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I have read that Nvidia drivers disable gpu-accelerated PhysX on systems with Catalyst software or AMD drivers. I can't find if that is still true - articles that claimed so seems to be from earlier times than Nvidia blog entry NVIDIA Extends PhysX for High-Fidelity Simulations, Goes Open Source.

I have an AMD A-10 APU that is still good enough for my needs. I would prefer to leave integrated GPU on, just to be sure. It does not eat up too much RAM, and it would help in case if I'll ever need to remove discrete graphic card and forget to turn integrated on.

So my question is - how far I need to go with removing AMD card, to get full performance of my Nvidia? As I see it, options may be

  1. Nothing is really needed, articles I have read are out of date, or Nvidia started to ignore GPU built into CPU. Sounds a bit too good to be true.

  2. I need to remove Catalyst software, and possibly drivers, but I may leave the card on in BIOS.

  3. I need to disable integrated GPU in BIOS, and remove AMD drivers and software.

So, which of these is it? Or is there something else?

Mołot
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  • What are the computer and Nvidia models? – harrymc Nov 08 '19 at 14:07
  • @harrymc CPU is, as far as I remember, amd a10 7850k black edition. For now. Asus motherboard. But I don't see how exactly such details matter when the problem is with the drivers. If it depends, for example, on a CPU-GPU unit, then I hope hood answer will describe how it depends, so it will be a QA usable for future readers, not just me. – Mołot Nov 08 '19 at 14:12
  • @harrymc that said, if some specific info is needed, I'll gather it when I'm home. It wasn't a computer bought as one piece, I put it together myself, so I need to know what's relevant. – Mołot Nov 08 '19 at 14:26

1 Answers1

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Even if you decide to remove the drivers (not talking about the userspace software), Windows UWP will automatically reinstall them for you in most cases.

You need to test it for yourself to find out if the claim is true. That will save time.

If you do decide to disable the integrated GFX, you won't have issues booting. Just remove the CMOS battery to reset BIOS settings, or put the Nvidia card in to turn it on before removing the Nvidia card.

  1. Disable in BIOS
  2. Remove AMD drivers and related software to prevent poorly programmed games from detecting drivers and mistaking your gfx as AMD and not Nvidia and to save space

*3. If the hardware is available to test, that would be the best option for others who have a similar question

Additional notes:

  • If your BIOS has the option, choose to start with the Nvidia PCIe lane.
avisitoritseems
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  • I asked before buying. "Just check" is an answer that costs about $500 + TAX in BestBuy... – Mołot Nov 14 '19 at 09:30
  • My apologies, I hadn't known you did not already own it. Regardless, you will have no issue with getting a refund from BestBuy if it doesn't work. There is also nothing recent about such an issue, so I believe you should be fine just like you said (I also couldn't find much on the issues, either). I have had an AMD and Nvidia card installed before, and hadn't run into any issues. I don't have it to test now. – avisitoritseems Nov 14 '19 at 09:40
  • @Mołot, do you have any sources for the claims of reduced/lost performance when having both Radeon/AMDGPU and Nvidia in the same system? – avisitoritseems Nov 15 '19 at 02:28
  • for example https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/threads/nvidia-disables-physx-support-on-vendor-mixed-gpu-setups-driver-update-340-52-onwards.18616028/page-2 or https://icrontic.com/article/amd-comments-on-nvidia-dropping-physx-support-when-ati-hardware-is-present – Mołot Nov 15 '19 at 06:55