Enable Intel integrated GPU passthrough for Windows VM

You can pass an Intel integrated GPU (iGPU) from the Olares host to the Windows VM on supported devices. After configuration, Windows can detect the Intel graphics device through RDP.

Using Olares One

Olares One does not require BIOS, SR-IOV, VFIO, or Windows app environment variable setup. The Windows app deployed from the Olares Market already includes the required GPU configuration by default.

If you use Olares One, skip directly to Install the Intel graphics driver in Windows.

Supported devices

Intel integrated GPU support is available only when the Olares host meets one of the following conditions:

• Olares One: You are using the official Olares One device.
• Self-hosted devices: You are using a host with an Intel CPU that includes Intel integrated graphics, running Ubuntu 24.04 or later, and Intel VT-d / IGD is supported and enabled in BIOS.

If the host does not have an Intel iGPU, the Windows VM cannot create one from software alone.

Configure the host environment

Use this workflow to configure the BIOS and operating system on a self-hosted Olares device.

Make sure you can access the Olares host terminal through SSH before continuing. This setup changes BIOS settings, kernel parameters, DKMS modules, SR-IOV virtual functions, and VFIO device binding. Incorrect configuration may affect host startup or device availability.

Configure the BIOS

Restart the host and enter the BIOS/UEFI settings. The exact menu names vary by motherboard vendor. Look for these options under menus such as Advanced, Chipset, System Agent, PCIe, or Graphics:

• Enable Intel VT-d.
• Enable the integrated graphics device, if it is disabled.
• Set the primary display or initial display output to IGD, Integrated Graphics, or a similar option.
• Save the settings and restart the host.

If you cannot find an integrated graphics or IGD option, confirm that your Intel CPU includes integrated graphics, then check your motherboard manual for the exact BIOS option name.

Verify the iGPU

Access the Olares host terminal through SSH and run:

lspci -nn | grep VGA

Confirm that the output includes an Intel integrated GPU and that the device type is VGA compatible controller.

Example output:

00:02.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation AlderLake-S GT1 [8086:4680] (rev 0c)

Enable IOMMU and Intel vGPU

This step installs the Intel SR-IOV DKMS module, writes the required IOMMU and iGPU parameters to GRUB, and creates the vGPU virtual functions.

Install the DKMS module

Run the following commands to update the host, install dependencies, and build the Intel SR-IOV DKMS module:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

sudo apt update && sudo apt install git sysfsutils dkms -y

sudo rm -rf /var/lib/dkms/i915-sriov-dkms*
sudo rm -rf /usr/src/i915-sriov-dkms*
rm -rf ~/i915-sriov-dkms

cd ~
git clone https://github.com/strongtz/i915-sriov-dkms.git
cd ~/i915-sriov-dkms
git checkout 2025.07.22

cp -a dkms.conf{,.bak}
KERNEL=$(uname -r)
sed -i 's/"@_PKGBASE@"/"i915-sriov-dkms"/g' dkms.conf
sed -i "s/PACKAGE_VERSION=\".*\"/PACKAGE_VERSION=\"$KERNEL\"/g" dkms.conf
sed -i 's/ -j$(nproc)//g' dkms.conf
cat dkms.conf

sudo apt install --reinstall dkms -y
sudo dkms add .
cd /usr/src/i915-sriov-dkms-$KERNEL
sudo dkms status
sudo dkms install -m i915-sriov-dkms -v $KERNEL -k $(uname -r) --force -j 1
sudo dkms status

Update GRUB

Add or modify GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT in /etc/default/grub. Use the command line that matches your Ubuntu version.

For Ubuntu 24.10 or later, use:

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet intel_iommu=on iommu=pt i915.enable_guc=3 i915.max_vfs=7"

For Ubuntu 24.04, add i915.force_probe=7d67:

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet intel_iommu=on iommu=pt i915.enable_guc=3 i915.max_vfs=7 i915.force_probe=7d67"

If the line already contains other parameters, keep them and add the new parameters inside the quotation marks.

In this example, i915.max_vfs=7 configures up to 7 Intel vGPU virtual functions.

Update the GRUB configuration and restart the host:

sudo update-grub && sudo reboot

Add the SR-IOV configuration

After the host restarts, add the SR-IOV configuration to /etc/sysfs.conf.

The command below uses 00:02.0, which should match the Intel iGPU PCI address shown in the earlier lspci output. If your Intel iGPU uses a different PCI address, update the path accordingly.

sudo sh -c 'echo "devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:02.0/sriov_numvfs = 7" > /etc/sysfs.conf'

cat /etc/sysfs.conf

sudo reboot

Verify the vGPU devices

After the host restarts, verify that the vGPU devices were created:

lspci -nn | grep VGA

You should see additional virtual VGA devices.

Bind one vGPU to VFIO

Bind one vGPU, such as 0000:00:02.1, to the VFIO driver:

sudo apt install -y driverctl

sudo driverctl set-override 0000:00:02.1 vfio-pci

In this example, 0000:00:02.1 is the vGPU device that will be assigned to the Windows VM. The override persists across host reboots.

Configure the Windows app

For self-hosted devices, add the GPU-related environment variables to the Windows Deployment. Make sure the host= value matches the vGPU device you bound to vfio-pci earlier. The example below uses 0000:00:02.1.

1. Open Control Hub from the Launchpad.

2. Under Browse, select the windows project from the list.

3. Under Deployments, select windows.

4. In the upper-right corner of the details pane, click edit_square to edit the YAML.

5. Under the env section, add or update the following variables:

   env:
     - name: GPU
       value: 'Y'
     - name: VGA
       value: 'vfio-pci,host=0000:00:02.1,multifunction=on,x-vga=on -vga virtio'

   

6. Click Confirm to save the changes, and restart the Windows app.

Install the Intel graphics driver in Windows

1. Connect to the Windows VM using RDP.

2. Open a browser in Windows.

3. Download the latest Intel graphics driver from Intel:

   https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/785597/intel-arc-iris-xe-graphics-windows.html

4. Install the driver.

5. Restart Windows if prompted.

Verify the result

1. Reconnect to the Windows VM using RDP.

2. Open Device Manager.

3. Expand Display adapters.

4. Confirm that the Intel graphics device appears and is running without errors.