AMD is developing Smart Access Storage to enable speedier game loading.

by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 05/23/2022 10:07 AM | source: | 15 comment(s)

AMD is developing Smart Access Storage. Smart Access Storage could be a Microsoft DirectStorage API implementation that uses hardware-accelerated decompression.

While AMD already talked about this technology before, they today announced it. Smart Access Storage has the ability to shorten game loading times. Actually, ever since 2020, it has been used efficiently on Xbox Series consoles. AMD did not publish specifics on Smart Access Storage's operation, but it is apparent that the technology is based on Microsoft's DirectStorage API, which is included with DirectX 12. AMD's implementation includes "own technology and GPU decompression," according to the company. Smart Access Storage should enhance the cooperation between CPU, GPU, and storage, allowing for decompression on the GPU, for example. The extracted textures are thus stored in the vram rather than the CPU's working memory, after which they must travel over the tight PCIe bus in an unpacked and hence bigger condition. In March, Microsoft included quick Xbox loading to Windows 10 and Windows 11. This SDK transports game objects directly from storage to the GPU, significantly lowering loading times.

AMD will reveal more information about Smart Access Storage in the coming months. To take advantage of the functionality, from the looks of things, games must support the new technology, so it's not a native solution. According to AMD, only unpacking on the visual card could reduce loading times.

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Undying
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Joined: 2008-08-28

#6019444 Posted on: 05/23/2022 10:16 AM

So transporting game objects from storage to the gpu means we'll have alot higher vram req. in the future.

FlyBy
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#6019457 Posted on: 05/23/2022 11:10 AM

I don't think so, it should not require more VRAM, it's just a smarter/shorter process of getting the same data from your SSD into VRAM, bypassing the CPU. It is still the same data, just a shorter path to destination to my understanding. But hey, more VRAM never hurts.

Horus-Anhur
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#6019458 Posted on: 05/23/2022 11:14 AM

Direct Storage does not bypass the CPU. And it does not sent data directly to the GPU.
It still passes information through the CPU, memory and PCIe bus.
This means it still requires bandwidth from these.

DirectStorage speculations & myths

Alessio1989
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Joined: 2015-06-11

#6019461 Posted on: 05/23/2022 11:33 AM

Direct Storage does to bypass the CPU. And it does not sent data directly to the GPU.
It still passes information through the CPU, memory and PCIe bus.
This means it still requires bandwidth from these.

DirectStorage speculations & myths
well a myth is also spectre being an issue, most of game use custom archvie formats and not a gazillion of small files. Small assets are usually in a pool of a bigger file. Same are those assets stored on the GPU in bigger buffer pools along with other assets... Usually. Plus most of spectre mitigations must be turned on on the binary when compiling, and devs can choose if adding them on a game binary or not (actually by default aren't). DirectStorage is not mean to stop using custom archives and modern compression methods on game assets, it's meant to lower the passes on loading files to lower the CPU usage and some cache misses/flushes that are done by current I/O OS pipelines. GPU decoding would be sweet but it is still missing. And to be honest it will not help everywhere (in some scenarios could make things worse).

Astyanax
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Joined: 2018-03-21

#6019476 Posted on: 05/23/2022 12:23 PM

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