PCoIP Ultra
The Software Client for Windows provides support for PCoIP Ultra, the latest protocol enhancements from HP.
PCoIP Ultra enhancements are controlled on the Anyware agent. There is no configuration required on the Anyware Client.
Important: PCoIP Ultra is Enabled by Default
PCoIP Ultra is enabled by default. To configure Ultra, carefully review the recommended use cases in the next section to determine the PCoIP Ultra value most suited for your needs.
Requirement: AVX2 Support
All client machines and remote Windows and Linux agent machines must support the AVX2 instruction set. The Anyware Agent for macOS requires AVX2 support when running on Intel hardware. PCoIP Ultra is supported on Apple Silicon with Anyware Agent for macOS 22.09 or higher.
For additional detail on PCoIP Ultra technical requirements for various use cases and troubleshooting steps, refer to KB 2109: PCoIP Ultra Troubleshooting.
PCoIP Ultra Modes
PCoIP Ultra has three acceleration modes, which leverage CPU and GPU offloading to optimize content delivery.
- Auto Offload: When using a Anyware Graphics agent, PCoIP Ultra can automatically select and switch between CPU-offload and GPU-offload modes based on the amount of pixel change in the displays. When displays are rendering highly dynamic content, PCoIP Ultra will enable GPU Offload to provide improved frame rates and bandwidth optimization. When displays are less dynamic, PCoIP Ultra defaults to CPU offload to provide the best image fidelity.
PCoIP Ultra Offload only takes effect if the remote Anyware Graphics agent and the Anyware software client are capable of both CPU and GPU offload.
Dynamically switches between CPU and GPU offload modes depending on the workload being processed. This setting is appropriate for work-from-home or WAN content creators who require optimized delivery of high resolution content, including video playback, while still achieving build-to-lossless color accuracy. This mode requires a GPU and a graphics agent.
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CPU Offload: Provides efficient scaling across multicore CPUs, leveraging AVX2 instruction sets. Appropriate for users that require CPU-optimized delivery of 4K UHD, high-framerate video playback and build-to-lossless color accuracy. It is also useful when GPU encoding resources must be reserved for video encoding applications, typically in LAN environments.
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GPU Offload: PCoIP encoding is always offloaded to a GPU. Appropriate for users who demand the highest possible CPU efficiency. This mode requires a GPU and a graphics agent.
Setting PCoIP Ultra
PCoIP Ultra defaults to Auto Offload on agent machines, provided that it has not been set to Auto Offload (in a prior deployment), and the agent and client machines are capable of both CPU and GPU Offload.
The PCoIP Ultra offload mode is set on the Anyware agent. Refer to the appropriate documentation for instructions:
- Windows Graphics Agent
- macOS Graphics Agent
- Linux Graphics Agent
- Windows Standard Agent
- Linux Standard Agent
Note: Setting the PCoIP Ultra Values
PCoIP Ultra now defaults to "Auto Offload" on agent machines. When the H.264 Hardware Decoding setting is disabled on client machines, it results in PCoIP Ultra not defaulting to "Auto Offload".
PCoIP Codec Indicator
When enabling PCoIP Ultra, an onscreen indicator is observed at the bottom-left corner of the screen. CPU optimization is indicated by a dark blue dot, while GPU optimization is indicated by a magenta dot.
To disable this codec indicator, create the following registry key and set it to 0: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Teradici\PCoIP\pcoip_admin_defaults\ pcoip.codec_indicator (DWORD)
H.264 Hardware Decode
The Anyware Software Client for Windows supports H.264 hardware decode for selected hardware configurations by using the Anyware Client to enable the decode. For information on this, see H.264 Hardware Decode.