Download RivaTuner 2.0 RC 15.6

RivaTuner has been updated to version 2.0 RC 15.6. This program is one of the most popular of its kind and is intended to make the most of the graphics card in the computer. Despite the name suggests otherwise, the program can handle video cards from both nVidia and ATi. The changelog of this release shows the following changes:

Minor bug fixes:

• Hardware monitoring ring data buffer’s size is no longer improperly initialized when hardware monitoring window is open after closing from maximized state.

what’s new:

• Added ForceWare 77.xx driver family support up to the latest official 77.72 drivers.
• Updated databases for Detonator and ForceWare driver families. Added databases for ForceWare 72.14, 77.13, 77.50, 77.62 and 77.72 drivers.
• Unlocked previously available experimental NV47 (aka G70) GPUs support. Now all RivaTuner’s features including tweaking, diagnostics, hardware monitoring, overclocking and even pipeline control via the NVStrap driver are also officially available on NVIDIA GeForce 7800 series. Thanks to Andrew Worobiew for testing RivaTuner with NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GTX.
• Added experimental 64-bit OS support. Now the most of RivaTuner’s features are also available under Window XP x64 edition. Please refer to Known Issues section to get info about known 64-bit version’s limitations. Big thanks to Andrew Worobiew / iXBT / Digit-Life for providing nForce4 Ultra and to Peter Yeung / HIS for providing ATI PCIE display adapter for 64-bit test platform. Take a note, that unfortunately I was unable to find any sponsors able to provide NVIDIA PCIE display adapters for 64-bit test platform, that is why all NVIDIA GPUs related 64-bit functionality has been added blindly. So be careful when using RivaTuner under 64-bit platform with NVIDIA display adapters and feel free to report and anomalies you’ll notice.
• Added 64-bit OS specific macroses support for RivaTuner’s driver files database. Now you can use %wowdir% macro to specify path to %windir%SysWOW64 directory on 64-bit OS and %windir%System32 directory under 32-bit OS. #32/#64 macroses allow specifying 32-bit/64-bit specific driver files.
• Added Catalyst 5.5 and 5.6 drivers detection.
• Updated Catalyst 5.5 and 5.6 certified SoftR9x00 patch script (32-bit versions only).
• Updated IO driver:
  • Added 64 bit driver binary.
  • 32-bit driver has been slightly rewritten to allow using cross-platform source code for both 32 and 64-bit versions.
  • Some 32-bit specific IOCTLs (eg kernel mode execution helper IOCTL used for access to I2C bus on ATI hardware) have been removed and replaced with unified cross-platform IOCTLs.
• Updated NVStrap driver v1.9:
  • Added 64 bit driver binary.
  • 32-bit driver has been slightly rewritten to allow using cross-platform source code for both 32 and 64-bit versions.
  • Added NV44A, NV48 and NV47 GPUs support.
• Improved monitor driver wizard can generate 64-bit compatible monitor drivers now. Considering that some monitor manufacturers still don’t provide x64 compatible .inf files for their monitors, this feature can be extremely useful.
• Updated RivaTunerStatisticsServer v1.2 bundled utility. Considering that this utility is already widely used as standalone framerate monitoring and universal OSD solution and even bundled with some third-party software products and display adapters manufactured by some hardware vendors, the most of enhancements are aimed to simplify the server’s usage as a standalone tool . The list of enhancements includes:
  • Polished up GUI. Some controls have been realigned / renamed.
  • Added context sensitive help system for each option available in the server.
  • Some rarely used options like “Enable Direct3D8/Direct3D9 thunk layer integration” have been removed from GUI. Power users still can adjust these options manually via editing the RTSSHooks.cfg file.
  • Added “Run at Windows startup” option, allowing the sever to be automatically started with Windows.
  • Added “Show own statistics in OSD when it is not in use by other application”, controlling the server’s own OSD rendering behavior. Take a note that now this option is disabled by default.
  • Added flicker free OSD rendering mode for DirectDraw applications and applications using DirectDraw derived Direct3D interfaces (Direct3D7 and older). Take a note than flicker free mode is now enabled by default, and it is a bit slower than the previously available OSD rendering mode. Power users may revert the previous mode via editing the RTSSHooks.cfg file.
  • Added support for Direct3D9 applications, performing page flipping via IDirect3D9SwapChain interface instead of IDirect3DDevice9 interface’s page flipping method.
  • Added support for OpenGL applications, performing page flipping via wglSwapLayerBuffers.
  • Added 3 more text slots for the server’s OSD. Now up to 4 applications can simultaneously connect to the server’s OSD and use it to display independent text info. Take a note that RTSSSharedMemorySample sample code included in the SDK has been also updated to reflect these changes. Now you can start up to 3 instances of sample application simultaneously with the server to demonstrate multiple OSD text slots usage.
• Updated NVInfo v1.5 bundled DOS utility:
  • Added NV41, NV43, NV44, NV47 and NV48 GPUs support.
• ATIProbe v1.1 DOS utility is now integrated into RivaTuner’s distributive. This tiny tool can be used for convenient RivaTuner/NVInfo-styled command line based access to ATI VPU’s registers, PLLs and I2C bus devices under MS-DOS. Power users may use it for quick hardware diagnostics from bootable floppy, as well as for programming hardware without loading windows GUI. The example of real ATIProbe usage is setting maximum display adapter’s fan speed during hardware stability testing, performed by some hardware manufacturers.
• Improved low-level hardware monitoring module. Considering that many users prefer RivaTuner’s original and convenient monitoring graph history, history logging and history analysis implementation and wish to use these features for monitoring non-graphics subsystem related parameters like CPU temperatures, new version drastically improves RivaTuner’s hardware monitoring module extendibility and gives you an ability of adding graphs for any custom data sources via plugins. The list of plugin related enhancements includes:
  • Now RivaTuner exports some functions, providing a plugin R/O access to display adapter’s identification information, ATI/NVIDIA GPU’s registers and ATI/NVIDIA display adapter’s I2C buses. These functions allow you to implement monitoring for any system critical parameter of your display adapter (eg add support for custom sensors, not supported by RivaTuner’s core).
  • Multiple data source provider technology allows having multiple plugins, providing data for the same source (eg driver-level core temperature monitoring and low-level core temperature monitoring on NV3x+ display adapters). RivaTuner allows you to select data provider in the source’s properties as soon as multiple modules providing similar data are detected.
  • RivaTuner’s SDK contains wide range of open source sample monitoring plugins, demonstrating the usage of new technologies:
    • CPU sample plugin demonstrates implementation of “CPU clock” monitoring data source. This sample shows you that the plugins can supply monitoring module with data of any type, even if it is absolutely not related to graphics subsystem. The sample can be also used to monitor Cool’n’Quiet technology usage on AMD Athlon64 CPUs.
    • F75373S sample plugin demonstrates implementation of temperature, fan duty cycle and voltage data sources for ATI/NVIDIA display adapters with Fintek F75373S sensor (eg ASUS V9999 and ASUS 9800XT series). This sample shows you how to implement support for nonstandard sensors, which are not supported by generic driver’s temperature monitoring implementation. The sample also demonstrates the usage of model-specific voltage monitoring calibration via user-extendable voltage calibration database (the sample contains full database for all ASUS V9999 and ASUS 9600XT/9800XT models).
    • W83L785R sample plugin demonstrates implementation of temperature data sources for display adapters with Winbond W83L785R sensor (eg Gigabyte 6800 series). Similar to the previously mentioned sample, it shows you how to implement support for nonstandard sensors, which are not supported by generic driver’s temperature monitoring implementation.
    • MAX6689 and LM89 sample plugins demonstrate implementation of temperature data sources for display adapters with MAXIM MAX6648 and National Semiconductor LM89/LM89-I/LM99/LM99-I sensors. These sensors are widely used on the most of GeForce 6×00 display adapters (eg MSI NX800 and Leadtek A400 series) and also supported by NVIDIA ForceWare driver’s native temperature monitoring implementation, so the samples demonstrate you multiple data source provider usage technology, allowing you to switch “Core temperature” / “Ambient temperature” data source’s provider between default driver-level monitoring implementation and low-level plugins accessing the sensor directly. This allows you to compare compensated driver-level temperatures with raw sensor’s temperatures, as well as provides you more accurate temperature readings (0.125°C accuracy instead of 1°C accuracy for driver-level implementation).
• Improved low-level graphics subsystem diagnostic report module:
  • Added ATOM BIOS format support for R430 based display adapters.
  • Added HSI bridge type detection for NVIDIA display adapters. Now RivaTuner displays info about used HSI bridge type (BR02 AGP-to-PCIE or BR02 PCIE-to-AGP) in “NVIDIA specific display adapter info” report category on display adapters with nonnative AGP or PCIE chip (eg AGP GeForce 6600 series) .
  • Added pipeline configuration and memory bust type detection for NVIDIA NV48 graphics processors.
• Updated SDK:
  • Added SDK forlder description file.
  • Added source code comments for all previously available SDK samples.
  • Added commented source code or BIOSChecksumGenerator RTS plugin.
• Easter egg updates. Now RivaTuner’s undocumented command line interface is extended with commands providing R/W access to any device residing on any available I2C bus of the currently selected display adapter. Similar to commands providing access to the GPU’s general purpose registers, I2C related commands provide read, write, AND, OR and XOR-styled access to I2C devices. This feature can be used for different purposes, eg for programing fan speed via PWM I2C controller on ASUS display adapters with Fintek F75373S.
• Updated license agreement. New item has been added and distribution terms have been changed, Sparkle Technology UK is no longer allowed to bundle RivaTuner on the utility CDs or distribute it in any other form. I also recommend any other third party software developers to avoid having any deals with the company, refusing to pay any royalties assumed by the contract.
• FAQ updated.
• Minor UI changes and improvements.

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