V-Link Mode Selection

Common Options : Auto, Mode 0, Mode 1, Mode 2, Mode 3, Mode 4

Quick Review

The VLink Mode Selection BIOS feature is used to control the operation of the V-Link bus. Although VIA does not divulge what each option does, this is what we have managed to find out :

When set to Mode 0, the V-Link bus will be set to run at quad data rate (QDR) with only 8 data lines active. This essentially reverts it to the original V-Link mode with a bandwidth of 266 MB/s.

When set to Mode 1 or Mode 2, the V-Link bus will be set to run at octal data rate (ODR) with only 8 data lines active. This essentially sets it to the 8X V-Link mode with a bandwidth of 533 MB/s.

When set to Mode 3, the V-Link bus will be set to run at quad data rate (QDR) with all 16 data lines active. This gives it a bandwidth of 533 MB/s.

When set to Mode 4, the V-Link bus will be set to run at octal data rate (ODR) with all 16 data lines active. This gives it a bandwidth of 1GB/s.

When set to Auto, the BIOS will automatically detect and enable the highest supported mode. This depends on the V-Link mode supported by the chipset.

If you are sure that your motherboard chipset supports Ultra V-Link, you should set this BIOS feature to Mode 4 for maximum performance. However, watch out for hard disk drive data corruption or boot failures. Those problems are really due to V-Link Data 2X Support. But if your motherboard BIOS does not provide you with the option to disable V-Link Data 2X Support, you can select Mode 3 to correct the problem.

If your motherboard chipset only supports 8X V-Link, then you should set this BIOS feature to Mode 1 or Mode 2. Do not use Mode 3, even though it gives the same amount of bandwidth. Mode 3 is a troubleshooting option for motherboards that support Ultra V-Link (which has 16 data lines).

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