Microsoft Not Keen on Hybrid SLI & Crossfire

Hybrid graphics systems might not be able to churn out the high-res frame
rates demanded by enthusiast gamers, but both Nvidia and AMD have
invested a lot of marketing bucks in the technology at the lower end of
the scale. It turns out that Microsoft really doesn’t like hybrid
graphics, though, to the point where the software company has branded
the technologies ‘unstable’ in its Windows 7 documentation.

In Microsoft’s Guidelines for Graphics in Windows 7 document, which was
released yesterday, Microsoft outlined its feelings about hybrid
graphics, stating that ‘Windows 7 does not offer native support for
hybrid graphics systems.’ Not only that, but Microsoft added the reason
for the decision saying that hybrid graphics systems ‘can be unstable
and provide a poor user experience,’ and that it would ‘strongly
discourage system manufacturers from shipping such systems.’ Microsoft
also added that ‘such systems require a reboot to switch between GPUs.’

Both Hybrid SLI and Hybrid CrossFire are low-end multi-graphics systems that
allow you to complement an integrated graphics chip with a low-end
discrete graphics card to boost the performance. It’s a feature that
Nvidia touted as a potential advantage of its recently-announced
GeForce 9 mGPU, which can get a boost from the addition of a
GeForce 8400 GS or 8500 GT card.

Have
you used a hybrid multi-graphics system? If so, did you find it
unstable, or is Microsoft wrong here? Let us know your thoughts.