Gpu and encoding apparatus for virtual machine environments

Abstract

A system encodes an image for a remote client. A graphics processor unit (GPU) renders an image in response to graphics commands received from a central processing unit (CPU) virtual machine. Image attributes are determined by display requirements from the remote client. A display encoder is associated with the GPU, encodes the image, and operates independent of the rendering of the image. A network interface may be associated with the CPU, GPU or display encoder and may transmit the encoded image across a network to the remote client.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for encoding an image for a remote client, the system comprising:
 a Graphics Processor Unit (GPU) for rendering the image in response to graphics commands from a first virtual machine (VM) of a Central Processing Unit (CPU), wherein attributes of the image are determined by display requirements from the remote client;   a display encoder associated with the GPU and enabled to encode the image, the display encoder separated from the CPU by a peripheral bus and operating independent of the rendering of the image; and   a network interface associated with at least one of the CPU, the GPU or the display encoder for transmitting the encoded image across an Internet Protocol (IP) network to the remote client.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display requirements comprise a pixel resolution requirement and wherein the graphics commands are determined by the pixel resolution requirement. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display encoder comprises at least an image transform stage and an entropy encoder used to generate the encoded image, and wherein rendering the image is performed exclusive of the image transform stage or the entropy encoder. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein the image transform stage is enabled to compute a DCT transform and wherein the entropy encoder comprises an arithmetic encoder. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display encoder comprises an image decomposition stage enabled to provide classification of the image based on image type and wherein encoding of the image is in accordance with the classification. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the image type is determined by analysis of the graphics commands. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display encoder comprises motion estimation and motion compensation stages. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display encoder is enabled to encode a second image associated with one of i) an additional display of the remote client or ii) a second remote client. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the display encoder comprises an encoder control module for active frame buffer control between encoding the image and the second image. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the encoder control module is instructed by a virtual machine environment comprising a plurality of virtual machines with a plurality of associated images. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein an update rate of the display encoder is based on activity of the image. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein a region for the activity of the image is indicated by a pointing device location. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein an update rate of the display encoder is determined by an available bandwidth of the IP network between the system and the remote client. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the encoded image transmitted by the network interface comprises selectively processed areas of the image, the selectively processed areas determined by the GPU. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the selectively processed areas comprise updated pixels of the image determined by the GPU, wherein the updated pixels are encoded by the encoder. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the GPU provides the display encoder with instructions related to an encoding method. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the attributes of the image comprise at least one of display resolution or aspect ratio. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the peripheral bus comprises a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) Express bus. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a VM environment maintained by the CPU, wherein each of a plurality of VMs of the VM environment appears to comprise a dedicated display interface for transmitting encoded data to a corresponding one in a plurality of remote display systems. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19 , wherein at least one in the plurality of remote display systems comprises a user input device and multiple displays.