Z68A-GD80 (G3) - does it have SSD Caching?

Hello everyone,
As far as I know two of the principal features of the z68 chipset are the SSD caching (that allows you to use a SSD drive as cache of a normal HDD or raid of HDDs) and the Logix Virtu.
Now, all motherboards I've seen so far have the SSD caching feature and some of them have also the Logix Virtu feature.... until now..
I took a look at the product description and I was unable to find the SSD caching feature, so I was wondering if MSI didn't include that feature in the motherboard or just in the webpage.
Is there anyone here who could confirm that?
Thanks!
Product webpage: http://www.msi.com/product/mb/Z68A-GD80--G3-.html

Ok, this is what the MSI Technician told me:
"It should support Intel SSD caching. Please refer to the below for introduction of SSD caching. Thanks!"
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4329/intel-z68-chipset-smart-response-technology-ssd-caching-review/2
I'ld prefer "it does" rather than "it should", but the link he gave me says the SSD caching feature is a SOFTWARE feature and not a hardware one.
That all chipsets that work with sandy-bridge processors are capable of SSD caching, but Intel has made his software check for Z68 chipsets and enable the feature only if it is in the motherboard.
Did anyone read something like that somewhere else?
I'm trying to find out for sure, before going to buy that motherboard.
Thanks!

Similar Messages

Does my t430s have the ssd cache that I ordered it with?

I've been reading a little bit about some folks who have the SSD cache drive but for some reason, don't have the ExpressCache software installed. But I'm actually trying to figure out if I even have the physical SSD drive. In Windows Explorer, I see the C drive, the DVD RW drive and the Lenovo_Recovery drive (which I'm assuming is just partitioned off the hard drive). Looking at the Device Manager I only see the Hitachi hard drive. Does this mean Lenovo messed up and didn't install my SSD Cache drive?

neil1967 wrote:
So, how painful is it to get this fixed, since I paid for it? Am i going to have to send the bloody thing back to lenovo? i can't believe they'd be so shoddy with their manufacturing as to forget something like that.
Mailing you the drive would be the smart thing to do. Someone here will have to chime in on the proper procedure for enabling the caching after the storage device is installed. I believe they are just using Intel RapidStart.
See the Intel RapidStart User Guide at http://download.intel.com/support/motherboards/desktop/sb/rapid_start_technology_user_guide.pdf
Looks like there's another thread on this topic at http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/T400-T500-and-newer-T-series/T430s-SSD-Intel-Rapid-Start-30-day-Standby-... that has useful information.

Does anyone have experience of the OWC Mercury Extreme SSD?

Hi everyone
I read Lloyd Chambers [interesting article|http://macperformanceguide.com/Reviews-SSD-OWC-Mercury_Extreme.html] about the Mercury Extreme. In particular he seems to have found very little performance degradation with heavy use.
I guess this would make us Mac users very happy since TRIM is unsupported by OS X (or have I got that wrong?).
Does anyone have real-world experience of this SSD yet?
/p

I could be wrong - but my understanding is that GC and TRIM are two separate things (and the need to do them with the new OWC drive as well)
GC is a way to re-organize the data to avoid using blocks that were marked as part of the write amplification done on the drive. (i.e. to write 1mb, you had to actually write 1.3mb on the device - and how to re-organize the .3mb when the file is overwritten)
TRIM actually clears the blocks that are no longer in use when a file is overwritten or deleted. The problem is that the device has no way to know what to clear - it needs to understand what the OS requires and what it does not require... and so it can't do it by itself as it needs to be aware of the filesystem. (NTSF/ZFS or in our case, HFS+). Instead the firmware just makes available the ability for the OS to go ahead and clear the bocks... that is TRIM support - the OS has to now delete the file (from the FS table etc) and then issues a TRIM on that file, allowing the device to clearing the blocks that are excessively used by the operation.
In the case of the OWC - there is no much technical information out there to describe how it trims without knowing anything about the filesystem. Mind you - its not been out long enough to get tested by a large number of people. Some think that its using part of the cache to handle these cases - (if you know the ratio of amplification, then you could build a large cache to deal with the physical space)
I think the secret for the OWC drive (and the OCZ Vertex 2 Pro) is the write amplification - which is less than the one from Intel. The less write amplification - the less need for GC and less blocks you need to clear by TRIM. A Harddrive has an amplification ratio of 1, OWC has (I think) 0.6 and Intel 1.1 - how do they achieve 0.6? On the fly compression and deduplication of data streams... (similar to what ZFS does at the filesystem level). I think part of the OWC 56Gb cache is used for the deduplication reference table as well... but when doing this - you have to be 2x carefull - if you loose part of the deduplication table for example, you loose not one file to corruption, but a huge chunk of your harddrive... as that pattern could be found in a lot of places... BTW - that is also how they achieve better longevity, they have to write less data that is produced... less writes, more life.
Now - as of experience - none... I think it's a nice drive... It seems they have taken some thought on setting apart a large (18%) of their drive to avoid problem and try to suck all the performance possible. But its still the basic SSD drive - just with hardware compression to minimize the impact. OWC obviously does not make them - some one is OEMing them for them. The support is what I would wonder on this drive. But based on Lloyd's experience, it seems to be a good contender on your list.
Just remember to backup often..

Can't Open Final Cut - "Waveform Cache Files Folder does not have read/....

I am new to Final Cut and macs, so please bear with me.
I have created an animation in Final Cut pro (5) using stills. The project takes up a lot of space, which is why I have moved the 'Final Cut Documents' file onto my external hard drive. However, I relocated/reconnected the project files when I next opened the project and all was peachy.
Last night when I had the project open I got errors about not being able to save the project. This was my first problem, but is now insignificant compared to this new problem this morning:
I cannot open Final Cut. I have an error saying 'The Waveform Cache Files Folder does not have read/write access. Please select a new folder in the System Settings Dialog or correct the problem on disk'. Final Cut then proceeds to shut down, so I cannot change any user settings within the program.
I have made all Final Cut folders read/write as well as my external hard drive and anything else with Final Cut on it. It still presents this warning.
A final confession: last night in (I think?) User Preferences I changed some of the settings to my external hard drive (I'm not even sure what settings...I just checked boxes next to the Hard Drive and unchecked a box next to the laptop drive), hoping it would just save the project to it, rather than on my laptop. This may have contributed to this new problem...maybe not.
PLEASE HELP...this animation is due Monday.

Thanks for your reply - it sounds like it will work, but I can't delete one of (yes, I made multiple copies, but have been able to delete the others) the Waveform Cache Folders as it comes up with the error "The operation cannot be completed because one or more required items cannot be found. (Error code -43)." Is this the cause of my problems? How do I fix it?

GX660 SSD Caching problem - the accelerate tab does not show

Ok so im trying to install a crucial m4 64 gb (FW 0009) into my gx660 and enable it as a ssd cache via the intel RST program. So far with no luck.I've ran into a wall and my problem is that the accelerate tab in intel rst is not showing.
Here is what i did. Hopefully in the right order.
1. I installed and updated the intel RST drivers and software.
2. I installed the ssd in the empty drive slot in the case.
2. I flashed my BIOS to the gx660r one to enable the RAID option.(before this i also found out that 1 of my 2 ramsticks where bad and i took it out)
3. I enabled RAID only to discover windows would BSOD on boot and i disabled it again (sat it back to AHCI)
4. I used these registry hacks to get RAID mode to work.
Enable switching between all IDE/AHCI/RAID modes by changing "Start" Values in these keys to 0
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Msahci\Start
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Pciide\Start
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\iaStorV\Start
5. I re-enabled RAID mode and booted into windows perfectly
6. Then intel RST bugged on me and i reinstalled it several times. (it showed my disk as having 0 gb's of space and was only able to show their serial number)
7. I got intel RST working but it still wont show the Acellerate tab :(
At this point i got stuck when the accelerate tab still wasnt showing and now i tried making a clean install of windows (in RAID mode) on a newly created partition. Here i have the same problem.
I have also tried switching the drives places in the case but still no luck.
I have gotten to the point where im about to give up on this. Do any of you have any idea of what i've done wrong? if so please reply.

... Note to self: Do proper research. Turns out youre probably right. According to http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/intel-z68-express-smart-response-technology-ssd-caching,2938-3.html it is also possible on HM67 and QM67 chipsets but thats not what i have. Thought that SSD caching support was a nobrainer on laptops but turns out its not.

Does the envy 6z-1000 come with the 32 gb ssd cache that other envy models come with?

i ordered an envy 6z-1000 and i was wondering if it has the ssd cache that other sleekbook models come with.

Hi,
See this: http://www.pcworld.com/article/261020/hp_envy_sleekbook_6z1000_review_lustworthy_looks_soso_performa...
I don't think that there is an SSD cache. However, you should be able to swap the hdd for a proper solid state drive.
Dv6-7000 /Full HD/Core i5-3360M/GF 650M/Corsair 8GB/Intel 7260AC/Samsung Pro 256GB
Testing - HP 15-p000
HP Touchpad provided by HP
Currently on Debian Wheeze
*Please, help other users with the same issue by marking your solved topics as "Accept as Solution"*

Z68A-GD80 B3 Boot Loop and Failed BIOS LED Flashing

I've been having "boot loop" issues with my system since it was built in June. Basically, when the system is powered on the lights/fans come on for around 3 seconds then it shuts itself off for another 3 seconds and repeats the loop infinitely. Meanwhile there are no POST code beeps and nothing shows up on screen. I also noticed today that the Dual BIOS control LED is flashing during boot loops indicating that the primary BIOS has failed.
As this was my first build in quite a while I didn't initially worry about it too much, figuring that it was probably just a BIOS setting or improperly seated hardware issue. Shortly there after my son was born and needless to say there wasn't a whole lot of time to trouble shoot a PC for a couple of months. Fast forward four months later to today and the boot looping is driving me nuts. It seems to occur when the system has been powered down overnight and more frequently if the reset button is used. I've read a lot of stuff saying that the Gigabyte boards are prone to this issue, but can't find anyone else with the same issue on a MSI z68 board. I've check/done the following to try and trouble shoot the issue.
1. Flash to BIOS 17.3 (twice)
2. Installed system speaker to hear post codes. Got a whole lot of nothing.
3. Installed one stick of RAM in slot one. Tried all four sticks. Nothing works.
4. Set BIOS values to default.
5. Tried disabling and enabling XMP profiles for the RAM.
6. Upped the voltage on the RAM to 1.5V, since the board reports an under-volt around 1.48 on auto. No effect.
7. Disabled PLL overvolt.
8. Enabled VDroop (still not clear on what this is).
9. Removed both video cards and used the on chip video. No effect.
10. Unplugged all USB devices.
11. Tried XMP enabled and disabled for the memory.
12. Hard drive plugged in and removed makes no difference.
13. Bare system with only one stick of RAM installed, no difference.
11. Lots of other crap that I can't think of right now.
Any help would be great as I'm at a loss here.
System specs are as follows;
Intel 2600K
Corsair H50 Cooler
MSI z68a-gd80 B3 with BIOS v 17.3
PNY Geforce GTX 560 Ti (2x in SLI)
Linksys Wireless G PCI card
Crucial Ballistix Sport RAM (4x2GB at 1600 MHz XMP enabled)
Segate Barracuda 7200 RPM Drive 500GB (2x in RAID0)
OCZ Vertex2 64 GB SSD as system cache
Corsair TX750 Power Supply
Corsair 600t case

More wierd stuff.
I couldn't get the board to boot without looping last night, tried the usual unplugging and clearing the CMOS nothing. Boot loops at every turn.
I wonder if maybe I've got some bad pins or a poor connection on my RAM slots. I removed the RAM and began testing one by one. First stick gave a boot loop. Second stick worked. On restart the BIOS LED wasn't flashing anymore, which is odd since I hadn't yet set the BIOS fix feature to enabled. I powered down again and put my RAM back in, set my BIOS settings as suggested, and then clocked the RAM to 1333MHz. Seemed stable last night through a number of restarts.
As for the backup BIOS reporting v 17.3. Yeah, that is odd. The manual says it can't be flashed either. Maybe BIOS just reports what the primary version number is no matter which chip (primary or secondary) is actually active and being booted from?
I'd like to think this is over, but I'm sure when I go home and power up I'll get another boot loop. I'd rather not be without a PC for a couple weeks, but I may just have to RMA so I don't have to deal with this anymore. It's quite frustrating to have fiddle around for 10+ minutes to get your PC up and running, plus with a RAID0 setup and SSD cache I'm just asking for a system failure with all these power on/off cycles.

MSI Z68A-GD80-G3 sata port 7 marvell controlled not showing in BIOS

My spec is..Antec 1200 case. MSI Z68A-GD80-G3 board . i7 -2700K @4.1 GHZ. GTX 580 OC twin FrozR II 1536 Mb Graphics.Corsair Vengeance 16 GB PC3-12800C9 1600MHz RAM. Cooler Master Hyper 212+ CPU cooler. Crucial SSD M4 128 GB SATA 6Gb/s main Hard drive.Crucial SSD M4 128GB hard drive. 500 GB HDD. Crucial SSD M4 60GB.1200W PSU.
My 3rd 60 GB SSD drive had to be plugged in sata 7..I reformatted It in windows and it is working. It does still not show up on BIOS.
I could not find my install disc. I couldnt find any marvell drivers in the download section for my board?
Has windows found them? why no show in BIOS?

I may have found correct drivers now SATA 7 drive is showing up. seems to be running . my ssds running off SATA 1 and 2 are getting a AS SSD bench mark score of 710 and 780. The SATA 7 one is scoring at 340 so it is not working like the first x2 SDD's.

Random crashing - MSI Z68A-GD80 Intel Z68

Hi All,
I bought the following recently from Aria - Gladiator Z68 Core i7 2600K 4.60GHz 8GB Overclocked Bundle, however when purchased it the deal included the MSI Z68A-GD80 B3. Now before i start i have never had anything over clocked before and thus have no clue at how it all works, therefore apologies for my newbieness in advance!
My rig:
Mobo: MSI Z68A-GD80 Intel Z68
Chip: i7-2600K Overclocked @ 4.60GHz
Cooler:Be Quiet! Dark Rock Advanced CPU Cooler.
Ram: 8GB Mushkin Ridgeback #996987 (2x4GB) DDR3 1866MHz 9-11-9-27
GPU:MSI GeForce GTX 580 Twin Frozr II
PSU: Cant remember the name but its 1200w
SSD: Crucial 256GB RealSSD C300
HDD: 2TB Samsung
OS: Windows 64 bit ultimate
When it works it works excellently, but every now and again the system will just shut off. A couple of seconds will pass and it will restart itself, I don't press a thing or touch anything. It wont boot as it keeps restarting. The only thing that will work is if i keep the power button presses, boot in safe mode, shut down and restart the system.
The only thing i have done regarding the above is change the CPU speed as in it was set to run at 4.6GHz permanently so I changed it so that when its idle the speed reduces to around 1.6GHZ. Outcasst thought about doing the same with the voltage but the only options in the BIOS are to either set it to a fixed voltage or Auto. When i set it to Auto to see if that helped the computer wouldn't boot so i changed it back again immediately.
It has been formatted in the last week if that makes a difference. But it was happening before i formatted it too.
Has anyone seen this before? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. I haven't contacted Aria as yet, thought i would post here first.
Thank you in advance
Mark

Quote from: HU16E on 27-June-11, 10:31:28
Ah, ok. Thanks for the screenshots. Helps a lot. Recommend setting Internal PLL Overvoltage from 'Auto' to 'Enable'. CPU Core Voltage, raise a step to 1.360v's. The voltage loss reading at the BIOS is telling. 1.645v set, only 1.616v is applied. This can be checked & confirmed for accuracy using a digital multi meter at the V-Check Point. For now, if we presume the 1.616v is accurate, your X.M.P. for 1866 RAM speed is 1.65v's. 1.616v is a long way from 1.65v's. With that 0.034v loss, BIOS setting would have to be raised to 1.685v range to give a true 1.65v's. I am a little reluctant to recommend that setting without a multi meter being attached to the V-Check Point. You don't really want to exceed the actual applied DRAM V. of 1.65v if at all possible.
Added: Just as an FYI, CPU V. recommended maximum is not to exceed 1.400v's.
I changed the above. Not sure if its coincidence or not but its crashed more in the last 24 hours than ever! Trying to eliminate all possibilities now.

MSI Z68A-GD80(B3) random freeze problems

Hi,
This newbie around here has a problem:
The following system freezes randomly without warning:
MB: MSI Z68A-GD80(B3)
CPU: 2600K
Cooling: Corsair H60 (temps idle mid 20's, under load <60C)
IGP: Integrated, using DVI
RAM: Corsair vengeance 1600 , 4x4 16GB (9-9-9-27)
HD: Corsair M4 SSD 256 GB
OS: Win7 x64
PSU: Chieftec, 80+, 650W modular
No other components/peripherals installed/attached
When BIOS /UEFI is set to all defaults: system will run normally with no freezes, as soon as I hit the OC genie button, the system starts up normally into windows, but will suddenly freeze at any given time under full load but also under idle.
I've read all relevant threads about this "behavior" and I know I'm not alone, but after really trying every conceivable idea as suggested by many knowledgeable persons on this forum I'm completely stuck.
Things tried so far:
Manual adjustments in UEFI withou using OC genie button
Use one ram stick in slot one, (incl running at default 1333Mhz)
Use various Dram voltages (default 1.5 V and tried all possibilities up till 1,65 Volt)
Use various Vcore voltages till 1,45 Volts
Between all those various scenarios CMOS has been reset and cleared
Does any of you have any suggestions of where to proceed from here in order to get a stable OC'ed system?
Thanks in advance.

There are two things to consider.
1. The individual CPU speciman you have may just be one that does not allow much in terms of overclocking. This is the part that is the hardest to accept but the fact is that testing has provided the following results.
Quote
The results below are based on the range of the CPU turbo multiplier when overclocking.
Results are representative of 100 D2 CPUs that were binned and tested for stability under load; these results will most likely represent retail CPUs.
1. Approximately 50% of CPUs can go up to 4.4~4.5 GHz
2. Approximately 40% of CPUs can go up to 4.6~4.7 GHz
3. Approximately 10% of CPUs can go up to 4.8~5 GHz (50+ multipliers are about 2% of this group)
So the luck of the draw is always present, unfortunately
2. You are using the IGP. This will affect the overclockability of the CPU to some extent. By how much, I don't know, but on my 1156 socket i3 it had quite a large effect. If you know someone with a low end GPU that you can test with, then disable your IGP and retest to see if the results are any different.
A couple of things to check. What BIOS version do you have, and if there are any later BIOS' that address this ?
Reseat your CPU, inspect the CPU pad indentations at the the same time and check for any bent pins on the socket or any foreign matter in between the pins.
Recheck all your power connectors, especially the CPU power connector for proper seating.

Z68A-GD80 (G3) and Port 7/esata port

Hallo everyone, please give me a little help here, I have a Z68A-GD80 (G3) MB and I connected a hard drive er 2 or 5 how and sata port 1 -> 6 is running 100% ok but port 7 doesn't show and I have a drive connected also if I connect a external drive to the Esata port it doesn't show. I installed the marvell 88SE9128 drivers bit no sata controller shows. I have the intel side set to raid mode because I have striped volume with ssd enhanced acceleration option on it does this make a difference to the marvell side ? how do I get the marvell port 7 and esata to show and work ?

Sometimes the Drive Letter for the device your trying to plug in is trying to use the same letter of another drive currently in use for example D: drive or F: drive etc if you goto the drive management see if your drive shows up there and if it shows an error you can right click the drive letter or Volume and allocate(change) the letter to one that is not in use. maybe this will work i had similar issue with an previous computer, and as Always if you do not know what you are doing then dont do it , i am not responsible for any mistakes that you may cause. Hope this helps if your comfortable doing so!
02/01/12 3:22 P.M. Edit: btw this may not fix your issue worth the look into!
1. Click the Windows Start Orb and then Right-Click Computer and Click Manage from the context menu.
access the device manager from windows 7 start menu
2. Click Storage > Disk Management from the left panel. Next Right-Click the drive letter that you would like to change and Click Change Drive Letter and Paths…
use the disk management feature to enter the change drive letter dialog in windows 7
3. Select the drive letter you would like to change then Click Change. In the pop-up dialog use the drop-down box to Select a new drive letter. Click OK to save and exit both windows.
assign a new drive letter to your windows 7 hard disk
Now your drive should have the new letter you just assigned to it.

[newbie] overclocking i7 2600k / MSI z68a-gd80

Hi everyone,
I'm new here and I have no experience in overclocking. I've always build my own PC's but never touched overclocking because I always found all the options very confusing and was afraid of damaging something. But the time for change has come!
Goal
4,2 Ghz - 24/7 stable overclock (manual - don't want to use OC genie)
I don't want to do a hardcore overclock, just a small increase for gaming and more importantly videorendering.
System information
- i7 2600K @3.40Ghz
- MSI z68a-gd80
- 16GB ram @ 1600MHZ wit latency 9-9-9-24
- 1x 128GB SSD (OS)
- 2x 2TB raid 0 (storage)
- 2x GTX580 LE edition @ stock values
- Scythe Mugen Revision 3 cooler @100%
- 2 extra casefans @ 100%
- Windows 7 64-bit
Help
Main problem is that I have no clue what settings do change in the bios, also I don't really understand what they mean / do. I mean low vdroop what does that even mean?
What I know:
- Multipliers (is now at 34) - this is used for overclocking / increasing ghz.
- Baseclock (100Mhz) - this can also be used for overclocking but is little headroom - so rather leave this alone
- I have to do an Intel Burn Test do see if my system is stable
- I must use HWmonitor to make sure tempatures don't get to high (what are normal tempatures and what's max?)
My question:
What settings do I have to change / turn on or off to start overclocking. (e.g. I have no clue what the hell "low vdroop" means or does)
I hope I posted this in the right subforum and made everything clear and ofcourse I hope you guys can help / walk me through it.
Huge thanks in advance!

Hi guys,
I'm back with some more results. I've downclocked my DDR3 back to stock values again and tested X43. It worked. I moved on. Now I'm at X45. My results are as followed:
CPU X45
- ITB test "standard" 1 (2nd run of 10 failed, gave me instability error)
- ITB test "standard" 2 (10 out of 10)
- ITB test "standard" 3 (10 out of 10)
- ITB test "standard" 4 (10 out of 10)
Temps
According to RealTemp 3.0 my max degrees with test was for each core: #0 = 74 #1 = 84 #2 = 84 #3 = 81 (These temps were from the ITB test "standard" 4).
Test did it in 154 seconds.
Voltage
According to CPU-Z max voltage (auto CPU V) = 1.384
Rendertest
Rendering video in Vegas (clip 5 minutes @1080p) rendered by both GPU and CPU. Load CPU was about 65%. Max temp measured in low 70's.
Biossettings
- Adjust CPU Ration in OS = Disabled
- Internal PLL Overvoltage = Enabled
- EIST = Enabled
- Intel Turbo Boost = Enabled
- DRAM Frequency = DDR-1333MHz (for now )
- XMP = Disabled
- DRAM Timing Mode = Auto
- Spread Spectrum = Disabled
- VDroop Control = Low VDroop
- CPU Core Voltage = Auto
- CPU I/O Voltage = Auto
- DRAM Voltage = Auto
- System Agen Voltage (SA) = Auto
- CPU PLL Voltage = 1.8V
Under CPU features:
- Hyper-threading = Enabled
- Active Processor Cores = All
- Limit CPUID Maximum = Disabled
- Execute Disable Bit = Enabled
- Intel Virtualization Tech = Enabled
- Power Technology = Custom
- C1E Support = Enabled
- Overspeed Protection = Disabled
- Intel C-State = Enabled
- Package C State Limit = Auto
- Long duration power limit (w) = 200
- Long duration maintained (ms) = 1000
- Short duration power limit (w) = 250
- Primary plane turbo power limit (w) = 0
- Secondary plane turbo power limit (w) = 0
- Cores (all 4) = 45
Advice?
So the X45 I'm happy with. I don't feel the need to overclock it further. Only two questions left:
1) How should I now overclock my memory? (put it on @1600MHz and with voltage of 1.579 and then test it? ***I can't choose 1.575 )
2) Are there any settings I have to change in my bios overall for stability or something else?
Thanks in advance for all the help. Almost there!

Virtu Control Panel issue with Z68A-GD80

Hello,
I am a reviewer for PC Labs (http://www.pclabs.com.tr) and I've been evaluating the Virtu software for some time now. I have the following problem:
This error shows up whenever I try to start Virtu. If I click Yes, it just pops up again, infinitely. If I press No, Virtu quits.
Yes, I read the Virtu installation guide section
Motherboard BIOS is the latest. I'd been trying the previous ones as well.
As stated in the manual; I first installed Intel HD Graphics 3000 drivers, then added the discrete VGA card, let Windows install the drivers, then installed Virtu
I also tried all possible combinations of driver installation with and without Windows Update - manually installed VGA driver from AMD, let Windows install HD Graphics 3000 driver, etc.
I tried multiple versions of Virtu; from MSI download site, from Virtu directly, etc.
Re-installed Windows and done the same, no luck
Here's the rig:
- MSI Z68A-GD80 motherboard with most recent BIOS update available at the date of this post.
- Intel Core i7-2600K processor
- Radeon HD 6870 discrete card
- 4 GB Kingston DDR3-2000 (also tried with Kingston HyperX DDR3-2133)
- Seagate ST3250410AS & Kingston 120 GB SSD
- Thermaltake Toughpower 875 W PSU
- Windows 7 64 bits with SP1
Any ideas?

Quote from: Jack on 22-August-11, 20:29:33
Done.
Thanks for the extra hand, Jack.
Quote from: Jack on 22-August-11, 20:29:33
Two related questions for clarification:
Which version do you have exactly?
---> http://eu.msi.com/service/search/?kw=Z68A-GD80%20&type=product
... B3 or G3?
Which version is that exactly? (Exact version ID)
The version will be different, depending on the motherboard variant you have.
In addition to that, there are always BETA and Final Releases. In case you are referring to the latest Final Release, an even never BETA Release might already be available which does not appear on the board's product site.
The board is a B3. 7672 Ver. 3.0 exactly. As for the driver & application versions:
- Intel HD Graphics 3000 was tested with drivers from MSI and also from Intel. At the time I started this topic, the installed driver was 12.22.1.64.2361 (8.15.10.2361).
- AMD drivers tested (with Radeon HD 6870) were 11.6, 11.7 and finally, 11.8.
- Virtu software versions tested were: First was from MSI (can't remember the version number right now), 1.2.105, 1.2.106 from LucidLogix
- Motherboard BIOSes tested were: Initial BIOS (2011-04-25 date), 17.1 (7672vH1 ROM, date 2011-05-30) and for the time being, 17.2 (7672vH2 ROM, date 2011-07-18).
Quote from: HU16E on 23-August-11, 03:57:21
In the Virtu Control Panel, 'About' Tab, does the Virtu version appear, or does it say Trial Version?
Added: After reading & following the MSI Software Application Guide v1.3, & using the Virtu drivers off the install disk that came with the mainboard, I had flawless performance using Virtu. My mainboard was shipped with the initial UEFI release (17.0 for a B3). The Lucid Virtu license key was enabled right from the beginning.
The Virtu Control Panel never shows up. When the system boots up and I login to Windows, the error message I mentioned is shown. Clicking "Yes" results in the same error; clicking No quits Virtu. The same happens when I manually start the Virtu Control Panel app.
MSI SW App. Guide and software from the install disk didn't work for me. :( I don't think it's the Virtu license key because Virtu is actually *active*. I do get the Virtu logo on 3DMark Vantage (and possibly other 3D apps registered to Virtu) and get discrete card class results from the benchmark in i-Mode. Besides, I believe Virtu software doesn't mean to say my license key is missing. Please see below.
You could make it, then I'd like to ask you a favor. There should be two files in a LucidLogix folder, located in your User directory:
Code: [Select]
{Your_Drive_Name}:\Users\{Your_UserName}\LucidLogix
The files are lucidloader.ini and userSettings.xml.
Could you post those two? As far as I could deduce, there shouldn't be any personal information in those files. Just general settings and application profiles. The error seems to stem from a disrepancy between these two files. The software seems to look for some "keys" from the XML file (where settins and app. profiles are stored as "keys" like <key>KeyName</key>. I'll attach my files a few minutes later. Check the userSettings file; around the end of the file, you'll see the word "general". My bet is on that one.
Of course, while I quoted HU16E, Jack and anyone else interested is welcome in this discussion.

PCIE 3.0 test with MSI Z68A-GD80 G3 :)

The Z68A-GD80 G3 is MSI’s first motherboard with PCIE 3.0 connectivity. Currently there are no PCIE 3 devices available yet but later on we can test its performance by using a PCIE SSD. Aside from this, the board has also a new UEFI Bios named “Click Bios II” which for me is way better than the previous version.
Before we take a closer look on the board, let’s check out the package first.
Box design is a bit the same as the GD80 B3 version before. Once you open it up, all main features of the said board are enumerated
Extreme Power Design, Military Class II Components (SFC, Hi-C Caps, Multi Bios), 3 PCIEx16 Slots, Super Charger and OC Genie II
For the bundled accessories, you have the same old story – Manual, Software Disc, four SATA cables, two Molex to SATA power connectors & SLI Bridge. Then for some extras - PCI USB 3.0 two ports bracket, guide headers for faster and easy connectivity and lastly voltage check points.
Next, the “Mainboard”. By physically looking at it and by comparing it side by side against the Z68A-GD80 B3 motherboard. You won’t find any difference except for the PCIE X16 locks. It has also the same black and blue color theme, two vrm heatsinks connected by a flat heatpipe and V-Check points.
Moving closer to the board you have 8 Power Pins to power up the processor, 2 PCI slots, 2 PCIE x1 slots for devices such as TV Tuners or Audio Cards. 2 PCIE Gen3 & 1 PCIE Gen2 x16 Slots. With one VC connected at the top most slot, speed will be @ x16. If both top and middle are used, it will be @ x8/x8. Lastly, by using the 3rd PCIEx16 Gen2 slot. You have x8/x8/x4. It would also disable certain onboard devices such as eSATA Port, Sata 7, one onboard front USB 3.0, two PCI Slots and firewire. So if possible avoid using the last VC slot.
At the top most PCIE x1 area. You will find a 6-pin power connector. This will provide more juice/power for multi-GPU setups.
Next, at the bottom part of the board. You have the Easy Buttons (Power and Reset) and the popular one button “OC Genie”. The red colored USB header is for the Super Charger while the blue is a regular USB 3.0. For the SATA Connectors you have a total of 7. 4 regular SATA 3GB/s, 2 SATA 6GB/s controlled by Intel chipset and another SATA 6GB/s by Marvell.
Wrapping things up, we have now the IO terminal ports. Starting from the left we have combo PS2 port and SPDIF Optical Out. Clear CMOS Button, e-SATA port running under Marvell, 2 USB 2.0 and Firewire ports controlled by Via. Moving across, 2 Gigabit Lan by Realtek 8111E, 2 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0 run under NEC D720200 controller. Next, we have DVI and HDMI output connections and 6 analog audio ports by Realtek ALC892.
Once you are into the bios, you will find the new and improved Click Bios. Nice and professional looking, faster navigation and easier to use.
To test the performance of the new PCIE Gen3 technology, we will be using this Photofast PCIE SSD device http://www.photofast.tw/comboproducts.asp?pid=1.
We will be connecting the PCIE SSD device on the GD80’s Gen3 and Gen2 slots and compare the results using the disk benchmark software ATTO. I ran the benchmark 9 times for the two set of tests.
System Configuration as follows:
Processor: Intel Core i7 2600K at default stock speed
Memory: Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 2x2GB DDR3 2133MHz
SSD: OCZ Vertex 2
Motherboard: MSI Z68A-GD80 G3
Softwares: CPU-Z 1.58, Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit with SP1, Latest Atto Software 1.47 I think.
First test, Photofast running on Gen2 (third VC slot). One screenshot from the 9 tests made
Second, using the Gen 3 connectivity. One screenshot from the 9 tests made
Below is the summary of all the tests done on the board with the Photofast SSD PCIE.
That’s probably it. More forum posts to come 

Quote
I have a eSata hdd Seagate Freeagent Xtreme 1,5tb which cannot be recognized by win7
Did you have your previous board's BIOS set to AHCI or IDE ? You need to set this BIOS the same.
Firstly only insert one RAM module in the slot closest to the CPU. Remove the rest. Then do full CMOS clear >>Clear CMOS Guide<< also remove the MB battery.
What BIOS do you currently have ? The initial BIOS releases were plagued by CPU throttling which have been fixed in the cyrrent beta BIOS releases.

MSI z68A-GD80 (g3) "B2" error with ned gtx 970

Hey.
Hardware info:
MSI z68A-GD80 (g3) - Bios version. V18.8
Intel i5 2500k
4x4GB kingston hyperX 1600mhz
MSI 970 gaming g4
PSU : Seasonic SS-500GB
My problem is that when I'm trying to install the new GPU i get the error "b2" when i boot. If i chance back to my old gpu (560 ti) or the gpu on the CPU there is no problem. Also i have tested the gtx 970 in another PC and it works.
After some reseach i found out that i need a bios update. I have tried this but with no luck, cant upgrade bios. I have use "MSI Forum HQ USB Flashing" tools with bios from MSI hp (I choose the (g3) bios) . I can get the bios on the USP stick but when I'm trying to install the new bios i got the error "Bios corruption detected !!" and stopped. I don't know what to do now, i hope that you can help me
The usp stick is fat32

I had the exact same problem as the original poster - same motherboard, same old graphics card (560ti) and same new graphics card (970 gaming) and got the same B2 error code and the PC not going beyond that.
I flashed the bios and that fixed the problem - the exact version I used was on this page:
Ok, this forum isn't allowing me to post a link to it, but just go to the official page for the motherboard on MSI's website - then click on Support and Service Location, which should open up the list of BIOS upgrades...
The top one as of writing this is version 19.2
To do the flashing of the BIOS you must load the downloaded exe file onto a flash drive and run it from there. Don't worry if it seems like your PC is hanging, it just takes a while (while still in Windows). It then reboots and will finish up flashing the BIOS (you'll see a red bar with the warning on a black background with white text).
After doing that, my GTX970 GAMING works like an absolute charm! I can now finally enjoy Minecraft like it was meant to be played haha (kidding, I played GTA 5 the whole weekend with EVERYTHING to the absolute MAX!)
Hope this helps if you are experiencing this extremely annoying error.

Z68A-GD80 (G3) - does it have SSD Caching?

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