Microsoft + Collabora Working To Map OpenGL/OpenCL Over DirectX 12

[Xaero_Vincent]

Looks like the same guy who works on Zink is working on this too:

https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/users/kusma/activity

So basically there is already a layer for OpenGL to Vulkan, so now they are working on one for Direct3D 12.

Maybe this code can somehow benefit the work on VKD3D?

[kpedersen]

DirectX works much better over RDP than OpenGL (and anything else). So I can see benefit here.

Afterall Microsoft's RDP is vastly better than Linux's Wayland based offerings and is now the leading multi-user remote computing solution. (How the hell did that happen? haha)

RemoteFx clients aren't available for FOSS unfortunately so we may not benefit.

[rmfx]

Speaking of witch, why don't we have a full OpenGL to Vulkan wrapper yet ? Is it technically very hard to do ?

If an optimized such piece of software was created, we could have systems with only Vulkan drivers.

DXVK did it and it seems that it's harder project than GLVK since you have to port closed source windows element with it as well.

[Xaero_Vincent]

DirectX works much better over RDP than OpenGL (and anything else). So I can see benefit here.

Afterall Microsoft's RDP is vastly better than Linux's Wayland based offerings and is now the leading multi-user remote computing solution. (How the hell did that happen? haha)

RemoteFx clients aren't available for FOSS unfortunately so we may not benefit.

FreeRDP supports RemoteFX.

[Xaero_Vincent]

Speaking of witch, why don't we have a full OpenGL to Vulkan wrapper yet ? Is it technically very hard to do ?

If an optimized such piece of software was created, we could have systems with only Vulkan drivers.

DXVK did it and it seems that it's harder project than GLVK since you have to port closed source windows element with it as well.

There is:

https://ftp.osuosl.org/pub/fosdem/2020/K.4.401/zink.webm

[ehansin]

My two cents worth:

"In addition, we are taking advantage of Microsoft's experience in creating their D3D12 Translation Layer, as well as our own experience from developing Zink."

Yep, Zink, the existing Collabora (yep, same company, heck same dev) project that does OpenGL to Vulcan translation. Hmm, maybe there could be some cross value there... Later from the blog post:

"In addition, we believe this is good for the wider open source community. A lot of the problems we are solving here are shared with other drivers and translation layers, and we hope that the code will be useful beyond the use cases listed above."

Hmm, you mean things may be learned that have value elsewhere? You don't say.

I'll leave it at that, others have made additional points that don't need to be repeated. But yeah, "Microsoft bad" so there is that. And all those other dead-end projects (looking at you Canonical!) that are fun to b**** about and complain all but a waste. I wonder if any of those had any learning experiences involved that might have some value going forward. Naw, that could never happen!!!

[microcode]

Seems like the way Collabora is doing it is very promising, since it could set Mesa up to be a perfectly serviceable Windows graphics driver frontend, which means it could begin consuming things further down the stack.

RadeonSI and RADV on Windows when? :- )

[archsway]

With gl4es, ANGLE, Gallium Nine and MoltenVK, this could be:

OpenGL 2.0 -> OpenGL ES2 -> D3D9 -> D3D12 -> Vulkan -> Metal

[mppix]

You remember that we already had once the war between closed and open GFX Api? (DX vs OpenGL)
...and the reason why we still need Projects like Wine, DXVK, vkd3d or a windows license is the very fact that DX won that race.

We should promote Vulkan and condem any Microsoft "opensource" approach as much as possible or we will once again need some DX13 to Vulkan 2 Layer in the future for HalfLife 4, AC Shogun, call a Triple A Game of the future of your choice ...

We will have to deal the next two decades with (mostly) worse ports or the tinkering of making drm games running without getting baned. And I fear the later part will get even worse.

At the time DX was faster than OpenGL and benefited of MS' backing but times may have changed. Online gaming services, if successful, may tip things in favor of cross-platform API's (VK) since many servers run on Linux (Google Stadia).

[mppix]

How about a D12 Ultimate over Vulkan?