SL says my video card is unsupported.

[Zeis Tempura]

I just got a new video card today, but SL says that it is unsupported or that the drivers aren't up-to-date. I'm pretty sure that the drivers are fine, so am I just stuck with a new card that won't run SL?

It's an ATI Radeon 4600 HD. Please help!

[Kalynn Carnell]

If you just got the video card today and installed the drivers that were included with the card, you really should go to the manufacturer's website and download the latest set of drivers.  You can also find more info about what graphic cards work with SL here.

[Peewee Musytari]

The system requirements for video cards are not very up to date though if you check on http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/ the 4600 series don`t seem to score very highly.

You can check here for your latest drivers http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/index.aspx

[Zeis Tempura]

I've tried reinstalling the drivers several times now, and it still doesn't work.

[Fawn Hana]

I dont know if this will help or not, but i downloaded a viewer that was not made by SECONDLIFE but approved to use , but when i used it it told me that my drivers were not up to date, as a matter of fact I ended up losing a lot of content and had to take my computer back to factory settings to even get back online at all, sooo i deleted that *other viewr* whos name i wont desecrate here, due to the fact that there are those that use it with noo problem at all, and when i delted it and installed SL V2, i got back on with no problem, I just had to learn the viewer i had said i couldnt stand, but all in all its been great, i love viewer 2 now, good luck with ur mission to find an answer!

[Tanya Helstein]

Yes go to the ATi website to get the latest drivers.

[Ann Otoole]

In the secondlife program directory is a file called gpu_table.txt. Open it with wordpad. Scroll down till you find this line:

ATI Radeon HD 4600                .*ATI.*Radeon HD *46.*                3        1

Perhaps your card is misfiled in that file and it should read

ATI Radeon 4600HD                .*ATI.*Radeon *46.*  HD              3        1

or

ATI Radeon 4600 HD                .*ATI.*Radeon *46.*HD                3        1

Or something like that. However it doesn't matter. Run SL and set your graphics to high or ultra and carry on. Tune the graphics with the advanced controls for the best experience.

 

btw that 3 in that line means todefault to high graphics setting.

[Prokofy Neva]

When LL says the video card isn't supported, they're not kidding.

This is the list that everyone needs to check BEFORE they buy a new graphics card or computer with a certain card in it:

https://secondlife.com/my/support/system-requirements/?lang=en-US

It's harsh, but there it is, your card is not on there. The series 4000 is, but not that one you h ave.

So you should simply take it back and try to get another one on this list.

Good luck, because you may find, even if you live in the media capital of the world like I do (New York City) that not a single one of the consumer-oriented computer stores like Best Buy will have these cards, or have computers with these cards in them.

You can try to order a custom Dell computer. But don't be surprised to discover that oh, these cards don't seem to go with the cheaper PCs there either and just don't seem to be available in the configurations you want online, or even after you call the live help.

Keep in mind that if you do buy one of these higher-end graphic cards, be prepared for it to overheat your computer and blow out UNLESS you also buy the bigger fan needed to cool it and install that. By the time this expedition costs you $350, you start to think maybe you should get a new computer, not a new card.

It's really a shame that Linden Lab will not make their software to fit what is mass produced for the consumer, rather than make the consumer run around like a chicken trying to find the right card, but it's the reality of our virtuality.

What happens is that the Lindens and the close circle of techs around them custom-build their computers and they don't really have empathy for the situation of the average non-technical consumer. They aren't motivated (yet) to have this empathy because they don't need/want the world to scale quickly into the millions (yet).

[Nyll Bergbahn]

The Systems Requirements page is hopelessly inadequate when advising people what graphics cards will and will not work with Second Life. Please check the gpu_table.txt located in the program's installation folder for a more accurate list.

[Deej Kasshiki]

The 'unsupported' message is a generic one that just means that your new video card isn't in the list of cards that the SL client knows about in its database. Most newer cards will report as unsupported and give you this error, but but work just fine with SL. My 2 month old Nvidia GTX 460 shows as unsupported but works great. As others have suggested just make sure that you're running the latest Catalyst drivers downloaded from ATI's website and you should be fine.

Are you actually seeing some visual glitch that makes you think your card won't work, or did the unsupported message just freak you out a bit?

[Syn Enyo]

I have a feeling that video card page and GPU table is out of date. Like i doubt Linden Research goes out and tests on every single card. Maybe a few but not all... So if it runs great for you, i would not worry.

[Maryanne Solo]

Download the latest drivers and see how it goes. Latest is the 11.1 catalyst suite @ 95.1 megabyte download size. Every video card comes with the appropriate fan built into the card itself. You cannot purchase any *normal video card that has not been tested with an adequate fan. Be aware of the *silent cards that have NO fan and rely on heat sinks for dissipation only.

ATI catalyst control centres, and I imagine nvidia software is the same, allow you to take manual control of your graphics card fan speed for those who live in hot climates. There are also third party applications that allow you to do the same.

Your only concern would be that your computer case has adequate internal airflow to ensure heat is removed promptly and efficiently. It is normal to clean or vacuum your fans, heat sinks and vent ports yearly to ensure your investment is protected.

If you purchase a new video card yearly you can expect to see that message for at least a month or two every year. The trick is, only buy a card that has 1gigabyte of memory at this point in time. I ran a HD4800 with 1gb of memory for 12 months and had zero problems with it. This card continues to run SL on my younger sisters custom PC at Ultra settings.

Any custom PC shop will stock these type of cards. The staff are always enthusiastic and will help you sort an appropriate purchase. Befriend the staff members of a reputable custom PC shop. They exist because of repeat customers, unlike the huge generic average trash peddlers.