A: In Windows Server 2008 R2, the graphics card had to support DirectX 9.0c and 10, but in Windows Server 2012 (formerly code-named Windows Server 8), RemoteFX uses DirectX 11, so the graphics card must support DirectX 11. To enable RemoteFX, and for it to function correctly, the following must be present:
- DirectX 11 capable graphics card
-
Windows 8 64-bit WDDM v 1.20 driver (if you try to use a non-Windows 8 specific graphics driver, the graphics in the virtual machines--VMs--won't
render correctly and tearing will be present, which the screen shot below shows). Using a Windows 8 graphics driver fixes the issue.
- SLAT-capable processor. Remember, a great way to check whether your processor supports SLAT is to use the CoreInfo utility from SysInternals.com (use the -v switch and a * should be shown next to EPT):
C:\Windows\system32>pushd \\live.sysinternals.com
Z:\>coreinfo -accepteula -v
Coreinfo v3.04 - Dump information on system CPU and memory topology
Copyright (C) 2008-2012 Mark Russinovich
Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com
Note: Coreinfo must be executed on a system without a hypervisor running for accurate results.
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU 950 @ 3.07GHz
Intel64 Family 6 Model 26 Stepping 5, GenuineIntel
HYPERVISOR * Hypervisor is present
VMX * Supports Intel hardware-assisted virtualization
EPT * Supports Intel extended page tables (SLAT)
- Remote Desktop Virtualization Host role service must be installed (to enable RemoteFX).
-
Enable the GPU for RemoteFX (see screen shot below).
VMs can now be RemoteFX-enabled by adding the RemoteFX 3D Video Adapter hardware to a VM and setting the number of displays and resolution (see screen shot below).
See more FAQs on virtualization, System Center, and all things IT pro at John Savill's FAQs.