Intel Preps Nice NPU Driver Improvements For Linux 6.14

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Intel Preps Nice NPU Driver Improvements For Linux 6.14

For those with an Intel Core Ultra system bearing the company's Neural Processing Unit (NPU), some nice driver enhancements are on the way for the upcoming Linux 6.14 kernel cycle...

https://www.phoronix.com/news/Intel-NPU-Linux-6.14-IVPU

[pioto]

They should upload their NPU firmware into the linux firmware. It is quite annoying to have to go and install firmware separately and reboot for the /dev/accel device to show up. Their kernel driver is already in tree, "so" should be the firmware.

[geerge]

"For those with an Intel Core Ultra system"

Just the tech press then.

[[email protected]]

You did it.
You'll want a LUNAR LAKE-equipped model with a laptop computer for college use.

[CommunityMember]

They should upload their NPU firmware into the linux firmware.

There was a comment by an Intel developer that the existing firmware was tied into the compiler which is why it was not part of the linux-firmware blobs (at least at the time of the query a few months ago).

[pioto]

Thanks, I recall seeing that. I do not understand that comment though. The compiler and firmware deb packages are separate. One can dpkg -i npu-fw.deb (i do not recall the name) and not install the compiler. Then you can boot the system and ipu kernel driver will present ivpu in device tree as /dev/accel/accel0. Of course u need a compiler to run anything later on. But at least the system should boot with device tree populated without extra packages.

[Valeintin]

"For those with an Intel Core Ultra system"

Just the tech press then.

i have core ultra, updated from Haswell

[geerge]

i have core ultra, updated from Haswell

Why did you not go for Zen5? Cheaper, with AVX512, more power efficient...

Lacking AMX. I guess you must mainline AMX instructions right to the jugular.