KVM Forum 2025

Zhi Wang

Zhi is an open-source developer working on vGPU, confidential computing, and virtualization. He is currently working on NVIDIA vGPU. For confidential computing, he is interested in Intel TDX/AMD SEV-SNP and worked on TDX Connect enabling at Intel.


Session

09-04
09:45
30min
Upstreaming NVIDIA vGPU Support: Architecture, Implementation, and Roadmap
Zhi Wang

NVIDIA vGPU technology brings high-performance GPU capabilities to virtualized environments, supporting a wide range of workloads - from graphics-intensive virtual desktops to AI and data science applications. Enabling GPU resource sharing or exclusive assignment on physical GPUs deployed in cloud or enterprise data centers combines the performance benefits of NVIDIA hardware with the flexibility and manageability of virtualization.

Moving upstream, we propose a software architecture based on SR-IOV, where each vGPU is represented by a PCI Virtual Function (VF) managed through the standard Linux VFIO framework. The NVIDIA vGPU VFIO driver, implemented as a VFIO variant driver, exposes standard userspace interfaces and supports critical features such as vGPU type selection, runtime creation and teardown of vGPU instances, and live migration. At its core, the driver interacts with NVKM, a core driver responsible for managing hardware. The architectural goal is to let NVKM support the DRM for host graphics, other NVIDIA GPU use cases, and the VFIO driver for vGPU.

Attendees will gain insight into the design architecture and upstream changes. We will also share our upstream roadmap and areas where community input is most needed.

Room 1