Windows VM = GPU Passthrough

[freddehboy]

Hi

I am in need of the power of a NAS for my files and images ... and I also need a Windows VM with a working gpu passthrough. Am I able running gpu passthrough in TruNAS Core?

Best regards Fredrik

 

[sretalla]

You might have better results with a type 1 hypervisor like ESXi, having a VM for Windows and a VM (with SATA controller passthrough) for TrueNAS.

Be sure to read and understand this post first though on the TrueNAS side
: https://www.truenas.com/community/t...ide-to-not-completely-losing-your-data.12714/

 

[RegularJoe]

pci pass thru can be tricky. with vmware your CPU, motherboard, chipset and BIOS settings must allow VT-D or your stuck. I am not sure how bhyve handles this, I know at one point it could not pass thru a video card. In FreeNAS/FreeBSD maybe it can now as long as it is not the output device for the OS, i.e. your using a serial console or a different video card for the base OS.

 

[Hellione]

Yes ESXi is very nice for this.
But sometimes pci passthrough in esxi does not work out of the box for all cards / controllers (are greyed out in passthrough menu).
I had that problem with a Supermicro servers onboard Intel Corporation Cannon Lake PCH-H AHCI Controller.
Fix was, execute "lspci -p" for getting some info like:
#0000:00:17.0 Mass storage controller SATA controller: Intel Corporation Cannon Lake PCH-H AHCI Controller [vmhba0]#
#Class 0106: 8086:a352#
And then edit /etc/vmware/passthru.map and insert
#Intel Corporation Cannon Lake PCH-H AHCI Controller#
8086 a352 d3d0 false
and reboot.
So maybe you can install esxi on your system via usb-stick or nvme drive, and passthrough your sata controller to TrueNAS, and your graphics to win-vm.

 

[Yorick]

GPU passthrough to Windows did not work in CORE for me. Keep in mind bhyve does not officially support it.

Keep an eye on SCALE and maybe try out the beta in April-ish, KVM GPU passthrough is indeed a thing that works.

 

[RegularJoe]

But sometimes pci passthrough in esxi does not work out of the box for all cards

That is a hardware issue, not all hardware can be passed thru, if that device is related to something else that can't be passed it is not going to work. If ubuntu/debian via KVM cannot pass it thru to a vm I would bet VMware can't do it either.