Macbook Pro and Win7 Bootcamp: GPU Issues

[FluJunkie]

First, my apologies for any lack of specific information - asking this question for someone else, based on a phone call I had with him playing "family tech support expert".

My brother has a 15 inch Macbook Pro, of mid-2010, MacBookPro6,2 line, the generation immediately previous to the newest incarnation of the Macbook Pro. He got a model with switchable graphics, either the integrated Intel GPU or an Nvidia GeForce GT 330M.

The OS X side of his machine seems to be running fine - he gets decent frame rates playing Starcraft II, System Profiler recognizes his card, and all is well.

Windows 7 appears to be struggling in Bootcamp. The first hint was the *Sins of a Solar Empire* refuses to launch, informing him that his Windows Experience Index score is a 1, and *Sins* needs at least a 2 to run. As his computer's profoundly not a "1", I had him run the WEI utility, and sure enough, it lists his GPU score as a 1.

Similarly, when I have him bring up System Information, there's nothing in Display. Adapter RAM displays as 0, most things are "Unknown", "None" or "Missing", etc.

Any idea what could be causing this, or how to fix it?

 

[tmagman]

simplest solution may be just disposing of the bootcamp partition and starting from scratch with it.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

Make sure the video card drivers are installed. That's the bootcamp drivers.

 

[johnhurley]

First, my apologies for any lack of specific information - asking this question for someone else, based on a phone call I had with him playing "family tech support expert".

My brother has a 15 inch Macbook Pro, of mid-2010, MacBookPro6,2 line, the generation immediately previous to the newest incarnation of the Macbook Pro. He got a model with switchable graphics, either the integrated Intel GPU or an Nvidia GeForce GT 330M.

The OS X side of his machine seems to be running fine - he gets decent frame rates playing Starcraft II, System Profiler recognizes his card, and all is well.

Windows 7 appears to be struggling in Bootcamp. The first hint was the *Sins of a Solar Empire* refuses to launch, informing him that his Windows Experience Index score is a 1, and *Sins* needs at least a 2 to run. As his computer's profoundly not a "1", I had him run the WEI utility, and sure enough, it lists his GPU score as a 1.

Similarly, when I have him bring up System Information, there's nothing in Display. Adapter RAM displays as 0, most things are "Unknown", "None" or "Missing", etc.

Any idea what could be causing this, or how to fix it?

After you complete the first part of the bootcamp installation you do another part of the config where you install drivers into windows ... drivers that the bootcamp assistant should have either burned to a drive for you or in some cases ( depending on os level etc ) be on the mac os x install disk.

If you don't do the windows driver installs ... your system cannot figure out a bunch of the devices. Sounds like a likely suspect for the what you are describing ...