NVIDIA and VMware Virtualize VR at VMworld 2016

[HardOCP News]

Delivering VR is a complex challenge since immersive VR requires seven times the graphics processing power compared to traditional 3D applications and games. Delivering VR virtually — streaming it from a data center to any device — is an even bigger challenge. NVIDIA and VMware are working to make it a reality. At VMworld 2016 we’ll show, for the first time, photo-realistic, immersive VR in a VMware virtual environment. See it for yourself at the VMvillage by taking a spin through the following technologies:

• Iray VR — Iray physically based rendering produces dynamic panoramas and fully immersive light fields with stunningly realistic virtual environments. Strap on a headset and explore photorealistic virtual environments in VR.
• Point Cloud — Check out time-lapse rendering created with point cloud showing the building of NVIDIA’s spectacular new building in Silicon Valley.
• VRED VR — Participate in a collaborative VR design review of a Formula 1 race car created with Autodesk VRED 3D visualization software.
• Virtualizing VR: How It Works

The server powering these demos has four high-end NVIDIA Quadro GPUs and VMware ESXi running on top. This set-up allows us to run four simultaneous virtual machines with VR content. Using NVIDIA GRID, we’re passing through an entire GPU and delivering a native NVIDIA driver to each VM. This provides amazing performance to multiple VR instances running on the same server.

 

[CombatChrisNC]

I wonder about over-provisioning the GPU's in the same way you can do with CPUs. Then have 8, 12, maybe 16 VM's fed by those same 4 GPUs. I mean, depending on the demand of the display and the power of the GPU there's no reason they couldn't do that is there?

 

[w1retap]

I wonder about over-provisioning the GPU's in the same way you can do with CPUs. Then have 8, 12, maybe 16 VM's fed by those same 4 GPUs. I mean, depending on the demand of the display and the power of the GPU there's no reason they couldn't do that is there?

It looks like they are doing hardware pass-through, so no over-provisioning.