iGPU Passthrough on Win10 VM (Intel 10th Gen)

[Jan410]

I discovered UnRAID a few weeks ago and since I already wanted a NAS and browsed the web for UnRAID for some hours, I think it's time now.

 

So I wondered if it's possible to get a setup without dedicated GPU where I can passthrough the iGPU for an Office Win10 VM that also can play media for the TV next to it.

First I thought about the Ryzen 3400G but I figured out that there is no way to passthrough his iGPU under UnRAID. While searching for the i3-10100 I found a thread where people were able to passthrough the iGPU for emby with the 6.9.0 beta. Does it work for a Win10 VM too?

 

Unfortunately I have a pretty old AVR with 5.1 setup, which can't get the audio from HDMI so I thought about using Toslink. Is it possible to passthrough the onboard soundcard and use the toslink? Or will I have to use one of these HDMI audio extractors?

Edited September 5, 2020 by Jan410

[Decto]

Hi,

 

I'm not really clear on your setup you are looking for.

 

It reads like a NAS with physical keyboard, mouse and monitor that runs a Windows VM that can output to the monitor and/or the TV.

 

You can pass through the onboard audio if the IOMMU groups are OK, however this could be tricky if you want the audio to be local to your PC while working on the VM then directed to the amp. Likely you could do that in the windows settings by selecting the output device, though you may need to switch each time.

 

Do you have any hardware or are you starting from scratch and so fully flexible?

 

[Jan410]

Hey, thanks for your answer.

 

I am looking for exactly what it reads like. Switching the sound on Windows will not be a problem.

 

And I'm pretty much starting from scratch, just have 2x 8TB, 1x 4TB and a Crucial MX500 500GB as Cache. For the Windows VM there is a Crucial M500 240GB. Also I will use my old Cooler Master Silencio 550.

 

Is there a better CPU than the i3-10100 for my usecase? I would like to have enough power and low power consumption.

 

I'm planning to use 2x8GB 3200 Crucial Ballistix since they are pretty cheap here.

 

For the mainboard I'm not sure. The Silencio 550 supports up to ATX form factor.

• Which one has "good" IOMMU groups?
• Shall I go for B460 or Z490?
• Toslink (S/PDIF) will be nice.
• Heard that an Intel ethernet controller is more stable. Or can I go for Realtek? 
• 6x SATA will be nice. Maybe a M.2 NVMe for the future, seems like sometimes I can use one without losing SATA ports.

I think the MSI MPG Z490 Gaming Plus and the MSI MAG B460 Tomahawk are interesting. Both around 125€. 

[Decto]

Most CPU's use almost no power at idle.

With some liberal assumptions, when completing set amount of activity, a 4 core CPU will run twice a long as an 8 core when the cores are equivalent so although the 8 core may have a higher TDP, it is only working for half as long. At idle there is little difference.

Most low wattage CPU's are designed to limit frequncy so they can be installed where cooling is limited, if you think you have use for more than 4 cores, don't let TDP put you off and don't be seduced by low TDP version of processors. -T, -S unless you have a specific for thermal limits.

 

The CPU you suggest would make a capable Unraid server, keep in mind that if you want to run a VM, you really need to isolate cores for that so you may need to split 2 cores for the VM , leave 1 core for unraid and let Emby have a core but share with unraid. You soon start to run out of cores, however if you are doing office work, 2 cores should be plenty.

 

Personally I stay away from latest generations of hardware as Unraid is build on a linux kernal the generally lags the bleeding edge. While this is good for stability, it does mean that some platforms may not be fully supported on release. Unlike windows, you can't just load a driver from the manufactures site.

I'd be looking at B365 and 8xxx, 9xxx for the type of build you suggest.

 

Unfortunaly the only way to know the IOMMU groups would be to find someone with Unraid installed on the specific motherboard who can share that info so it can be a bit of a lottery. Probably worth searching or posting specifically in motherboards for a recomondation that is working well.

 

A couple of things to consider.

Often 1 or 2 SATA can be disabled if you populate NVME so check the manuals on drive usage.

Consider future expansion, having a second PCI-E slot the is electrically X4 or better in a X16 slot gives the chance to include a GPU and another SATA card if needs change in the future. 

Intel Network is desirable but as long as the realtek is a common chip, it should be fine.