EMS Imaging XtremeIPC VSN1100 Series User Manual Download Page 77

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Advanced Users

13.3

XtremeVision-Pro

Video BIOS

13.3.1 Introduction

There are two Video BIOS available for the

XtremeVision-Pro

. This section of the user guide is intended to describe how to choose

which BIOS to use on an

XtremeVision-Pro

and why the choice is available. It also describes how to update an

XtremeVision-Pro

with the

chosen BIOS.

13.3.2 Background Information

The Intel x86 based architecture limits the amount of legacy IO space available in a system to 64KB. Hardware which requires
IO access can be mapped into this 64KB area. An

XtremeVision-Pro

requests 256 Bytes of legacy IO. Unfortunately any PCIe bridge

will align this to a 4KB boundary and so the IO space allocated to each

XtremeVision-Pro

is actually 4KB. 64KB ÷ 4kB gives an

absolute

maximum of 16

XtremeVision-Pro

graphics cards. However, other system devices also require legacy IO. Often the

Network Devices

will request some IO space, and so might the USB devices and on-board graphics. It is not unusual for there

to be IO space

available for only 8

XtremeVision-Pro

graphics cards when installing them in a complex server class motherboard.

There are a number of different BIOS types in operation as the computer boots. The “System BIOS” is resident on the

motherboard and is responsible for starting up all the hardware and mapping in the resources (like the IO) so that they are
available to the CPU. The “Video BIOS” is resident on the graphics cards. It is responsible for booting the GPU and for informing
the System BIOS which resources will be required for the GPU to operate correctly.

The System BIOS requires an IO enabled

to be IO spa

if it is used as the boot device, i.e. it provides the graphics output that

displays the BIOS boot messages. However the Windows driver for the

XtremeVision-Pro

has been designed so that it does not require

IO. We can therefore use two types of Video BIOS for the

XtremeVision-Pro

, one which requests IO (and which can be used as a boot

device) and one which does not. This allows us to increase the number of

XtremeVision-Pro

cards which can be used in a system.

13.3.3 When to Disable IO

Where the onboard graphics is used as a boot screen the

XtremeVision-Pro

won’t be used by the System BIOS and none of the

cards

will require IO. However, if someone were then to enter the System BIOS and change the boot display from “IGD” (Integrated

Graphics) to “PEG/PCI” (a graphics card in a PCIe slot) then the system will require an IO enabled

XtremeVision-Pro

to be available

the boot card. Without this the system will not boot, and the only way to recover it is to install another IO enabled boot card.

We would therefore recommend that the card which would be used as the boot card using “PEG/PCI” is always set to the IO
Enabled, regardless of whether an onboard graphics control screen is enabled. This will ensure that it is not possible to break
the system by selecting an incompatible BIOS option.

Further to this, in a multi chassis system it is possible that the boot order might change. Someone might remove the Host
Interface cable for instance, or they may fail to power up one of the expansion chassis. This would change the

XtremeVision-Pro

which

would be selected as the boot card. To ensure that in this instance it is always possible to boot the system, we would

recommend placing an IO enabled card in each of the chassis which comprise the system. To be of use this card must be
positioned in the slot which the System BIOS would select if the chassis were the only one in the system.

13.3.4 SBC3

The SBC3 will use the first

XtremeVision-Pro

card enumerated by the System BIOS as the boot device. It will run out of IO if used

with

more than 6

XtremeVision-Pro

cards. We would recommend that each chassis that comprises the system should contain one IO

enabled

XtremeVision-Pro

card. This should be the first

XtremeVision-Pro