Windows Aero on 64mb video card

[Guest]

Hey,
jw, is there some kind of overide to make it so that Aero can run on a older
video card? I know that sometimes idiots like microsoft make it so that u
have to have a better video card to run things even though you don't really
need that good of a video card to run it so that companys like nvidia will
pay them money so that they will get more sales and ect.

 

[steve sonsino]

you are right about your assumptions but no you cannot do that with vista...
Believe me.. many have tried!

but with beryl on linux you can have a 3d desktop with older cards

 

[Guest]

thx Steve. I know you can do it w\ linux and thats what drove me to post
this. In fact if all my software was linux compatible, I would switch, but
its not and a lot of software wont work on linux even though its getting
immensly more popular. This problem and a lot more are why I always say: It's
always Microsoft's fault no matter what your problem is.

 

[jonathan perreault]

amen brother

--


Jonathan Perreault
Forget Do Not Undermine Windows's Work,
Or It'll Undermine You As A User.

New Word Of Advice: Torture Windows (Any) Now
Before It Tortures You

 

[Andrew McLaren]

jw, is there some kind of overide to make it so that Aero can run on a
older
video card? I know that sometimes idiots like microsoft make it so that u
have to have a better video card to run things even though you don't
really
need that good of a video card to run it so that companys like nvidia will
pay them money so that they will get more sales and ect.

Hi Phil,

By default, Aero requires 128MB of dedicated video RAM in order to run. You
may be able to "trick" Aero into running with less video memory, by tweaking
the Winsat\VideoMemorySize value in the Registry. change this value on your
machine to decimal 67108864 (or 0x4000000) to tell Aero to run on 64MB of
RAM. You need to restart the Desktop Window Manager Session Manager
service, for the change to take effect.

See this interesting Microsoft document for details:
Windows Vista Rules for Enabling Windows Aero (With Guidelines for
Troubleshooting)
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device/display/aero_rules.mspx

As described in the HDC doc, with 64MB RAM you can only run Aero at limited
resolutions - probably max 1280x1024.

There are several other prerequisites for running Aero:
- support for DirectX 9 graphics
- a WDDM driver
- Pixel Shader 2.0 and 32 bits per pixel.
It's possible your card may not meet these other conditions - especially, it
might be hard to find a Vista WDDM driver for an older card. But hacking the
Registry may get you past the memory barrer, at least.

Good luck with it,

 

[Lang Murphy]

Hey,
jw, is there some kind of overide to make it so that Aero can run on a
older
video card? I know that sometimes idiots like microsoft make it so that u
have to have a better video card to run things even though you don't
really
need that good of a video card to run it so that companys like nvidia will
pay them money so that they will get more sales and ect.

It can be done, regardless of the other replies. I got Aero working on a
laptop with 64MB video RAM and 512MB RAM. Try this:

1/ Ensure that you have the following registry values set to :

HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM\Composition set to 1 (32-bit DWORD)

HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM\CompositionPolicy set to 2 (32-bit
DWORD)

2/ Restart DWM by opening a command prompt with administrative privileges :

- Type 'net stop uxsms'
- Then 'net start uxsms'

Let us know...

Lang

 

[Lang Murphy]

you are right about your assumptions but no you cannot do that with
vista...
Believe me.. many have tried!

but with beryl on linux you can have a 3d desktop with older cards

Uh, wrong? I've gotten Aero to run on systems with 64MB video RAM and 512MB
RAM. It -can- be done. See my reply to the original post...

Lang

 

[Andrew McLaren]

HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM\Composition set to 1 (32-bit DWORD)
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM\CompositionPolicy set to 2 (32-bit
DWORD)
2/ Restart DWM by opening a command prompt with administrative privileges
:
- Type 'net stop uxsms'
- Then 'net start uxsms'

Doh! I forgot about that one (my memory's shot, I gotta start writing stuff
down ...

Yes, that's the best way to force enabling of Aero.

Mind you, you still need Pixel 2.0, and 32 bit colour, and a WDDM graphics
driver. But worth a shot.

Thanks, Lang!!

 

[Guest]

I know that sometimes idiots like microsoft make it so that u
have to have a better video card to run things even though you don't really
need that good of a video card to run it so that companys like nvidia will
pay them money so that they will get more sales and ect.

DirectX9 released in 2002: it's since 5 years that DirectX9 graphics cards
released (they're Aero capable) !!!
Buy a Geforce 6200 AGP with 256MB on board for $59 only
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133151
http://www.pny.com/products/verto/performance/6200agp.asp

 

[Guest]

Hey Lang,
I know how to do alot of things w\ vista but editing registrys is not one.
Could you or someone else tell me how to???

 

[Guest]

Thx for the reply BillD but I have a laptop so that really doesnt help.

 

[Guest]

NM bout the registrys thing I figured it out but it doesn't work. Does anyone
know if a Intel 82852/82855 GM/GME Graphics controler has:
- support for DirectX 9 graphics
- a WDDM driver
- Pixel Shader 2.0 and 32 bits per pixel
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

 

[Andrew McLaren]

know if a Intel 82852/82855 GM/GME Graphics controler has:
- support for DirectX 9 graphics
- a WDDM driver
- Pixel Shader 2.0 and 32 bits per pixel

No, the Intel 82852/82855 GM/GME Graphics controller does not.

The earliest Intel Graphics controller which can run Aero reliably is the
Intel GMA 950. Some folks have managed to get a GMA 900 running Aero; but
it's a bit iffy. Intel received a fair bit of stick in the popular press,
for their slow and half-hearted support for Vista graphics. Apparently they
had some serious development problems, flowing from organisational issues.
The recent GMA 950 Drivers apparently work okay; and the newer Intel X3000
graphics are pretty good.

Even if the graphics chip had the physical hardware support for Aero, Intel
has not produced any new 82852/82855 drivers after v14.19.50. Intel has
finished doing software development for that chip. There will never be a
Vista-specific WDDM driver. You can read about the chip, here:
http://www.intel.com/support/graphics/intel852gm/

FWIW, I consider Aero to be very over-rated. I usually run Vista with the
"Classic" desktop. I like the idea of desktop composition for smooth
appearance and performance; but the fancy visual effects are annoying
flummery, IMHO.

 

[Jane C]

Hello Philip,

There is no WDDM driver for that graphics chip.

 

[Lang Murphy]

Doh! I forgot about that one (my memory's shot, I gotta start writing
stuff down ...

Yes, that's the best way to force enabling of Aero.

Mind you, you still need Pixel 2.0, and 32 bit colour, and a WDDM graphics
driver. But worth a shot.

Thanks, Lang!!

Andrew,

Yep, I surely know one needs those requirements to fire up Aero... but the
op didn't disclose their vid card in their first post, so... assuming one's
video card meets minimum reqs for Aero, then, as you know, the above hack
does work.

As to remembering it... I saved it to a text file that I reference every
couple of months when this question pops up. Some things I retain without
the need for archiving... that hack is not one of those things! ;-)

Best,

Lang

Lang

 

[Lang Murphy]

Hey Lang,
I know how to do alot of things w\ vista but editing registrys is not one.
Could you or someone else tell me how to???

Well, as you pointed out in a downstream post, your video card doesn't
support Aero, regardless of the amount of video RAM installed. I was not
cognizant of your video card model when I responded to your original post.
That hack does work for video cards that -do- support Aero -and- have less
than 128MB video RAM.

Lang

 

[Guest]

"Lang Murphy" replied to...

"Andrew McLaren" who answered...

Andrew,

Yep, I surely know one needs those requirements to fire up Aero... but the
op didn't disclose their vid card in their first post, so... assuming
one's video card meets minimum reqs for Aero, then, as you know, the above
hack does work.

As to remembering it... I saved it to a text file that I reference every
couple of months when this question pops up. Some things I retain without
the need for archiving... that hack is not one of those things! ;-)

Best,

Lang

Hey, that works great, but I'm not too pleased with the Aero Sidebar,
definately prefer at least 'semi' transparent version when it is set 'always
on top'. Is there a way to enable that with the Aero glass turned on?

 

[steve sonsino]

now do you understand why I told him it wont work?

I knew his display adaptor could not handle it even with tweaks...

those tweaks you say will not work with 99.99% of the old cards out there...

How do I know? I have researched it!

 

[Andrew McLaren]

now do you understand why I told him it wont work?

No, not really. The OP did not say in his original post what kind of adaptor
he had. Assuming the only barrier to Aero was the video RAM, the registry
tweak would have fixed it. There is a small, but significant number of video
cards which meet all the requirements, except they only have 64MB RAM.

As it happened, once the OP provided more information about the card, it
became obvious it would never run Aero. But this could not be established
beyond doubt, based on the original post.

those tweaks you say will not work with 99.99% of the old cards out
there...

He may have had a card in the 0.01% range.

 

[Lang Murphy]

"Lang Murphy" replied to...
Hey, that works great, but I'm not too pleased with the Aero Sidebar,
definately prefer at least 'semi' transparent version when it is set
'always on top'. Is there a way to enable that with the Aero glass turned
on?

Must admit I don't have a lot of experience with the sidebar. But I doubt
you can change the look; you want Aero, you get Aero. That said... I detach
the gadgets I use from SB and close SB. Don't know if that'll work for
you... but it's what works for me.

Lang