren't required anymore as nvidia will include intel chipsets on the "allowed" chipset list.

[lutjens]

So NVidia is finally getting their just desserts...good. I hope Intel really bends them over hard and demands huge money and SLI interoperability on Intel chipsets for a license...NVidia was more than willing to do it to us and to Intel when it came to SLI, forcing the use of their inferior chipsets on us. Even now, with the use of the NForce 100 bridge chips on Skulltrail, NVidia is arrogantly not allowing the use of more than 2 graphics cards in SLI on a board that clearly supports it.

What goes around comes around...NVidia will learn that you don't whiz on the leg of the big dog and expect him to help you out in the future. NVidia is very lucky Intel didn't just decide to swallow them whole...

[Scubar]

Seems abit stupid them both fighting with each other over this. They could both gain huge amounts from cooperating.

Intel chipsets with SLI capabilities would no doubt massively boost nvidia GPU sales. Forcing us to buy nVidias crap attempt at a chipset just for SLI really isnt doing them any good at all, they were doing fine without it before the 680i chipset.

They simply need to allow Intel to have SLI on their chipsets, so what if nvidia lost sales on its own chipset, they could still make their own chipset providing they did a decent job of it unlike their current crappy offerings.

nVidia will have to buckle i feel. Its either they allow Intel to have SLI capabilities on their chipset or they wont be able to use their GPUs in conjunction with Intels highend CPUs. Meaning Nvidia will have to make cards for budget systems which i really cant see them wanting to do as they would lose billions in profit.

[Anemone]

Nvidia deserves this several times over. SLI should not be limited to their chipset alone (Skulltrail doesn't really count).

Both companies would do well to cooperate, but Nvidia through the first stone. Now they are just basically going to have to realize what an idiotic business move that was.

Even funnier is the likely fact that Nvidia should have offered SLI when they had the chance. When Intel starts making GPU's, and probably will have a version of SLI itself, I'd bet they won't even need Nvidia's SLI. And at that point Intel is probably going to grind the screws harder, cutting off Nvidia at every turn not giving them anything to let Nvidia's chipsets work with Intel products. Then Nvidia will realize (too late) that they have nothing to trade (that Intel wants) and everything to lose as they can no longer make a chipset that works with Intel products. They made a short term decision that will really kill off their business in the long run. And, in fact, now that Intel is officially pissed off at them, it's probably too late as Intel is likely more happy to kill them off than to deal at this point.

Whoever made this choice at Nvidia wasn't worth their MBA, that's for sure.

[Hornet331]

*wait for NV to play the "scream monopoly card" against intel*

[Ugly n Grey]

*wait for NV to play the "scream monopoly card" against intel*

Since NV's purpose would be to lock out competition on SLI, they don't have a leg to stand on. Intel's lawyers aren't stupid.

[keiths]

No. It's at the hardware level. Skulltrail has SLI capability only because of special chips from nvidia(nforce 100). Existing P35/X38 motherboards do not have these chips so no. You will never see SLI on your P35/X38 based motherboard.

There's nothing technically different between sli and crossfire, they're the same pci express functionality. What's probable is that Nvidia wrote their drivers to require identifying a nvidia chipset to run, and rather than rewrite their drivers to ignore this requirement, they make vendors buy their chipset instead, which gets the drivers past the nvidia check; it's like old software dongles. They could have added some unecessary hardware process, but it's more likely they're relying on legal and software means to inflicting their nvidia requirement.