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    nVidia Driver questions

    Discussion in 'Alienware M11x' started by FreddeN, Feb 28, 2011.

  1. FreddeN

    FreddeN Notebook Consultant

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    I bought my M11XR2 for some weeks ago, and as the nVidia Control Panel says, I got version 257.30 which is a beta, from information on the nVidia homepage.

    Should I head over to Dell and download their nVidia driver, or is it the same version? I got some help from other Alienware users which tells me that I shouldn't use the generic nVidia drivers from nVidia.com.

    Thanks
     
    FreddeN, Feb 28, 2011
    #1
  2. kent1146

    kent1146 Notebook Prophet

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    (1) If the driver that you are using works, then no reason to swap it out. A lot of times, an nVidia "beta" driver is a fully operational and stable driver that just hasn't gone through WHQL testing / certification yet. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

    (2) If you are using an Alienware M11x R1 (Core 2 Duo CPU), then you should not be using generic drivers from nVidia.com. You will want to get your M11x R1 video drivers directly from Dell for the most stable and compatible drivers.

    Since you are using an Alienware M11x R2, you can absolutely use generic nVidia drivers from nVidia.com. nVidia.com drivers will always be more up-to-date than the drivers you can get from Dell's support site. That kind of driver support is one of the big benefits of owning an M11x R2 (vs M11x R1), so you should definitely take advantage of that.

    And FYI, the latest stable drivers on nVidia.com's website are 266.58.
     
    kent1146, Feb 28, 2011
    #2
  3. FreddeN

    FreddeN Notebook Consultant

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    I have been trying to use the 266.58 driver two times but my system refuses to accept the new driver and it has been installed correctly. I experience freezes and crashes when using the driver. My current driver which I got in my factory settings works perfect, so I guess I'll stay with it.

    This brings me to another question regarding my current driver. Where can I download PhysX for my current driver?
     
    FreddeN, Feb 28, 2011
    #3
  4. kent1146

    kent1146 Notebook Prophet

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    If you want to install 266.58 drivers, try uninstalling your current drivers, then try re-installing the 266.58 drivers. If that still doesn't work, then you'll probably need to go into uninstall --> reboot into Safe Mode --> Run a program like DriverCleaner --> Reinstall 266.58 drivers from scratch. But if your current drivers ain't broke, don't fix it.

    As for PhysX - PhysX comes as part of the nVidia video driver install package. If you do not have PhysX on your current driver pacakge, then your best bet is to download a driver package that does have it (like 266.58) and install that.
     
    kent1146, Feb 28, 2011
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  5. baine4812

    baine4812 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Not to high jack the thread but since we are talking about drivers. Are Optimus driver/updates that need to be applied?
     
    baine4812, Feb 28, 2011
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  6. kent1146

    kent1146 Notebook Prophet

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    Optimus is nVidia's (software-based) auto-switching technology that automatically switches between the Intel HD Graphics GPU and the nVidia 335M GPU.

    Optimus is only available on the Alienware M11x R2. There aren't any "updates" that need to be applied.
     
    kent1146, Feb 28, 2011
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  7. bchreng

    bchreng Notebook Evangelist

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    By any chance, would the updates (if any) be located in the official nvidia drivers?
     
    bchreng, Feb 28, 2011
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  8. kent1146

    kent1146 Notebook Prophet

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    nVidia Optimus gets installed when you install the official nVidia drivers.

    Updates to the Optimus whitelist (whether a particular application should use the Intel HD Graphics GPU or the nVidia 335M GPU) gets regularly updated automatically by Optimus itself. The updates just happen as a download in the background. You do not need to manually install anything to get these updates.
     
    kent1146, Feb 28, 2011
    #8