A recovered Intel "Larrabee" graphics prototype has been restored to working order, allowing the community to test the company's abandoned graphics project. Reddit user pkellythompson found the hardware at a storage auction, discovering a DX58SO motherboard, a C0 stepping Larrabee sample, and diagnostic boards. The system requires DVI connections and BIOS adjustments to boot Windows 7.
Archived driver files, approximately 82 MB and 728 MB, include development utilities and VBIOS instructions. First detailed in 2008, Larrabee aimed to challenge NVIDIA and AMD using software processing on simple in-order x86 cores with wide vector units. Intel canceled the consumer launch in December 2009, though the architecture later powered Xeon Phi accelerators.
The restored prototype ran Crysis at 1280×720p with Medium settings, initially exceeding 17 FPS, with another driver boosting performance to around 36 FPS. The files have been preserved and uploaded to the Internet Archive, providing a starting point for further experiments despite the need for working Xeon Phi gaming support to be demonstrated.
Source: TechPowerUp News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing