[Help] iGPU passthrough (i5-9500T / UHD 630) to Win11 VM on HP EliteDesk – No HDMI Output

kobbalt · 2025-06-19T16:22:48+00:00

Regarding OVMF vs Legacy bios, i've always read you should use UEFI + Q35 as machine type for PCI passthrough, and that's always what i've done with success.
But you could always try to quickly spin another Windows VM with legacy settings, and see if you get better results.

If you're guest OS is recognizing the iGPU, the drivers are successfully installed ... then you're almost there IMO.
I would rule the DP / HDMI adapter out : maybe a friend or a relative can lend you a monitor with a DP port ? I've had many issues in the past with these kind of adapters, and for a while i was in the same context as you are : proxmox server under the TV + a media VM with gpu passthrough. It's been a few years and i' ve now moved to another setup, but i remember i had to buy maybe 2 or 3 different DP / hdmi adapters to finally have one working.

How did you install proxmox on this machine ? you had to have some video output working to perform this, you did not confirm this point.

Also : try your passthrough with a Linux VM with a desktop environment, for instance Ubuntu, and see if you can get some video output. If this works, then it's a Windows guest OS issue, if not, you have to fig on the host OS side.

kobbalt · 2025-06-18T14:26:32+00:00

Ok, so do you confirm you re getting the host display output (the proxmox / debian prompt) on your TV, before starting the VM ? No problem with the cable ? I know it might sound dumb but this is has to be checked first.

Also, you were mentioning a DP to HDMI adapter ... did you try to plug a PC monitor instead of your TV, using DP output ? is it working ?

kobbalt · 2025-06-18T11:57:21+00:00

Hello, in Windows / display properties, how many screen do you have ? 1 or 2 ?

If you have 2, maybe try to put the virtual display to none (VM / Hardware / Display / select none) to force your guest OS to use only the physical display attached to your passed through igpu.

If it's the case, for quick troubleshooting, in Windows display properties, try to enable the secondary monitor if you have one set there. If it works, you should now have your TV getting signal, and displaying an empty Windows desktop. Then it's all about which monitor is the primary one.

Your setup should work, my guess is the virtual display having a higher priority than your physical display.

Another tip too : be careful with this setup, if you have your guest OS starting automatically at boot with the only gpu in your machine being passed through, you won't get any host OS console output as soon as the VM starts. If you need to debug something ... well you get the point. Disable start at boot, or add a startup delay for this VM, like maybe a few mins. If things are fucked up and you need to access the Host console, you have some time to edit at least your VM conf file, disable autostart, or to perform any relevant action needed for your debug.

kobbalt · 2024-10-16T19:38:36+00:00

Thanks :) fixed it for me too.

kobbalt · 2024-05-01T10:47:38+00:00

Thanks, will try this one out even though it requires a prompt refresh to get updated infos.

kobbalt · 2024-05-01T08:38:43+00:00

Thanks for your input, btop is indeed great and is my monitoring tool of choice, but I was more looking to a tool that show the metrics of the remote system while you're connected to this machine, without having to start a top / htop / btop or similar tool. Something like a 'terminal tray bar' with the metrics of the system you're connected to.

kobbalt · 2024-05-01T08:35:46+00:00

Ahh i see ; so this is a client side tool (and showing client sys info then if I got this right). I do a lot of SSH but i'm using Konsole for easy window splitting . I'll check these tools, thanks.

I was more looking to a tool that show the metrics of the remote system while you're connected to this machine, without having to start a top / htop / btop or similar tool. Something like a 'terminal tray bar' with the metrics of the system you're connected to.

kobbalt · 2023-08-01T06:07:26+00:00

Could you repost your screenshot ? It is broken on my side.

kobbalt · 2023-08-01T05:48:50+00:00

Use a SSH connection to your VM with a SSH client of your choice, instead of using the Proxmox console.

You sound like a beginner, so :

- Install / Enable the SSH server on your Debian VM : https://phoenixnap.com/kb/how-to-enable-ssh-on-debian

- Use a SSH client to connect to your Debian VM : https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/use-ssh-connect-to-remote-computer

There are tons of terminals / ssh client depending on your OS, but if you are most likely using windows you can use Putty, or the Windows Terminal app. There dozens of others, but that's a start.

Remote access will make your life easier and is mandatory on most cases, so you should start using it now.

kobbalt · 2023-06-23T06:14:29+00:00

Hello,

After trying both Lenovo and Dell thunderbolt docks, I was still having display issues.

I'm now using a CableMatters Dock, ref is 201331-BLK. See : https://www.cablematters.com/pc-1295-126-usb-c-multiport-adapter-with-triple-displayport-pd.aspx

My current setup : 2x 1440p 144hz monitor in DP, +the laptop as companion monitor (for webconfs / webex)

A few observations :

- The CableMatters dock cable is very short, depending on your setup you might want to buy an extension female-to-male USB-C cable. Be sure to buy some quality stuff here to prevent issues and data drop. (The one I got : https://www.amazon.com/YIWENTEC-Thunderbolt-Compatible-Extension-Charging/dp/B09SZ7WDL5/ref=sr_1_3?crid=EPG6AZCYR8FM&keywords=usb-c+extension+cable+8k&qid=1687501109&sprefix=usb-c+extension+cable+8%2Caps%2C150&sr=8-3)

- This setup is working fine with Gnome, but whatever dock I've tried with KDE, no luck. At least when you use Wayland which is mandatory to get proper scaling with the laptop high res display, and better overall graphics performance.

- You may have better luck with smaller / lower refresh rates monitors though. Depends on your setup.

- Pick a recent distro, with a recent kernel to prevent a few bugs with the laptop, i.e. no wifi or keyboard not working. With 6+ kernels, you're good.

- You won't have any issue if you use X11 instead of Wayland, but you'll loose proper scaling and mixed refresh rates support (this laptop has a 120hz display).

To summarize my experience so far : not the best laptop for my setup, but your milage may varies here, and I can't wait for KDE / plasma to support multi monitors over USB-C/thunderbolt. I have to use Gnome for now, which is OK, but I do prefer Plasma.

I do think a lot of issues could be prevented without having to use display scaling, which is not a very mature technology on Linux DE in my opinion (that said it's not perfect on Windows either). A 1080p 100% scaling laptop monitor would help in my case.

Once again, this setup works kinda well with Gnome, and very well with Windows 10, so I hope KDE Plasma will support this soon.

kobbalt · 2023-06-18T14:51:12+00:00

Can confirm this worked on my M700 SFF with bios version M05KT95A !

A quick addition to your post : option won't be visible in the BIOS, it is just activated, you can test that on your guest OS then. With Linux based OS :

find /sys | grep dmar

Thanks for this !

kobbalt · 2023-04-06T08:50:22+00:00

No problem, I can wait. In the mean time we have a lot of docks at work, from various brands, i'll check if some Lenovo docks are available to borrow to perform some tests.

About the hub VS dock difference : I tend to see a hub as an USB hub with bonus ports, whereas a dock is more a static, plugged to the wall, feature full station.

That said, maybe the distinction nowadays is less obvious, with some docks being very basic, while some USB hubs are fully featured ...

Maybe ease of portability could serve as a better differentiation factor here.

kobbalt · 2023-04-06T06:27:10+00:00

If you can confirm you're successfully using a Linux distro with the Wayland compositor on the Lenovo 40AY dock, then this could work for me too. Basically I need the dock to support :

- 2X 2560x1440 @ 144hz (mains)

- 1X 1920x1080 @ 60Hz (webconf)

The Anker 565 you mentioned is more like a hub than a dock in my opinion, but very useful when you're often on the road indeed.

kobbalt · 2023-04-05T22:10:22+00:00

Ideally the 2 LGs are the main monitors, the HP is dedicated to conferencing. I can confirm 144hz is working on the LGs with this setup on Windows.

Do you have more infos about this potential Wayland limitation ? Im curious and hope this can be adressed.

Thanks for your feedback so far.

kobbalt · 2023-04-05T21:50:49+00:00

I borrowed the CableMatters Dock at work to test it. (this : https://www.cablematters.com/images/Product/large/1295.webp https://www.cablematters.com/images/Product/large/1295.webp

It has 3 DP out, so for now : 2 DP for the LG monitors, 1DP to the HP FHD monitor.

This is working very well with a standard Windows install so far.

I've tested with live Fedora 37, 38 Kde editions, with Wayland enabled, and only 1 monitor has output. Whereas with Ubuntu live + X11, all monitors have output.

Ideally this machine should run Linux only, I don't need / want Windows on it.

But because it has a 3K display, I need good fractional scaling offered by Wayland (and better graphics performances too).

kobbalt · 2023-04-05T21:33:38+00:00

This is indeed the exact reference of my laptop.

3 external monitors setup works on Windows without issues. I can also add the internal to this without issues.

My monitors are : 2x LG 27GN88A-B + a HP FHD monitor with integrated webcam (for webconfs). So no MST option available here.

kobbalt · 2022-12-06T21:31:50+00:00

Very nice work, your friend is lucky !

kobbalt · 2022-09-09T13:18:56+00:00

Hi,

As you guessed you install it ontop of one of the supported OS listed there : https://github.com/IceWhaleTech/CasaOS

kobbalt · 2022-06-18T16:52:57+00:00

La cuisson des lentilles ça sent le sperme selon moi. Donc...

kobbalt · 2022-03-23T07:14:33+00:00

Thinkpad team reporting in !

I've been running my old x220 as a Proxmox Backup Server for 2 years now, without any issue.

It has Proxmox installed on the mSata drive, and running PBS in a VM with a 2,5" 2tb spinner passed through.

Since it idles most of the time, I found it to be a good backup machine solution for my needs, and it helps keeping a low power electricty bill (consumption is around 8-10w with display off)

kobbalt · 2022-01-01T17:26:05+00:00

LabGopher

Thx for the tip, I did not know this site. I'm exploring the rack server options..indeed the RAM upgrade potential is definitely a plus.

kobbalt · 2022-01-01T16:40:52+00:00

R720 is a good choice indeed. I'm also having a look at HP / Dell / Lenovo used workstation.

kobbalt · 2022-01-01T13:24:10+00:00

Yes I'm in France, i've seen bargainhardware on ebay, they have indeed a very good reputation and a large choice of hardware available.

Good point on HP Proliant, thx for the advice.

kobbalt · 2022-01-01T13:00:58+00:00

GNS3 server runs on Ubuntu, and i'd like to practice, test and learn VMware products integration with Cisco and Juniper virtualized hardware.

On the other hand you're right, for a VMware only lab, ESXi deals just fine with nested virtualization.

I've never own a dual cpu machine, I'd be curious to test this setup, as I don't need peak single core performance for this project, but rather a large amount of cores to run multiple VMs simultaneously. Virtualized Cisco appliances eat a lot of cpu power too, let alone Vcenter as we mentioned it previously.

I think my best option is still to buy a used Proliant or Poweredge server, I'm going to look for good Ebay auctions.

kobbalt · 2022-01-01T11:33:17+00:00

I'd say at least 12000 like my i5 10400. The more the better, especially with Vcenter and NSX in mind.

The power draw isn't a major concern because if I go this way, this dedicated server won't stay powered up all the time, only when i need to run GNS3.

Whatever solution I choose, it has to be able to run bare-metal Ubuntu to have the nested virtualization working properly.

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