Graphics Switching in Windows 7 - Macbook Pro 2011

You should run Windows 7 in Parallels Desktop 6 since you are not into 3D gaming. This will solve the issue completely.

Michael, you should run Windows 7 with Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac virtual machine software.

Parallels is not an option because you will never get the same performance as Bootcamp. This is just the nature of having a Host OS which needs CPU cycles, and the Guest OS running at the same time. If you are using Windows 7 as your main OS, and performance is a concern, Parallels will not suffice.

I can't believe that I cannot use the full capabilities of the sandy bridge CPU in the specced up 15" MBP I have just purchased - either in OSX or, more importantly for me, windows 7.

If only I could choose (in windows) which GPU you wished to use, or even disable the discrete AMD, I personally would be a lot happier about the amount of money I have spent.

I feel I have been sold a crippled computer - not the best feeling after buying ones first mac.

Right guys

This gets somewhat interesting but yet no real solution.

A few of you will know, Windows 7 only use the AMD HD 6750M graphics card and won't even see the Intel 3000 HD processor.

Partially true, however somehow I am unravelling why windows isn't seeing it. The SMC is denying windows access but I stumbled across a way to let windows see it, but that's as far as it goes.

Step 1: Boot normally into Windows via ALT (no other custom bootloader)

Step 2: Load up device manager(Control Panel\System and Security\System\Device Manager) and expand Display Adapters

Step 3: Send Windows 7 into standby(not hibernate) by either Start menu or closing the lid. Wait until the power light starts to fade in an out indicating standby.

Step 4: Resume from Standby either by clicking keys or opening lid

Step 5: Open Device Installation Settings (Control Panel\System and Security\System\Advanced System Settings\Hardware\Device Installation Settings) and select "Yes, do this automatically"

Step 5: Now go back to Device Manager, right click on Display Adapters and Scan for new hardware. In a few seconds you will see it had found something and will start to download the drivers from Windows Update. Minutes later you should see the Intel HD Graphics Driver sitting snug next to the AMD driver.

Question now is, now that Windows has it within it's grasp, how to switch to this!

What didn't work:

- If you reboot or hibernate, Intel HD device disappears, it only reappears after a Standby.

- Disabling the AMD driver doesn't work and only uses generic microsoft driver to run it without switching to intel graphics adapter.

Ideally if someone found a way to create an EFI command to activate on boot through a bootloader then we boot into Intel HD if needed. I know AMD have graphics switching drivers built in BUT they need to be detected on boot so can install properly.

It is a real shame Apple haven't just spent a few minutes tweaking the SMC to let Windows reap the full benefits, it only serves a transition from Windows based PCs to Macs a lot more respectfully as Apple forgets we still use Windows at our offices so generally need that compatibility.

Any ideas guys? I'm not an expert at Apple SMC/EFI but if someone here is maybe we can create integrate a command at boot within a bootloader such as refit to get this party started!

This post needs a bump he's on to something it would be very useful to finally use this graphics card i paid for.

I can confirm that the SMC/EFI gets a bit strange after a suspend (as shown by craigbellamy), and shows the Intel HD Family adapter, but can not find enough resources to initialise the driver correctly.

I do not need the switching ability in windows (OSX is the OS of choice for long battery life) but I really want the hardware accelleratoin functions of the SNB i7 cpus for video encoding - especially after seeing the quality of the AMD supplied encoder that uses the GPU - it's fast, but very ugly, with limited/no options.

So I agree with craigbellamy, an option set before rebooting that either enables the HD 3000 i7 GPU alongside the AMD, or allocates resources to the user specified GPU would be ideal.

While no stranger to coding (even some low level VGA stuff 20+ years ago) I have no idea about the SMC on a mac, or where to start looking.

Come on Apple, be nice and let us use the SNB i7 functionality in windows without resorting to hacks! 😐

We need to get everyone with the new MBPs to complain to apple and try and get a fix in for lion. I know there is a huge demand for bootcamp graphics switching because I have seen literally hundreds of threads around the net just like this one and a dozen on this site. We need to get apple to listen because no one is working on a hack to fi this issue at the moment. I think we should spam apples phone lines about this and tell them were switching to PC I there's not going to be a fix.

^ BUMP!

I completely agree! Last year I bought a 15inch MBP for its stylishness, but I don't really use the Macintosh OS. I felt ripped off ever since. Paying 2000+ dollars for a computer where the light sensor doesn't work properly in windows, which apple claimed to support. Keyboard backlight is almost always on, even when screen is closed; automatic dimming of screen is not supported; multi-touch touchpad only limited to two finger scrolling; and most important of all, no graphics switching even when all the necessary hardware (I paid for) are in the computer. By doing this, either intentionally or otherwise, Apple is limiting the potential for returning customers.

@beejohnmustard:

It would appear the AMD bootcamp driver for the 6750 scales the GPU core/memory speeds as required, similar to the i7.

Using the Open Hardware Monitor application from http://openhardwaremonitor.org/ you can see that the AMD 6750 GPU idles at 100/150Mhz (core/memory) and ramps up to ~600/800MHz.

A 'real time' image shows the GPU idling as I use a screen snap shot application (which briefly runs all 4 i7 cores at ~3.1GHz as it captures the image, compared to 798MHz when idle):

Basically this means that the GPU is using the least amount of power possible for what it is required to do - indicating that it is a hungry beast indeed.

I noticed when trying some older 3D games that I could run counter strike at high res with all graphic options set to highest, and the GPU clocks were ~300/450MHz with <20% load on the GPU.

Anyway, back to the main issue of not being able to use the SNB Intel HD 3000 graphics & hardware accelleration functions in window, anyone with a discrete GPU in the early 2011 MBP should be emailing apple and asking nicely (or demanding!) their EFI programming team to please enable the required resources for the Intel HD 3000 graphics to function in windows, even if we cannot switch between them we can then use the dedicated transcoding circuitry and the graphics units that combine to give Quicksync.

Meanwhile, I found a post http://ubuntuforums.org/archive/index.php/t-1076879.html related to the refit efi pre-boot shell where you can delve into the pre-boot efi command and list all hardware devices, as well as load efi drivers for hardware.

It would be good to get a copy of the efi drivers for the Intel HD 3000 off one of the 13" models (I would hope that these would enable all the SNB graphics goodies) and try and hack/patch it into a 15/17", most likely bricking the whole thing but would be fun trying.

I also have a 2011 MBP that I run Windows 7 on almost 95% of the time. I buy Apple laptops because of the hardware and build quality, not to run OS X.

It's extremely frustrating that they continue to refuse to support their hardware completely in Windows 7.

The problem with emailing complaints to apple is there is no way I can find to contact them, all I can find is the genius bar. If someone could find an adress to spam with complaints about lack of bootcamp support it could help speed up a solution.

@Austinlonz, very much agreed. Since I still have an active warranty I tried to use the support site to send some sort of email, but it looks like they want to shoe horn users into either a telephone call (which then requires a per incident payment after 90 days), or visiting the Genius Bar. I highly doubt either of those two avenues to be a fruitful way to either inquire about future changes to Bootcamp or lodge a complaint/request. Incredibly frustrating for a company that supposedly prides itself on customer support.

I'm running AMD driver 11.8 and the GPU stays at 100/150 most of the time. The heat is now much more bearable.