nForce Utilities NVIDIA nTune User’s Guide

Version 1.0 for Windows

NVIDIA Corporation October 28, 2004 NVIDIA Drivers NVIDIA nTune User’s Guide Version 1.0

Published by NVIDIA Corporation 2701 San Tomas Expressway Santa Clara, CA 95050

Notice ALL NVIDIA DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS, REFERENCE BOARDS, FILES, DRAWINGS, DIAGNOSTICS, LISTS, AND OTHER DOCUMENTS (TOGETHER AND SEPARATELY, “MATERIALS”) ARE BEING PROVIDED “AS IS.” NVIDIA MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED, IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE WITH RESPECT TO THE MATERIALS, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF NONINFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Information furnished is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, NVIDIA Corporation assumes no responsibility for the consequences of use of such information or for any infringement of patents or other rights of third parties that may result from its use. No license is granted by implication or otherwise under any patent or patent rights of NVIDIA Corporation. Specifications mentioned in this publication are subject to change without notice. This publication supersedes and replaces all information previously supplied. NVIDIA Corporation products are not authorized for use as critical components in life support devices or systems without express written approval of NVIDIA Corporation.

Trademarks NVIDIA, the NVIDIA logo, NVIDIA nForce, NVIDIA nTune, GeForce, NVIDIA Quadro, NVDVD, NVIDIA Personal Cinema, NVIDIA Soundstorm, Vanta, TNT2, TNT, RIVA, RIVA TNT, VOODOO, VOODOO GRAPHICS, WAVEBAY, Accuview Antialiasing, the Audio & Nth Superscript Design Logo, CineFX, the Communications & Nth Superscript Design Logo, Detonator, Digital Vibrance Control, DualNet, FlowFX, ForceWare, GIGADUDE, Glide, GOFORCE, the Graphics & Nth Superscript Design Logo, Intellisample, M-BUFFER, nfiniteFX, NV, NVChess, nView, NVKeystone, NVOptimizer, NVPinball, NVRotate, NVSensor, NVSync, the Platform & Nth Superscript Design Logo, PowerMizer, Quincunx Antialiasing, Sceneshare, See What You've Been Missing, StreamThru, SuperStability, T-BUFFER, The Way It's Meant to be Played Logo, TwinBank, TwinView and the Video & Nth Superscript Design Logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of NVIDIA Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Other company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated.

Intel, Indeo, and Pentium are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation. Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT, Direct3D, DirectDraw, and DirectX are trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. OpenGL is a registered trademark of Silicon Graphics Inc.

Other company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated.

Copyright © 2004 by NVIDIA Corporation. All rights reserved. Driver Utilities NVIDIA nTune User’s Guide Version 1.0 Table of Contents

1.About NVIDIA nTune ...... 1 2.Using NVIDIA nTune ...... 3 Installing NVIDIA nTune ...... 3 Before You Begin...... 3 Installation Instructions...... 4 Starting NVIDIA nTune ...... 5 Overview of nTune Capabilities ...... 7 Navigating the Pages ...... 8 3.How to Manage nForce System and ForceWare Settings ...... 11 Manage Page ...... 12 Manage Your nForce System ...... 12 Manage Your ForceWare Settings ...... 15 nTune Applications ...... 16 NVMonitor ...... 16 NVProfile Manager ...... 19 NVPerformance Examiner ...... 25 4.How to Change System Timings ...... 29 Clock Control Page ...... 29 System Bus Speeds Group ...... 30 Memory Controller Timing Group ...... 32 GPU Bus Speeds Group ...... 32 5.How to Control Voltage and Fan Settings ...... 33 Voltage/Fan Control Page ...... 33 Voltages Group...... 34 Fan Speeds Group ...... 34 6.How to Change BIOS Settings ...... 35 Access BIOS Page ...... 35 7.How to View System Information ...... 37 Viewing the Information Page ...... 37

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C HAPTER

ABOUT NVIDIA NTUNE

NVIDIA nTuneTM is a full-featured application for easily modifying system settings and testing them without the need for rebooting your system. With NVIDIA nTune, you can

• Modify system performance settings, such as bus speeds, CPU voltages, fan speed, and other system performance options that are supported by the BIOS

• Save the modifications to a profile so that you can quickly apply settings to suit specific application environments

• Monitor hardware temperature, voltage, timing, and fan speed

• View other information about your system, such as hardware and software revisions and other capabilities

System Requirements

• Supported operating systems: ® • Windows 2000 ® • Windows XP (32-bit and 64-bit) ® • Windows Me ® • Windows 98SE

• Supported NVIDIA processors: • nForce 2 SPP and all MCP2 versions • nForce 2 IGP and all MCP2 versions • nForce 2 400 and all MCP2 versions • nForce 2 Ultra 400 and all MCP2 versions • nForce 3 150

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• nForce 3 Pro 150 • nForce 3 250 • nForce 3 Pro 250 • nForce 4 • nForce 4 Pro

•Supported CPUs • All AMD FSB 133 (266 DDR) MHz style processors • All AMD FSB 166 (333 DDR) MHz style processors • All AMD FSB 200 (400 DDR) MHz style processors • AMD Athlon 64 processors • AMD Athlon 64 FX processors • AMD Opteron processors • AMD Sempron processors

• Some features require BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer.

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C HAPTER

USING NVIDIA NTUNE

This chapter is organized in the following sections:

• “Installing NVIDIA nTune” on page 3

• “Starting NVIDIA nTune” on page 5

Installing NVIDIA nTune

Before You Begin

• Make sure your hardware meets the “System Requirements” on page 1. The installer will not install NVIDIA nTune on non-supported systems, including non- supported nForce systems.

• Uninstall any previous versions of NVIDIA nTune or NVIDIA System Utility before installing the latest version.

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Installation Instructions

1 Download the zip file, then unzip to a temporary folder.

2 Double-click Setup from your temporary folder. The InstallShield Wizard starts, and directs you through the rest of the installation process as described below.

3 At the Welcome window, click Next.

4 Read the license agreement, then click Yes if you agree to the terms.

5 At the Choose Destination Location window, browse to locate the folder where you want the NVIDIA nTune files installed, or just use the default location and click Next. Setup proceeds to install the files.

6 At the InstallShield Wizard Complete window, click Finish.

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Starting NVIDIA nTune

To start NVIDIA nTune,

1 From the Windows desktop, • Click Start, then click Programs->NVIDIA Corporation->nTune and then click nTune, or • Browse to the folder where you installed the files, then double-click the file nTune.exe. The licensing agreement appears, which warns of the potential dangers to your system inherent in any overclocking endeavor.

2 Scroll to the end of the agreement, then click I Agree if you agree to the terms. Note: The I Agree button is not available until you scroll the End User License Agreement to the end. To avoid being prompted again, click the Do not show this prompt again check box.

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The utility opens to the main Manage page.

Toolbar

Figure 2.1 NVIDIA nTune Interface From this page you can access all of nTune’s capabilities. IMPORTANT! Depending on your motherboard settings, the following warning message may appear when nTune starts: Warning: Your PCI clock is currently set to track the HT bus. If you adjust the clock for the HT bus, the PCI bus clock will change as well. Please consult your motherboard manual to determine how to disable this behavior before proceeding. If this warning appears, follow the directions from the motherboard manufacturer to enter the BIOS Setup and disable the Spread Spectrum features. NVIDIA is not responsible for data loss or hardware damage resulting from ignoring this warning message.

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Overview of nTune Capabilities

NVIDIA nTune lets you perform the following tasks:

Manage System and Driver Settings

The Manage page lets you manage your nForce system and ForceWare settings, and provides access to the NVMonitor, NVProfile Manager, and NVPerformance Examiner applications. See Chapter 3, “How to Manage nForce System and ForceWare Settings” on page 11.

Control Clock Speeds

The Clock Control page lets you adjust your system and memory timings. See Chapter 4, “How to Change System Timings” on page 29.

Control Voltage and Fan Levels

The Voltage/Fan Control page lets you adjust the voltage to various components, and lets you control fan speed. See Chapter 5, “How to Control Voltage and Fan Settings” on page 33.

Access BIOS Settings

The Access BIOS page lets you change various BIOS settings. See Chapter 6, “How to Change BIOS Settings” on page 35.

View System Information

The Information page lets you view motherboard, NVIDIA chipset, system performance, and memory information. See Chapter 7, “How to View System Information” on page 37.

Create and Use Profiles

You can save settings made within nTune in a profile, and also load nTune settings from a previously saved profile.

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Navigating the Pages

Quick Navigation

You can toggle through all the available pages by using the hot key .

Help

To access descriptions of the controls and buttons, click the “?” icon on the upper right corner of the page, then move the mouse cursor over the appropriate label.

Toolbar Buttons

Use the toolbar at the bottom of the page to navigate to other pages, save changes, and use profiles.

Table 2.1 Toolbar Buttons Icon Name Function Manage Opens the Manage page. Manage nForce system settings and ForceWare driver settings.

Clock Control Opens the Clock Control page.

Voltage/Fan Opens the Voltage/Fan Control page. Control

Access BIOS Opens the Access BIOS page.

Information Opens the Information page.

OK Apply all changes made and exit the application.

Apply Apply all changes made. After the values are applied, nTune remains open at the current active tab. A dialog box appears prompting you with the following selections: • Yes - Apply all the changes made since the last application and return to nTune. If you made voltage changes, an additional warning message will appear. • No - Abort all the changes made since the last application and return to nTune. • Cancel - Abort all the changes made since the last application and return to nTune.

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Table 2.1 Toolbar Buttons Icon Name Function Revert Cancel all changes made and return to nTune.

Save a Profile Save current settings in a profile. To store the settings in a personal profile, click (save profile) and then choose or name the .nsu file from the Save As dialog box, then click Save. Load a Profile Load values from a saved profile. Open a profile by clicking (load profile) and then selecting the profile (.nsu file) you want to load.

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C HAPTER

HOW TO MANAGE NFORCE SYSTEM AND FORCEWARE SETTINGS

This chapter is organized in the following sections:

• “Manage Page” on page 12

• “nTune Applications” on page 16

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Manage Page

When launching nTune, the Manage page opens. To open the Manage page from any other page, click the Manage page icon from the toolbar.

Figure 3.1 NVIDIA nTune Manage Page Note: The actual items appearing in this page depend on the version of the nForce system, and the capabilities of the motherboard and support of the system BIOS. Manage Your nForce System

The Manage my nForce System section contains icons and links that launch the following applications:

NVMonitor

Click the text “Monitor my system” to launch the NVMonitor application that lets you monitor various system temperature, clock speed, and voltage values. See “NVMonitor” on page 16 for instructions.

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NVProfile Manager

Click the text “Manage my profiles” to launch the NVProfile Manager application that lets you create rules for how to use the profiles created by nTune or NVPerformance Examiner. See “NVProfile Manager” on page 19 for instructions.

NVPerformance Examiner

This feature is available only with BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer, otherwise the icon is not visible. Click the text “Benchmark and automatically tune my system” to launch the NVPerformance Examiner application that lets you tune the system based on the current performance level. See “NVPerformance Examiner” on page 25 for instructions.

Troubleshooting

Click the text “Troubleshoot performance” or “create a support log”, to launch the following applets:

• Troubleshoot System Performance This function performs the following series of quick checks to identify probable causes of performance problems: • Check Synchronous vs. Asynchronous modes (NVIDIA recommends Synchronous. • Check memory balance (partition) • Check AGP capabilities that are not used • Check memory speed relative to FSB speed • Check processor speed relative to memory speed capability. • Check for lower than optimal CPU multiplier nTune then creates a list of the results, and provides recommendations for improvements.

• Create a Support Log This function saves the following system information details in a log file, which you can provide to tech support: • Chipset information (marketing names and versions) • Extensive CPU information • Extensive memory information, including bank setup • GPU information • PCI Device list

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• Resource map (device list) • Audio chip information • OS and DirectX version information • nForce and GeForce driver versions Choose a filename and location for saving the information, or choose the defaults.

Online Support

Click the text “Get online support” to open the NVIDIA technical support Web site in your browser.

BIOS Updater

This feature is available only with BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer, otherwise the icon is not visible. Click the text “Update my BIOS” to launch the BIOS Updater window that lets you perform a BIOS image update within the Windows environment. Note: The BIOS image must exist on the host system. nTune does not retrieve it from the motherboard manufacturer’s Web site.

• This feature displays the following BIOS information: • BIOS Manufacturer • Current BIOS version • Current BIOS date

• To create a backup image of the current BIOS on the system, click Save BIOS ROM to create a backup image of the current BIOS on the system.

• To flash a new BIOS image: 1 Select the options that you want to use: • Load CMOS defaults during flash. • Reboot the system after the flash is completed • Update the Boot Block 2 Click Load BIOS ROM to select the image to flash. 3 Click Flash to start the BIOS update. Error and status information will be reported in the ʺBIOS flash status informationʺ window.

•Click Close to return to the nTune Manage page.

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Manage Your ForceWare Settings

The Manage my ForceWare Settings section contains

• Shortcuts for any NVIDIA ForceWare software or interface that is installed on your system.

• A Quick Launch tool that opens a window for creating a list of applications that you can launch by double-clicking from the list.

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This section describes the applications that you can access from the Manage my nForce system section of the nTune Manage page.

NVMonitor

This feature is available only with BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer. NVMonitor displays dynamic graphs that track the CPU and system temperatures, and the voltages and speeds for various hardware components. To open NVMonitor, click the text “Monitor my system” from the nTune Manage page.

Figure 3.2 NVMonitor—Monitor Page Click the toggle icon to switch back and forth between the Monitor page and the Options page, described as follows:

Monitor Page

The Monitor page displays system temperatures, voltages, and speeds.

Temperatures The temperature graphs reflect the temperature level reported by the BIOS. Use the Options Page to specify the temperature units—either degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit. The BIOS also provides an overtemp level. From the Options Page, you can pick a method for alerting when the temperature reaches the overtemp limit—either using flashing text or by outputting an audible warning tone. The settings on the Options page also determine which component temperatures are tracked and displayed.

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Voltages The voltages are displayed as set or measured voltage levels depending on the BIOS implementation. If the BIOS does not support reporting the voltages, ʺNot reportedʺ appears to the right of the ʺVoltages (in volts):ʺ text. The colored boxes indicate the level of safety at which each component is operating, and are defined as follows: • Green: Safe operating level • Yellow: Warning - May result in system instability • Red: Danger - Will likely result in system instability or component damage.

Speeds The operating speed for various components is indicated by bar graph. The bar colors indicate the level of safety at which each component is operating, and are defined as follows: • Green: Safe operating level • Yellow: Warning - May result in system instability • Red: Danger - Will likely result in system instability.

Current Profile Displays the name of the nTune or Performance Examiner profile currently in use by the system.

Options Page

The options page allows the user to customize the NVMonitor page functions.

Figure 3.3 NVMonitor—Options Page

Track temperatures Select the check boxes of the components that you want to track— CPU, System, GPU, GPU2, and CPU2 temperatures. If unavailable, the check box is grayed-out. Note: GPU temperature tracking requires ForceWare Release 55 or later graphics drivers and GeForce FX or greater graphics cards.

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Visual Interface Settings

• Specifying the Temperature Reading Interval To specify how often to update the temperature values, click the Update list arrow and then click one of the polling intervals from the list. Note: Because of SMI traffic and CPU utilization, faster polling times may impact performance. This may be particularly noticeable when playing WAV files.

• Specifying a Viewing Option To always display the NVMonitor application in the foreground while running other tasks, select the Show on top check box. Because this can hide items in the background, you can adjust the transparency of NVMonitor. To adjust the transparency, move the Transparency Level slider. The greater the percentage, the more transparent NVMonitor appears. Figure 3.4 shows an example of NVMonitor transparency.

Figure 3.4 Example of NVMonitor Transparency Note: The transparency feature is not supported in Operating Systems prior to Windows 2000.

Temperature Interface

• Specifying the Temperature Scale to Use Choose which temperature scale to use—Celsius or Fahrenheit.

• Specifying the Overtemp Alert Method You can specify a method for signalling overtemp conditions—either through flashing red temperature text or through an audible alert.

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NVProfile Manager

NVProfile Manager lets you create rules for how the profiles created within nTune or NVPerformance Examiner are used by the system. Once created, the system will select an enabled profile automatically according to the criteria setup within the rule(s). To open NVProfile Manager, click the text “Manage my profiles” from the nTune Manage page.

Stop running enabled rules. Run all enabled rules. Hide NVProfile Manager Cancel

Figure 3.5 NVProfile Manager Page

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Creating a Rule

To create a rule:

1 Click New. The Action page appears.

Finish: Completes the rule creation process. Next: Proceed to the next step. Back: Return to the previous step. Cancel: Exit without saving any changes. Figure 3.6 Create a Rule—Action Page

2 Give the rule a name by editing the Rule Name field. The name may be 256 characters in length, and composed of alphanumeric characters and symbols. Note: Rule names of long character length may be truncated when viewed in the listing windows.

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3 To have the rule enabled as soon as you create it, select the Enable check box. You can enable or disable rules after they are created by selecting or clearing the check box of the rule in the list.

4 Select the rule action by selecting from the list of check boxes: • Load this Profile - Load the specified profile. • After xx seconds, Load this Profile - Load the specified profile after the set count expires. • Pop-up a warning message - Bring a warning message to the foreground. • Signal a warning tone - Play a generic Tone or one selected by the user. Tones are limited to WAV file format. • Launch NVIDIA nTune- Start nTune and bring to the foreground. Note: You can select multiple actions, but the program may disallow some combinations.

5 If a rule that you selected has a hypertext item, you must define that rule. In the Rule Description box, click the hypertext to define the rule.

6 When finished selecting and defining the rule action, click the Next icon.

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The When page appears.

Figure 3.7 Create a Rule—When Page

7 Choose a rule condition by selecting from the list of check boxes. If multiple conditions are selected, they are treated collectively as a single condition— all the conditions must be true before the defined action is taken. If you want the rule action to occur if any one of a number of conditions are met, you must instead set up multiple rules and establish a priority order. • The system first starts Windows - The profile manager will edit the registry to load the specified profile when Windows is started. • Temperature is lower (higher) than xx degrees Celsius - The profile manager will monitor the CPU temperature and upon reaching the specified temperature will take the appropriate action(s).

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The user will input a temperature from a pop-up window during the rule creation process.

Figure 3.8 • Application is loaded (or stopped) - The profile manager will monitor the applications loaded (or stopped) and upon identifying will take the appropriate action(s). • Any Direct 3D application loads (or stops) - The profile manager, upon detecting Direct3D calls initiating (or stopping), takes the appropriate action(s). • Any OpenGL application loads (or stops) - The profile manager, upon detecting OpenGL calls initiating (stopping), takes the appropriate action(s). • Any DVD is playing (or is stopped) - The profile manager, upon detecting DVD player has started (stopped), takes the appropriate action(s). The DVD function is limited to NVDVD or WinDVD. • CPU is idle (power savings) - The profile manager, upon detecting processor idle states, takes the appropriate action(s). • CPU is active (performance) - The profile manager, upon detecting processor idle state stopped, takes the appropriate action(s). • Screensaver is launched (or is stopped) - The profile manager, upon detecting the screensaver has launched (stopped), takes the appropriate action(s).

8 Click OK to complete the rule creation process.

9 Start and stop your created rules • Click the Run icon to run all the enabled rules. • Click the Stop icon to stop all rules that are running.

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Manipulating Existing Rules

Rules that are in process must be stopped before modifying them.

Copying a Rule To create a duplicate rule in the list, click the rule that you want to copy and then click Copy.

Modifying a Rule To modify a rule, click the rule from the list to highlight it, click Modify, and then step though the rule creation process to edit the conditions you want to change.

Renaming a Rule To rename a rule, click the rule from the list to highlight it, then click Rename.

Deleting a Rule To delete a rule, click the rule from the list to highlight it, then click Delete. Once deleted, the rule cannot be recovered. If you want to keep the rule in the list but do not want to use it, clear the corresponding check box.

Adjusting Priorities The order in which the rules appear in the list correspond to the order of priority. To change the order of priority for any rule, click the rule to highlight it, then click Raise Priority to move the rule up in the list or click Lower Priority to move the rule down in the list.

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NVPerformance Examiner

NVPerformance Examiner lets you select and run NVIDIA developed benchmarks to determine the current performance level of the system. You can also tune the system to various performance criteria. To open NVPerformance Examiner, click the text “Benchmark and automatically tune my system” from the nTune Manage page.

Save benchmark results or tuned settings. Load a profile created by auto-tune. Run the benchmark or auto-tune process. Stop running the benchmark or auto-tune process.

Figure 3.9 NVPerformance Page Users should close all applications and save all work before performing any benchmarking tests or tuning processes.

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Running Benchmarks

To run benchmarks,

1 Select the benchmarks to run. Select System performance to run all available benchmarks, or select any of the individual benchmarks: • Memory Performance • Disk Performance • Graphics Performance Graphics benchmarks require NVIDIA GeForce FX or better to execute.

2 Choose whether to display comparative results. Under Compare with, • Select NVIDIA baseline to display the NVIDIA baseline results alongside the results of your new test. • Select Previous run to display the results of your previous benchmark test alongside the results of your new test.

3 Click the Run icon. • A progress bar shows the benchmark progress. • You can cancel at any time by clicking the Stop icon. • A graph of the benchmark results appear in the Results window.

4 To save the results to a file, click the Save icon.

Running the Auto-Tune Process

Important: All dynamic overclocking features in the BIOS must be disabled before performing Silent Running, Best System, or Best Memory tuning. To auto-tune your system:

1 Select the auto-tune method to use. • Silent Running This method builds a profile in which system performance is decreased to allow for more passive cooling. This may also improve battery life. • Best System Performance This method builds an optimal performance profile for the system which includes memory, disk, and graphics areas. • Best Memory Performance

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This method uses the memory benchmark to perform an iterative process to determine which settings provide the best memory performance. This is done without consideration of the other performance areas. • Best Disk Performance This method uses the disk benchmark to perform an iterative process to determine which settings provide the best disk performance. This is done without consideration of the other performance areas. • Best Graphics Performance This method uses the graphics benchmark to perform an iterative process to determine which settings provide the best graphics performance. This is done without consideration of the other performance areas. Graphics tuning requires NVIDIA GeForce FX or better to execute.

2 Click the Run icon. During the course of tuning, the system may stop responding or reboot. The tuning will restart when the system is restarted and continue from the last good test. The effects of the tuning apply to the current Windows session only.

3 To use the tuned settings in another Windows session, a Click the Save icon to save the tuned settings in a profile. b When needed, click the Load icon to load the tuned settings. The NVPerformance Examiner load process cannot be used to load .nsu profiles.

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C HAPTER

HOW TO CHANGE SYSTEM TIMINGS

Clock Control Page

To open the Clock Control page, click the Clock Control page icon from the toolbar.

Figure 4.1 nTune Clock Control Page

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All changes made on this page take effect immediately after selecting Apply or OK; however, these setting will remain active only for the current Windows session. Because the changes are not made directly to the BIOS, you can safely return to Windows in the event of a crash, without any possibility of boot issues.

System Bus Speeds Group

The Bus Speeds section provides clocking control of the front side bus, memory bus, and the external AGP bus.

Adjusting Bus Speeds

• To Adjust: Either drag the slider, or use the keyboard tab key to select the slider and then use the arrow keys to move the slider incrementally. The frequency is shown above the slider.

• Hints: • When overclocking the system, it may be advantageous to increase the voltage level of the components to provide more operating margin. • For higher Front Side Bus and Memory Bus adjustments, NVIDIA recommends increasing (relaxing) the memory timings to improve stability.

• Caution: Increasing the voltage or the clock speed of a component may void its warranty due to exceeding recommended specifications. NVIDIA and the board manufacturer are not responsible for damage that may occur when component tolerances are exceeded.

Notes on Bus Speed Settings

The settings behavior depends on whether the system is an nForce 2, nForce 3, or nForce 4 system.

Front Side and Memory Bus

• The maximum overclocking capability is +25% of the nominal frequency, while underclocking is limited to –50% of the nominal frequency. Due to an algorithmic limitation, the adjustments are not in 1 MHz increments.

• The FSB and memory bus speeds cannot be adjusted separately.

• nForce 2: • The Front side (FSB) and Memory Bus speed will be reported in DDR format, therefore a 133 MHz bus is reported as 266 MHz.

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• The FSB and memory bus can be manipulated when they are both set as synchronous (matching) and asynchronous modes. • When in asynchronous mode, the FSB and memory bus clock adjustment will be made in the same ratio, but not the same exact steps.

Hypertransport Bus (Available on nForce 3 and nForce 4 Only) The Hypertransport bus is reported in DDR format and uses the LDT multiplier. Since a LDT multiplier of 3 is used, the 400 MHz bus is displayed as 1200 MHz. Note: All numbers are expressed as MHz.

AGP Bus (Available on nForce 2 and nForce 3 Only)

• The AGP bus control is for the external AGP bus only.

• The maximum overclocking capability is +25% of the nominal frequency, and there is no underclocking capability.

• nForce 2: For IGP, this option is not available if there is no external AGP card installed.

PCI Express Bus (Available on nForce 4 Only)

• The maximum overclocking capability is +20% of the nominal frequency, and there is no underclocking capability.

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Memory Controller Timing Group

The memory controller timing section provides control of essential memory timings that are necessary to maintain stability when overclocking the Front Side Bus and Memory Bus. Increasing (relaxing) these parameters should allow for increased margins when performing overclocking functions.

• To Adjust: Click the list arrow then click one of the settings from the list. The lower the value, the more aggressive the setting. The higher the value, the more relaxed the setting.

• Parameters:

• tRAS (Row Address Strobe) This setting controls the row-active time, or the minimum number of cycles between an activate command and a pre-charge command to the same bank.

• tRCD (RAS to CAS Access) This setting controls the minimum number of cycles between an activate command and a read command to the same bank.

• tRP (Memory bank switch) This setting controls the row pre-charge time, or the minimum number of cycles between a pre-charge command and an activate command to the same bank.

GPU Bus Speeds Group

• This functions in this group require that the system includes the following: • External GeForce FX or GeForce 6 Series cards installed • NVIDIA ForceWare Graphics Driver Release 55 or later installed

• To Adjust: Either drag the slider, or use the keyboard tab key to select the slider and then use the arrow keys to move the slider incrementally. The frequency is shown above the slider.

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HOW TO CONTROL VOLTAGE AND FAN SETTINGS

Voltage/Fan Control Page

Access to this page requires BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer. To open the Voltage/Fan Control from any other page, click the Voltage/Fan Control icon from the toolbar.

Figure 5.1 nTune Voltage/Fan Control Page

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All changes made on this page take effect immediately after selecting Apply or OK; however, these setting will remain active only for the current Windows session. Because the changes are not made directly to the BIOS, you can safely return to Windows in the event of a crash, without any possibility of boot issues.

Voltages Group

The Voltages section provides overvoltage control of the specified components in the group. Access to these adjustments requires BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer.

•To Adjust: • CPU Voltage: Either drag the slider or use the keyboard tab key to select the slider and then use the arrow keys to incrementally move the slider. The maximum CPU voltage is limited to 2.0 volts. • Others: Click the list arrow and then click one of the values from the list.

• Hints: When overclocking the system, it may be desirable to increase the voltage level of the components to provide more operating margin.

•Cautions: Increasing the voltage or the clock speed of a component may void its warranty due to exceeding recommended specifications. NVIDIA and the board manufacturer are not responsible for damage that may occur when component tolerances are exceeded.

Fan Speeds Group

The Fan speeds section provides speed control of the CPU and auxiliary fans. Access to these adjustments requires BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer.

• To Adjust: Either drag the slider or use the keyboard tab key to select the slider and then use the arrow keys to incrementally move the slider.

• Range: “Off” to “Max”, with incremental steps defined by the specific fan.

• Caution: It is not recommended that these fans be disabled or slowed down, unless adequate cooling measures are in place. NVIDIA and the board manufacturer are not responsible for thermal overload damage resulting from manipulation of the fan speed.

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HOW TO CHANGE BIOS SETTINGS

Access BIOS Page

Access to this page requires BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer. To open the Access BIOS page from any other page, click the Access BIOS page icon from the toolbar.

Figure 6.1 nvTune Access BIOS Page

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All changes made on this page will take effect after selecting Apply or OK and rebooting the system. Since changes are made to actual BIOS settings, these settings will remain active until changed or the CMOS is defaulted.

1 Click the Available BIOS Pages list arrow and click the BIOS page that you want to edit. The BIOS page chosen determines which items on the page are available for changing.

2 To edit an item, click the corresponding list arrow and then click one of the values from the list.

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HOW TO VIEW SYSTEM INFORMATION

Viewing the Information Page

To view other system information using NVIDIA nTune, click the Information Page icon from the toolbar.

Figure 7.1 nTune Information Page

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Processor Information

The Processor Information section provides the brand, name, family, model, and stepping information for the installed processors. To view additional information about a particular processor, double-click a processor from the list—a pop-up window with feature flag and additional information appears.

Motherboard Information

This information requires BIOS support from the motherboard manufacturer. The Motherboard Information sections provides details regarding the motherboard model and PCB version. “Not Reported” indicates that BIOS support is not available for this information.

nForce Information

The nForce Information section provides details regarding the nForce chipset model and silicon version.

Calculated System Performance

The Calculated System Performance section provides calculated system performance information for the bus and CPU speeds. Memory bus speeds are expressed as DDR.

Version Information

The Version Information section provides version numbers and file dates for currently installed NVIDIA nForce and ForceWare graphics drivers, and version details for the OS and DirectX ™. Note: The video driver report is limited to the primary adapter. Memory Information

The Memory Information section provides the vendor name and part number for each installed DIMM. To view additional information about a particular DIMM, double-click the DIMM from the list—a pop-up window appears with SPD information (in both hex and translated format) for the selected DIMM. If BIOS support is present, the DIMM format follows the slot definition from the manufacturer, and the number of slots in the list follows the number of slots on the board. Without BIOS support, nTune displays a maximum of 3 slots for nForce 2 and 4 slots for nForce 3 and 4.

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Current Profile

The Current Profile section displays the name of the nTune or NVPerformance Examiner profile currently in use by the system.

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