From 7f238600787cad9b978fc486a31fc30b76ef56b4 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Claude Date: Sat, 22 Aug 2026 03:52:39 +0000 Subject: [PATCH] docs(ai-stack): name the R580 driver branch for Volta/Pascal cards Confirmed via NVIDIA's own release notes: R580 is the last branch adding Volta/Pascal support (through ~June 2028). Also flag the proprietary-vs-open kernel module split, since -open only covers Turing and newer and autoinstall could pick it on a newer distro. --- services/ai-stack.md | 26 ++++++++++++++++++-------- 1 file changed, 18 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-) diff --git a/services/ai-stack.md b/services/ai-stack.md index 3592e11..0028975 100644 --- a/services/ai-stack.md +++ b/services/ai-stack.md @@ -78,14 +78,24 @@ flash-attention-class kernel path. | Maxwell (2014) | M40 / M60 24GB | 8-24GB GDDR5 | No | Impractical — SD1.5 only, very slow; no real FP16 tensor path | 7B-13B Q4 runs but slow | 7B-class coder models only — a novelty, not a daily driver | **CUDA 13 has already dropped Pascal/Volta** (this happened, it's not a future -warning anymore) — pin the host driver to an LTS/LTSB branch that still lists -Volta as supported (check `ubuntu-drivers devices`' recommendation rather than -blindly taking the newest branch) before relying on one of these cards. Docker -GPU passthrough only needs the host *driver* to recognize the card — prebuilt -inference images (Ollama, ComfyUI, etc.) already bundle whatever CUDA runtime -they need — so this is a driver-branch choice at install time, not something -`require_docker` pins for you (it installs Docker/Compose only; NVIDIA -driver + `nvidia-container-toolkit` are still on you to install first). +warning anymore) — but that's the *toolkit*, not the driver, and it doesn't +block this stack: Docker GPU passthrough only needs the host *driver* to +recognize the card, since prebuilt inference images (Ollama, ComfyUI, etc.) +already bundle whatever CUDA runtime they need internally. The driver is the +part to get right. **NVIDIA has named R580 the last driver branch that adds +Volta/Pascal support** (P100/P40/V100 explicitly listed), supported into +~June 2028 — pin to R580 explicitly rather than trusting `ubuntu-drivers +autoinstall`'s default pick on a fresh/newer Ubuntu install, since a later +branch may no longer initialize these cards at all. Also confirm you land on +the **proprietary** driver package, not an `-open` one — NVIDIA's open-source +kernel modules only support Turing and newer, so Volta/Pascal *require* the +closed-source module; `ubuntu-drivers devices` should recommend the right one +for the card it detects, but double-check rather than assume on a distro +release that defaults newer GPUs to `-open`. None of this is something +`require_docker` handles — it installs Docker/Compose only; the NVIDIA +driver and `nvidia-container-toolkit` are still on you to install first, +and getting the driver branch right is what actually matters here, not the +Ubuntu version itself. **Tesla-card power connector — don't assume standard PCIe.** V100/P100/P40/M40 PCIe cards take an 8-pin **CPU/EPS12V** connector, not the 6+2-pin PCIe