Autodesk� Alias 2010 for Windows Hardware Qualification
Last Updated: September 2009

Products
Platform
 Version
Software Date
Build Number

Alias (Automotive, Surface, Design, StudioViewer, Renderers)

 32-bit 2010 (16.0) March 10, 2009 200903102308-299039
64-bit 2010 (16.0) March 10, 2009

200903102308-299039
Contents of this Page
Supported Operating Systems and CPU Platforms
Operating System
CPU Platform
 
Intel
AMD
Xeon
Core
Opteron

Windows XP Pro SP2 or SP3

✔
✔
✔

Windows XP x64 Edition SP1 or SP2

✔
✔
✔
Windows XP Home Edition
Unsupported

Windows 2000 Professional

Unsupported

Windows 2003 Server x64

Unsupported

Windows Vista 32-Bit [Business or Ultimate]
✔

Windows Vista 64-Bit [Business or Ultimate]
✔
Windows Vista Home [Basic or Premium]
Unsupported
Windows 7
Undergoing Qualification. Currently Unsupported
General Hardware Requirements
  • 32-bit or 64-bit Windows Operating System. Refer to Supported Operating System table above.
  • minimum 2GB or greater system memory highly recommended.
  • 2 GHz or greater CPU - refer to Operating System and CPU Platform table above.
  • 256MB minimum video memory and supported video card with appropriate OpenGL driver. OpenGL 2.0 driver support is required for advanced rendering features to work correctly. 512MB or greater is highly recommended especially with Windows Vista. Intel Integrated Graphics configurations are not supported in any way.
  • 3 button mouse.
  • Wacom tablet is strongly recommended for any 2D paint workflows (refer to Tablet Support section in this document).
Important Notes

Alias is shipped as both 32-bit and 64-bit binaries. Running the 64-bit native version of Alias requires Windows XP x64 Edition or Windows Vista 64-bit Edition.

The 32-bit Alias binary supports the /3GB switch with supported versions of Microsoft Windows. The /3GB switch allocates 3 GB of virtual address space to an application that uses IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE in the process header. This switch allows applications to address 1 GB of additional virtual address space above 2 GB. On 64-bit editions of Windows the 32-bit Alias application can utilize up to 4GB of address space with no modification to the system. The native 64-bit version of Alias does not have have the above limitation and will utilize all available memory.

Certain 3rd party software may alter the processor affinity settings, affecting multi-cpu systems running Alias.exe and its spawned processes. To check the affinity setting right click on the Alias.exe process inside the Windows Task Manager and select Set Affinity... ensure that all available CPUs are enabled.

Alias or its component programs may not launch successfully after installing Service Pack 2 for Windows XP Professional. If this occurs, you may either unblock the program via the Windows Firewall Security Alert dialog, or add it as an Exception in the Exceptions Tab in the Windows Firewall dialog box. For more information, please see the Microsoft Update. Similar configurations are necessary for any third party firewall software.
Please Read
  • It may be possible to successfully use Alias for Windows with a non-qualified configuration, however, Support and Maintenance programs will be subject to the Autodesk Support services guidelines.
  • The configurations shown are subject to change, and additional qualified configurations may be added after qualification testing has been carried out.
  • The graphics drivers specified in this table are the drivers that were used for the qualification process. While it may be possible to use Alias for Windows successfully on earlier or later drivers, Autodesk cannot guarantee their performance.
  • Autodesk will continue to explore new candidates for Alias for Windows qualification and will monitor the current configurations. For the most recent information on qualification, please refer to www.autodesk.com/qual-charts.
Qualified Hardware Configurations (for notebooks see Mobile Workstations below)
Systems consisting of any combination of the workstations and graphics cards listed below are supported for use with Alias. Please review all documented limitations for a given configuration, in some cases not all functionality is supported. Please consult workstation vendor for available graphics configurations.
Company Models Web
Dell

Precision Workstations:
390
690
T3400
T5400
T3500
T5500
T7500

 www.dell.com/precision
Hewlett Packard

HP Workstations:
Z600
Z400
XW9400 (incl. SLi)
XW9300 (incl. SLi)
XW8440
XW8200
XW6600
XW6440
XW6200
XW4400
XW4300
XW4200

www.hp.com/workstations
IBM/Lenovo

IBM Intellistations/Lenovo ThinkStations:
IBM Intellistation A Pro [6217]
IBM Intellistation M Pro [6218, 6225]
IBM Intellistation Z Pro [9228]
Lenovo ThinkStation S10
Lenovo ThinkStation D10
Lenovo ThinkStation D20

 www.ibm.com/intellistation
www.lenovo.com/thinkstation
Mobile Workstations
Systems consisting of any combination of the mobile workstations and graphics drivers listed below have been certified for use by Autodesk and are fully supported for use with Alias. Please review all documented limitations for a given configuration, in some cases not all functionality is supported.
✔
 Configuration meet all requirements for stable and acceptable performance in all functional areas of the software.
ο
 Configuration meet some but not all requirements. Limitations exist.
✖
 Configuration is not suitable for qualification.
Untested Configuration not tested by Autodesk and at time of press are not qualified for use with Alias. Use at own risk.
Vendor
Models
GPU
Driver Versions
Web
Windows XP Professional
Windows XP Professional x64 Edition
Windows Vista 32
Windows Vista 64
Dell Precision M90 Nvidia Quadro FX 1500M
Untested
Untested
Untested
Untested
 http://www.dell.com/precision
Nvidia Quadro FX 2500M
Untested
Untested
Untested
Untested
Precision M4400 Nvidia Quadro FX 770M
176.88
176.88
176.88
176.88
Precision M6300 Nvidia Quadro FX 1600M
175.75
175.75
Untested
Untested
Nvidia Quadro FX 3600M
175.75
175.75
Untested
Untested
Precision M6400 ATI FirePro M7740
✖
✖
✖
✖
Nvidia Quadro FX 2700M
176.88
176.88
176.88
176.88
Nvidia Quadro FX 3700M
176.88
176.88
176.88
176.88
Hewlett Packard Compaq nw9440 Nvidia Quadro FX 1500M
156.55
156.55
Untested
Untested
 http://www.hp.com/workstations
Nvidia Quadro FX 2500M
156.55
156.55
Untested
Untested
Compaq 8710w Nvidia Quadro FX 1600M
174.70
174.70
Untested
Untested
Nvidia Quadro FX 3600M
174.70
174.70
Untested
Untested
Compaq 8510w Nvidia Quadro FX 570M
174.70
174.70
Untested
Untested
EliteBook 8530w ATI Mobility FireGL V5700
8.543.1.4
8.543.1.4
8.543.1.4
8.543.1.4
Nvidia Quadro FX 770M
176.87
176.87
176.87
176.87
EliteBook 8730w ATI Mobility FireGL V5725
8.543.1.4
8.543.1.4
8.543.1.4
8.543.1.4
Nvidia Quadro FX 2700M
176.87
176.87
176.87
176.87
Nvidia Quadro FX 3700M
176.87
176.87
176.87
176.87
Lenovo

T61p Thinkpad

 Nvidia Quadro FX 570M
177.15
177.15
Untested
Untested
 http://www.lenovo.com
W500 Thinkpad ATI Mobility FireGL V5700
8.543
8.543
8.543
8.543
W700 Thinkpad (integrated digitizer unsupported) Nvidia Quadro FX 3700M
176.95
176.95
176.95
176.95
 
Graphics Cards and Driver Versions
Color coding legend
✔
 Graphics card and driver combination meet all requirements for stable and acceptable performance in all functional areas of the software.
ο
 Graphics card and driver combination meet some but not all requirements. Limitations exist.
✖
 Graphics card vendor has not provided a suitable driver for qualification. It is expected that a suitable driver will be released for use with Alias in the future.
Untested
 Configuration not tested by Autodesk and at time of press are not qualified for use with Alias. Use at own risk.
Vendor
Graphics Card
Driver Version
Windows XP Professional
Windows XP Professional x64 Edition
Windows Vista 32 bit Edition
Windows Vista 64 bit Edition

AMD

 FireGL V7600
FireGL V7700
FireGL V8600
FireGL V8650
FirePro V3750
FirePro V5700
FirePro V7750
FirePro V8700
NVIDIA Quadro FX 570
178.46
Quadro FX 1700
Quadro FX 1500
Quadro FX 3400
Quadro FX 3450
Quadro FX 3500
Quadro FX 3700
Quadro FX 4400
Quadro FX 5500
Quadro FX 4600
Quadro FX 4800
Quadro FX 5600
Quadro FX 5800
Quadro FX 4500
Quadro FX 4500 X2
Quadro FX 580
Quadro FX 1800
Quadro FX 3800
NVIDIA GeForce Based GPU

There are many cards based on the GeForce GPU family. Although it is likely that many GeForce based graphics cards will provide decent levels of performance and quality, such as the GeForce 7900, 8800 it is suggested that you choose from NVIDIA's workstation cards such as the Quadro FX family which are more aptly suited to high-end 3D applications such as Alias.

Please refer to the following white paper prepared by NVIDIA Corporation.: Nvidia GeForce vs Quadro White Paper [PDF]
Advanced Hardware Rendering Features in Alias


Using the advanced capabilities of modern graphics hardware it is possible to produce higher levels of realism when using the Hardware Shade functionality within Alias. These features enable more accurate reflection mapping and other effects in hardware. In order to achieve these results in hardware your graphics card and driver combination must fully support the OpenGL Shading Language (GLSL) which is part of the OpenGL2.0 specification. The following table lists features that require GLSL support. In most cases Alias detects incompatible hardware and will not expose these advanced features.

Per-Pixel Shading Mode must be selected inside the Hardware Shade options in order to see the advanced shading capabilities.

Alias 2010 Hardware Shade Functionality
OpenGL 2.0/GLSL Driver Support Required

Self Shadows

No

Shader Glow
No

Displacement Mapping
No

Planar/Camera Projection Mapping (Color, Transparency)
No

Depth of Field
No

Ambient Occlusion Calculation and Display
No

Cube Map Reflections
No

Image Based Lighting
Yes

Blinn Shading
Yes

Bump/Specular Mapping
Yes

All Projection Types (Color, Bump, Transparency, Specular)
Yes

Linear/Spot Lights
Yes

Advanced Virtual Ground Plane Reflection Control
Yes

Advanced Virtual Ground Plane Shadow Control
Yes
Shading Maps
Yes

Environment Reflections
Yes

Wirefile Compatibility Chart
Alias
Supported File Formats
Format
Read
Write
 Notes
Wire

✔

✔

 As of version 10.0 Alias (StudioTools) wirefiles are backward and forward compatible with newer versions of Alias. StudioTools 10.0 and later will read wirefiles written by prior versions, however, prior versions will not be able to read v10.0 or later wirefiles. We have provided the from100to97.exe translator that will convert 10.0 and later wirefiles to v9.7.x wirefiles.
Autodesk Inventor

✔

 

 Autodesk Inventor or Inventor View must be installed in order to read Inventor data.
Open Inventor

✔

✔

  
IGES

✔

✔

  
STEP

✔

✔

  
DXF/DWG

✔

✔

  
DES

✔

✔

  
NEUTRO

✔

✔

  
CATIA CAI

✔

✔
CATIA v4

✔

 

  
CATIA v5 R11-R19

✔

✔

 CatiaV5 Direct Connect available as purchaseable module.
Unigraphics NX3- NX6 (see note)

✔

✔

 UG Direct Connect available as purchaseable module.
PTC Granite

✔

✔

  
OBJ

✔

✔
VDAFS

✔

✔
VDAIS

✔

✔
JAMAIS

✔

✔
C4

✔

✔
Illustrator

✔

✔

 pre v9.0 .ai files can be imported into Alias. When exporting files from Adobe Illustrator be sure to export v8.0 files. Alias Shape curves can only be exported as Illustrator bezier curves through the Print interface. It is possible to export to PostScript format which will flatten all geometry as linear curves.
EPS

✔

 
ProE Render

✔


 
STL

✔

✔

Binary and ASCII formats supported.
Maya
  • Maya 4.5 and later will read Alias/StudioTools 10.0 and later wirefiles via studioImport.mll (plugin shipped with Maya).
  • Maya 4.5 exports 9.5.2 wirefiles via MayaToAlias.mll (plugin shipped with Maya 4.5)
  • Maya 5.0 and later export version 9.7.3 wirefiles via MayaToAlias.mll (plugin shipped with Maya)
  • Alias ships with a translator that will convert current version wirefiles to v9.7 wirefiles that can be read into pre-v10 version of Alias as well as Maya.
    • Stereo3D Viewing Capable Graphics Cards
    Alias has been tested with CrystalEyes glasses from StereoGraphics Corporation 

    Running at resolutions higher than 1600x1200 may result in a reduction in overall draw speed and is done at the users own risk.

    Anti-Aliasing

    Anti-Aliased display in Alias can be achieved using one of the following methods:

    Anti-Aliasing Controls and Settings
    Full Scene Anti-Aliasing (FSAA), Driver Controlled Graphics driver Anti-Aliasing control is set to override any application settings. The entire Alias window is anti-aliased. There is no distinction between a OpenGL viewport and rest of the application. Benefit: Amount of oversampling only limited by card resources and graphics memory resulting in extremely smooth shading. Anti-aliased display is persistent
    Drawback: It is not possible to toggle anti-aliased display. Can cause noticeable degredation in interactive performance.
    Full Scene Anti-Aliasing (FSAA), Application Controlled
    		 Anti-Aliasing control is set to 'Application Controlled' in the Graphics Driver Control Panel with additional setting in Alias: Window Display->Shaded Anti-Alias.... 'Allocate Hardware Anti-Alias Resources on Startup'. This allows for Alias to use a 4x Full Scene Anti-Aliasing from the graphics card. Only modelling windows receive the Anti-Aliasing visual and can be toggled ON and OFF. Benefit: Only modeling windows receive the Anti-Aliased display resulting in less visual artifacting. Can be toggled ON and OFF. Anti-aliased display is persistent
    Drawback: Can cause mild degredation in interactive performance.
    Camera based Anti-Aliasing
    		 Anti-Aliasing is controlled entirely from within the Window Display->Shaded Anti-Alias.... Software Anti-Alias options and is only applied when Hardware Shade or Diagnostic Shade is enabled. The results are additive to any existing FSAA if enabled in graphics driver. Benefit: Not dependent on graphics card and can easily be controlled within Alias without restarting. Various quality settings can easily be specified for very high quality smoothing.
    Drawback: Anti-Aliasing is only active during idle camera positions. It is disabled during camera moves and animation (playblasts do receive Anti-Aliasing). Expect delays when used in conjunction with other Hardware Shade effects.
    Tablet Support

    Alias has been tested and confirmed to work with the Wacom Intuos series of tablets (see driver level below) with Windows XP and Windows Vista (32 and 64 bit).

    Active Tablet Displays: Alias has been tested and confirmed to work with the Wacom Cintiq 18SX and Cintiq 21UX Active tablets. A DVI compatible graphics card is required to use the Cintiq series of tablets.

    Note Regarding Dual Monitor Configurations: Dual monitor configurations may cause incorrect cursor behavior when spanning multiple monitors. Autodesk is currently investigating this problem with Wacom. At this time there is no solution. Refer to Dual Monitor Support below for more information on running Alias with dual monitors.

    Tablet Driver Notes/Limitations

    Wacom Driver: 6.1.0-6 (RC)
    Limitation Intermittent problems with cursor offset after changing Wacom tablet properties
    Solution/Workaround Solved by minimizing and restoring the Alias main window.
    Limitation 5 button mouse cursor not in sync with paint stroke after initial driver installation with Intuos2
    Solution/Workaround Reinstall tablet driver.
    Dual Monitor Support

    If your graphics card supports dual monitor outputs please read the following if you are considering using Alias with multiple displays. There are two configurations which will affect Alias performance with dual display output. Not all graphics cards support both configurations.

    Display Mode One: Dualview

    In this mode each monitor is running a separate display running at a resolution which is unique to each monitor. For example, you can have both monitors set to a resolution of 1280x1024, 1600x1200 etc.

      Limitations
      • Alias should be run on the primary display. Is recommended that you always run Alias on the primary display for optimal performance.
      • If you want to use Alias for modelling on the second display, open the Display properties again and set it as the primary display.
      • You may notice performance degradation when running on the second display.
    Display Mode Two: Horizontal Span

    In this mode the graphics driver interprets the two displays as one virtual desktop, so if you run a single monitor at 1280x1024 then the display resolution in a spanned mode would be 2560x1024.
      Limitations

      When using Studio with two displays, where one display is the Wacom Cintiq, you cannot run in a spanned mode. To configure your system to use the Wacom Cintiq in a dual monitor configuration follow these steps:

      • Uninstall the Wacom display driver (if you were previously using a regular Wacom tablet)
      • Connect the Wacom Cintiq to either the first or second graphics port
      • Open the Display Properties, select the Wacom display and set it as the primary monitor.
      • Install the Wacom display driver
      • Open Settings>Control Panel>Wacom Tablet Properties and select Calibrate to align the tablet to the Cintiq display.

    Note: When using a 'spanned' desktop without the Cintiq, Alias runs properly on both displays.

    Alias Hardware Limitations
    General Limitations Common To All Cards
    Limitation Shading maps with file textures may look incorrect in Hardware Shade
    Solution/Workaround Use procedural textures or do not use pure white values in the file texture
    Limitation Pull down cascading menus in rare cases may fail to accept mouse input
    Solution/Workaround Do not release mouse button when selecting cascading menu items or restart Alias
    Limitation Missing refresh when using mouse scroll wheel to dolly camera in Hardware Shade mode
    Solution/Workaround This only occurs when Anti-Aliasing is enabled in the Hardware Shade settings
    Limitation Pick boxes in Action Window leave trails
    Solution/Workaround This is only a display artifact which is cleared when a window refresh occurs
    Limitation Slow selection performance with Anti-Aliased surface display. This is more noticeable with large datasets
    Solution/Workaround Disable driver controlled Anti-Aliasing in driver control panel or Application control Anti-Aliasing through Preferences->General Preferences->Draw
    Windows Vista: Common to All Cards
    Limitation Erratic turntable performance when viewed with timeslider on dual monitor configurations
    Solution/Workaround Disable timeslider or run on single display
    Limitation Intermittent selection performance degradation if AntiAliasing is enabled with 'Export Image'
    Solution/Workaround Restart application if you encounter this problem.
    Limitation Pick boxes in Action Window leave trails
    Solution/Workaround This is only a display artifact which is cleared when a window refresh occurs
    Limitation Slow selection performance with Anti-Aliased surface display. This is more noticeable with large datasets
    Solution/Workaround Disable driver controlled Anti-Aliasing in driver control panel or Application control Anti-Aliasing through Preferences->General Preferences->Draw
    Common To All NVIDIA
    Limitation In some cases Marking Menu performance will be extremely poor. This is not a general problem and has only been reported in isolated cases.
    Solution/Workaround Changing to another 3D preset in the driver has been reported to fix the slow Marking Menu performance.
    Limitation Very poor performance and stability when 3D profile is not set to AliasSTUDIO in the Nvidia driver Control Panel
    Solution/Workaround This will be addressed in a upcoming Nvidia driver. For current drivers be sure to set the AliasSTUDIO 3D profile.
    Limitation Slower framerates when running DualView display configurations
    Solution/Workaround Consider using a Horiztontal Span configuration instead of DualView if you notice significant performance loss when running Alias
    Limitation Slower than expected framerates with animation playback and interactive draw speed
    Solution/Workaround Disable hardware overlays in Advanced OpenGL driver properties
    Common To All ATI
    Limitation Poor performance with single sided shading in Hardware Shade
    Limitation ViewCube can contribute to a perceivable performance degredation with draw speed
    Solution/Workaround Disable ViewCube in General Preferences
    Limitation Significant drop in interactive performance both with playback framerate and selection if there are open windows obscuring any of the Alias viewports
    Solution/Workaround Use Windows Classic Theme under Display Properties
    Limitation Display artifacts may occur during modifications to shader attributes or Hardware Shade settings while Hardware Shade is active. These artifacts should only be momentary and are cleared with a refresh
    Limitation Slow selection performance with anti-aliased surface display
    Solution/Workaround Disable Anti-aliased surface shading in Preferences->General Preferences->Draw and restart Alias