General questions:

• What is Intel's plan to deliver Microsoft* Windows Vista* WDDM drivers for Intel® graphics?
• When will Intel’s WDDM drivers be available publicly for desktop and mobile platforms?
• Is Intel providing support for WDDM drivers for Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 900 on Intel® 915 Express Chipset-based platforms?
• How can the Windows Vista operating system run on Intel® platforms that do not have WDDM drivers?
• Why doesn’t the Intel 915 Express chipset family support Windows Vista Aero*?
• Does the Windows* XP Driver Model (XPDM) support on Vista include the entire Intel 915 Express Chipset family? Does it include the Intel® 915GMS or 910GM/GML Express Chipsets?

Windows Aero* questions:

• What are the graphics tiers within Windows Vista?
• What level of Windows Vista Aero experience is supported on Intel graphics platforms?
• What user configuration parameters affect the Windows Vista experience level?

Windows Vista* Capable/Premium ready PC questions:

• What does “Windows Vista Capable PC” mean?
• What does “Windows Vista Premium Ready” mean?
• Which Intel platforms are targeted to qualify for the Microsoft Windows Vista Capable PC marketing program?
• Which Intel platforms are targeted to qualify for the Microsoft Windows Vista Premium Ready marketing program?
• Does Intel have any integrated graphics drivers on the current Microsoft Windows Vista Release Candidates?
• When will Intel officially begin supporting Windows Vista drivers on support.intel.com?
• Has Intel provided drivers in the final version of Windows Vista operating system?

Windows Vista support on Intel® graphics

Q1: What is Intel’s plan to deliver Windows Vista WDDM drivers for Intel graphics?

A1: WDDM drivers supporting the Intel® G31, G33, G35, Q33, Q35, 945G and G965 Express chipset families and the GM965, 945GT, 945GM, 945GMS, and 940GML Express mobile chipsets, are available now via support.intel.com. WDDM drivers will also be provided to computer manufacturers (OEMs) to make their drivers available through Windows Update.

The new driver baseline includes both 32-bit and 64-bit WDDM drivers. The WDDM driver will support the following desktop chipsets: Intel® G31, G33, G35, Q33, Q35, 945G and G965 Express chipset families and the GM965, 945GT, 945GM, 945GMS, and 940GML Express mobile chipsets.

Q2: When will Intel’s WDDM drivers be available publicly for desktop and mobile platforms?

A2: Intel has made regular Windows Vista driver updates available to our OEM customers since our first WDDM driver release in January 2006. The WDDM Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator Driver is posted on support.intel.com.
The Intel Graphics Media Accelerator Driver provides support for both Windows Vista 32-bit and Window Vista 64-bit, with separate downloads available based on the desired operating system version. It is feature-complete, and provides full support for the Windows Vista Aero interface.

To download the WDDM Vista drivers, complete the following steps:

1. Go to the Download Center off of support.intel.com.
2. Go to Graphics » Desktop (or Laptop) Graphics Controllers » (Select desktop or mobile chipset GMCH).
3. Click desired desktop or mobile chipset, and then select All Operating Systems under Select your Operating System and click Go.
4. The driver releases will display for the selected chipset.

Q3: Is Intel providing WDDM drivers for Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 (Intel GMA 900) on Intel 915 Express chipset-based platforms?

A3: Intel will provide support for WDDM drivers beginning with the Intel® 945 Express chipset family and beyond. See question 5 below for a detailed explanation of WDDM support on Intel® 915 Express chipset-based platforms. However, Windows Vista is supported on the Intel® 865G, 915G Express desktop chipsets and 852/855GM mobile chipsets running XPDM (XP Display Driver Model) driver included on the Windows Vista install media. Windows Vista will install on these platforms, but advanced features such as Windows Aero will not be enabled as XPDM drivers do not support Windows AERO.

Q4: How can the Windows Vista operating system run on Intel platforms that do not have WDDM drivers?

A4: There are two different driver models that are available in the Windows Vista operating system, the Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) and the XP Driver Model (XPDM). The Windows Display Driver Model drivers provide the 3D graphical user interface experience to users, while the XP driver model provides an interface that visually resembles the Windows* XP/Windows* 2000 User Interface, but does not support the Windows Vista Aero desktop theme or user interface.

Q5: Why doesn’t the Intel 915 Express chipset family support Windows Vista Aero?

A5: The overall graphics architecture and design of the 915 Express chipset family (with Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 900 graphics engine) was finalized prior to Microsoft releasing details and specifications around the Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) driver. Given this, there are hardware limitations in the 915 Express chipset architecture that would limit graphics performance and memory capabilities when attempting to run WDDM on Vista.

The hardware limitations of 915/GMA900 graphics center around not having a large enough memory table to support Vista Aero, a key feature that is part of WDDM driver support. This, along with hardware restrictions on surface placement and graphics memory alignment, results in graphics memory usage that is not optimized for Aero performance. Additionally, the lack of native hardware support in the 915 Express chipset family for Vista’s dynamic memory management would result in slower graphics performance and a sub-optimal user experience with Windows Vista Aero.

With these identified limitations, the 915/GMA900-based graphics system would not have met the performance requirements for Aero desktop composition support under Vista. This ultimately led to the decision to begin WDDM support with the Intel 945 Express chipset products, as Intel addressed these hardware limitations with the desktop and mobile Intel 945 Express chipset families.

To provide the best performance and user experience with Windows Vista on Intel 915/GMA900 platforms, Intel will support Windows Vista on 915/GMA900 with the drivers based on the XP driver model.

Q6: Does the Windows XP Driver Model (XPDM) support on Vista include the entire Intel 915 Express chipset family? Does it include the Intel 915GMS or 910GM/GML Express Chipsets?

A6: The entire Intel 915 Express chipset family is included in the XPDM support for Windows Vista, including Intel 915GMS and 910GM/GML Express chipsets. Only XPDM drivers will be available for the Intel 915 and 910 Express chipset families using Intel graphics running Windows Vista.

Windows Vista Aero* experience on Intel graphics

Q7: What are the graphics tiers within Vista?

A7: There are four graphics tiers in Vista, represented as desktop experiences in Windows Vista: Windows Aero, Windows Vista Basic, Windows Standard, and Windows Classic.

Windows Vista Aero is only supported in "premium" Vista SKUs, which include all Windows Vista operating system SKUs except for Windows Vista Home Basic and Starter Edition. For further information on what is recommended to support Aero, please contact Microsoft or go to http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/Windows/en-US/Help/c33fe91a-9e6f-41f4-ae82-3ed2d5fa2fbf1033.mspx ^†for more details.

Q8: What level of Windows Vista Aero experience is supported on Intel graphics platforms?

A8: Intel will support the Windows Vista Aero desktop theme beginning with the Intel 945G/GM Express chipset and Intel 965 Express chipset families, as well as with future desktop and mobile chipsets.

Q9: What user configuration parameters affect the Windows Vista experience level?

A9: There are several key factors to supporting the Windows Vista experience level. One key factor is the memory configuration for the system, specifically the amount of physical memory installed and whether it is dual channel DDR2 versus single channel DDR2. Using single channel DDR2 versus dual channel DDR2 is expected to provide different experiences with Vista advanced graphics. Additionally, the display modes and configurations are also expected to have an impact on the user interface support.

For Intel graphics platforms, both the Intel 945 and the 965 Express chipset families will support the Windows Aero desktop interface. For amount of system memory, 1GB DDR2 dual-channel system memory or greater should be used with the system configuration. For the memory speed, DDR2-533MHz will support the Windows Aero interface, but higher memory speeds such as DDR2-667MHz are recommended.

Windows Vista Capable/Premium ready PC questions

Q10: What does “Windows Vista Capable PC” mean?

A10: Microsoft defines a Windows Vista Capable PC as: “A new PC that carries the Windows Vista Capable PC logo can run Windows Vista. Some features available in the premium editions of Windows Vista—like the new Windows Aero user experience—may require advanced or additional hardware.” For complete details on the Windows Vista Capable PC program, please contact Microsoft or visit http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/capable.mspx ^†.


Q11: What does “Windows Vista Premium Ready” mean?

A11: For complete details on the Windows Vista Premium Ready PC program, please contact Microsoft or visit http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/capable.mspx ^†.

Q12: Which Intel platforms are targeted to qualify for the Microsoft Windows Vista Capable PC marketing program?

A12: Microsoft currently stipulates that in order to qualify for the Windows Vista Capable PC program, three criteria must be met: a system must use a "modern CPU," 512MB of system memory, and its graphics processing unit (GPU) must provide Microsoft DirectX* 9 support in hardware.

Using this criteria, the following Intel platforms are included in the Windows Vista Capable PC program: platforms using Intel 915G/945G/GZ Express chipsets, 965 Express chipset family, and future Intel desktop chipsets, along with Intel 915GM/945GM/GZ/GML/GMS, GM965 Express chipset-based mobile platforms. . In addition, any system shipping with a discrete graphics card will rely on that graphics card's DirectX* 9 readiness to determine if the platform can be included in the Windows Vista Capable PC program.

Q13: Which Intel platforms are targeted to qualify for the Microsoft Windows Vista Premium Ready marketing program?

A13: The following Intel platforms are included in the Windows Vista Premium Ready program: platforms using Intel 945G/GZ Express chipsets, 965 Express chipset family, and future Intel desktop chipsets, along with Intel 945GM/GZ/GML/GMS, GM965 Express chipset-based mobile platforms. In addition, any system shipping with a discrete graphics card will rely on that graphics card's DirectX* 9 readiness to determine if the platform can be included in the Windows Vista Premium Ready program.

Q14: Does Intel have any integrated graphics drivers on the Microsoft Windows Vista Release Candidates?

A14: Intel has been working with Microsoft and have included WDDM driver support for Intel 945G & 945GM Express chipsets on the Windows Vista RTM distribution. Windows Vista operating system beta releases prior to RC1 have included WDDM driver support for the Intel 945G Express chipset. For the Intel 945GZ, 946GZ, and 965 Express chipset families, support is available in the production WDDM driver release, available at the Windows Vista RTM date.

Q15: When will Intel officially begin supporting Windows Vista drivers on support.intel.com

A15: Driver support from Intel for the Windows Vista operating system begins when Microsoft officially launches the operating system on January 30, 2007.

Q16: Has Intel provided drivers in the final version of Windows Vista operating system?

A16: Yes. Intel has provided several drivers as part of the final Windows Vista release. The driver version and other information can be found in the following table:

Operating System:

Windows Vista* Starter, 32-bit version, Windows Vista* Home Basic, 32-bit version, Windows Vista* Home Premium, 32-bit version, Windows Vista* Business, 32-bit version, Windows Vista* Enterprise, 32-bit version, Windows Vista* Ultimate, 32-bit version, Windows Vista* Home Basic, 64-bit version, Windows Vista* Home Premium, 64-bit version, Windows Vista* Business, 64-bit version, Windows Vista* Enterprise, 64-bit version, Windows Vista* Ultimate, 64-bit version

This applies to:

Intel® 3 Series Chipsets Intel® 82865G Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) Intel® 82915G/82910GL Express Chipset Family Intel® 82945G Express Chipset Intel® 82946GZ Graphics Controller Intel® 82G965 Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) Intel® 82Q963 Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) Intel® 82Q965 Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) Intel® G33 Express Chipset Intel® G35 Express Chipset Intel® Q33 Express Chipset Intel® Q35 Express Chipset Mobile Intel® 915GM/GMS, 910GML Express Chipset Family Mobile Intel® 945GM Express Chipset Family Mobile Intel® 965 Express Chipset Family