NVIDIA’s development team has announced that the upcoming driver series, starting with the 580 branch, will mark the final updates for a selection of older GPU generations. This decision specifically impacts Maxwell, Pascal, and Volta architectures, while Windows users will receive extended support compared to their Linux counterparts.
NVIDIA Set to Conclude GPU Driver Support for Older Generations Following 580 Series
In a recent announcement, NVIDIA has clarified its approach regarding GPU driver updates for earlier generations of NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards. Particularly, the Fermi (GTX 500 series) and Kepler (GTX 600 series) GPUs have already lost support for the latest driver updates. Now, the focus shifts to the upcoming discontinuation of driver support for the GTX 700 (Maxwell), GTX 900 (Maxwell), GTX 1000 (Pascal), and Volta series cards.
NVIDIA’s impending driver series, labeled as 580, will provide final updates for the designated GPU collections mentioned above. Currently, NVIDIA is utilizing the 570 driver series, initiated with the GeForce RTX 50 series GPUs. The transition to the 580 driver series is expected to happen soon, with Linux users being the first to experience the cessation of updates. In contrast, Windows users can anticipate a longer timeframe for driver updates, including potential continuation into the 590 driver series.
It is typical for hardware manufacturers to discontinue driver support for aging technologies, especially considering that the GPUs in question are now between 8 to 11 years old. Updates on Windows tend to receive one or two additional series compared to Linux, offering Maxwell, Pascal, and Volta users a reprieve as they remain eligible for updates at least a year longer than those operating on Linux.
The official release date of the NVIDIA 580 series driver has not been announced yet, but indications suggest it may launch by year-end. Given the regular updates expected in this driver branch, owners of the Maxwell, Pascal, and Volta GPUs can anticipate ongoing support for at least another year, particularly for Windows users.
For more details, refer to the following sources: NVIDIA and Videocardz.
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