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pogeymanz

Member

Registered: 2008-03-11

Posts: 1,020

How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

In Nvidia-settings, it says I have 512MB.

When I do lspci -vvv, I get:

01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation G86 [GeForce 8300 GS] (rev a1) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
    Subsystem: nVidia Corporation Device 0494
    Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx-
    Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
    Latency: 0
    Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 3
    Region 0: Memory at fa000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
    Region 1: Memory at d0000000 (64-bit, prefetchable) [size=256M]
    Region 3: Memory at f8000000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32M]
    Region 5: I/O ports at cf00 [size=128]
    [virtual] Expansion ROM at fb000000 [disabled] [size=128K]
    Capabilities: <access denied>
    Kernel driver in use: nvidia
    Kernel modules: nvidia, nouveau, nvidiafb

Which looks more like 256MB...

I'm asking because I want to take a chunk of it and make it a swap partition. (I have 1GB of RAM and potentially 512MB of video RAM)

hexanol

Member

From: Canaduh

Registered: 2009-08-04

Posts: 95

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

I would say you have 256MB. I have a similar result with my 8600GTS (512MB in nvidia-settings, but 256MB in lspci). And my card is supposed to come with 256MB.

We might want to fill a bug report at nvidia...

skottish

Forum Fellow

From: Here

Registered: 2006-06-16

Posts: 7,942

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

I'd believe nvidia-settings. I have a 512MB card and lspci reports 256MB. If you search around, you'll find a ton of other people with the same output.

--EDIT--

On the other hand, hexanol has a whole different outlook...

Last edited by skottish (2010-10-25 01:33:04)

mangust

Member

From: nomad

Registered: 2010-09-18

Posts: 31

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

Well, my nvidia-settings says I have 256MB, and lspci -vvv says

00:05.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation C51 [GeForce Go 6100] (rev a2) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
    Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. MCP51 PCI-X GeForce Go 6100
    Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx-
    Status: Cap+ 66MHz+ UDF- FastB2B+ ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
    Latency: 0
    Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 19
    Region 0: Memory at de000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
    Region 1: Memory at c0000000 (64-bit, prefetchable) [size=256M]
    Region 3: Memory at dd000000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
    [virtual] Expansion ROM at dcfe0000 [disabled] [size=128K]
    Capabilities: <access denied>
    Kernel driver in use: nvidia
    Kernel modules: nvidia, nouveau, nvidiafb

So, at least I don't have a difference in the reported numbers, and according to the manufacture (it's laptop Asus A8M) I do have 256MB. Hence, I agree with skottish, one should believe nvidia-settings.

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R00KIE

Forum Fellow

From: Between a computer and a chair

Registered: 2008-09-14

Posts: 4,734

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

When I used windows and had a notebook with an nvidia card the info tab would report _more_ memory than what the card had (I don't remember what it reported on linux, the machine died so I can't confirm it).

The total amount of memory that was reported to applications (and on the info panel of the drivers) was: physical memory + turbo cache memory, that may explain the differences people see.

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R00KIE
Tm90aGluZyB0byBzZWUgaGVyZSwgbW92ZSBhbG9uZy4K

graysky

Wiki Maintainer

From: :wq

Registered: 2008-12-01

Posts: 10,696

Website

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

+1 for nvidia-settings.  I know my 8400GS has 512 on it which is what nvidia-settings reports, but:

01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation G98 [GeForce 8400 GS] (rev a1) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
    Subsystem: Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. Device 1163
    Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx-
    Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
    Latency: 0
    Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 16
    Region 0: Memory at fa000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
    Region 1: Memory at e0000000 (64-bit, prefetchable) [size=256M]
    Region 3: Memory at f8000000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32M]
    Region 5: I/O ports at bf00 [size=128]
    [virtual] Expansion ROM at fb000000 [disabled] [size=128K]
    Capabilities: <access denied>
    Kernel driver in use: nvidia
    Kernel modules: nvidia

WTF?

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pogeymanz

Member

Registered: 2008-03-11

Posts: 1,020

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

The issue then becomes, how much can I use for swap and how the hell do I know where it is located!?

R00KIE

Forum Fellow

From: Between a computer and a chair

Registered: 2008-09-14

Posts: 4,734

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

I remembered I have access to one machine with an nvidia card, it is using the nv driver so I guess there is no turbocache thing going on there, lspci says just 256M but on the X log it says total memory is 512M and the published specs for the card say 512M so lspci is either reporting something else or the value reported is wrong (or capped at 256M for some reason).

From lspci:

01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation G96 [GeForce 9400 GT] (rev a1) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
    Subsystem: Giga-byte Technology Unknown device 349b
    Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B-
    Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR-
    Latency: 0, Cache Line Size: 32 bytes
    Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 10
    Region 0: Memory at e6000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
    Region 1: Memory at d0000000 (64-bit, prefetchable) [size=256M]
    Region 3: Memory at e4000000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32M]
    Region 5: I/O ports at 9000 [size=128]
    [virtual] Expansion ROM at e7000000 [disabled] [size=512K]
    Capabilities: <access denied>

From the X log:

(--) NV(0): Total video RAM: 512.0 MB
(--) NV(0):       BAR1 size: 256.0 MB
(--) NV(0):   Mapped memory: 256.0 MB

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R00KIE
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Gusar

Member

Registered: 2009-08-25

Posts: 3,606

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

From what I know (but too lazy to search for where I read it), it requires special tricks to access more than 256MB on a graphic card. The graphic driver knows these tricks, lspci doesn't. So lspci will always show a maximum of 256MB, even though a card might have more. Someone less lazy than me should search about this and confirm.

anonymous_user

Member

Registered: 2009-08-28

Posts: 3,059

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=118320
http://www.phoronix.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26231

skottish

Forum Fellow

From: Here

Registered: 2006-06-16

Posts: 7,942

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

The issue then becomes, how much can I use for swap and how the hell do I know where it is located!?

I have a question:

What do you need swap for? Generally speaking, Linux only goes into swap when there's a problem unless you are doing something heavily memory intensive like virtualizing. Are you going into swap regularly?

Anonymo

Member

Registered: 2005-04-07

Posts: 427

Website

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation GT200 [GeForce GT 220] (rev a2) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
        Subsystem: eVga.com. Corp. Device 1226
        Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx-
        Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
        Latency: 0
        Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 16
        Region 0: Memory at fb000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
        Region 1: Memory at c0000000 (64-bit, prefetchable) [size=256M]
        Region 3: Memory at de000000 (64-bit, prefetchable) [size=32M]
        Region 5: I/O ports at bf00 [size=128]
        [virtual] Expansion ROM at d0000000 [disabled] [size=512K]
        Capabilities: <access denied>
        Kernel driver in use: nvidia
        Kernel modules: nvidia, nouveau, nvidiafb

I know I have 1GB

Last edited by Anonymo (2010-10-26 03:08:57)

pogeymanz

Member

Registered: 2008-03-11

Posts: 1,020

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

The issue then becomes, how much can I use for swap and how the hell do I know where it is located!?

I have a question:

What do you need swap for? Generally speaking, Linux only goes into swap when there's a problem unless you are doing something heavily memory intensive like virtualizing. Are you going into swap regularly?

Well, yes, I go into swap somewhat often. Especially when I'm compiling Firefox-pgo or my kernel. I like to play with VirtualBox as well. So with only 1GB of RAM, things get tight. I've heard that if you use video ram as swap and give it a higher priority than your swap partition that it's much faster.

synthead

Member

Registered: 2006-05-09

Posts: 1,337

Re: How much memory does my stupid Nvidia card have?!

[edited] Didn't understand the problem, sorry guys

Last edited by synthead (2010-10-30 04:19:07)