Which Intel RST and Intel MEI do I want for Windows 8.1?

Discussion in 'Windows 8' started by bodean, Oct 15, 2013.

  1. bodean

    bodean MDL Novice

    Sep 4, 2013
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    Any help appreciated. So many different ones on station-drivers.com
    Run a P8Z68 Asus MB.
     
  2. Enigma256

    Enigma256 MDL Senior Member

    Jan 17, 2011
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    Are you actually running RAID? If not, you are probably better off using the default Windows AHCI drivers. There is no significant performance difference, and Microsoft's AHCI drivers, despite the generic "2006" date, are actually updated with each version of Windows; for example, the default drivers supported TRIM before RST did. The RST has issues, such as marking all my drives as non-hotswappable, even though 4 of them are in hotswap trays and were explicitly set in UEFI as hotswappable.

    As for the MEI, just search for the latest MEI from the Intel website, open it up in 7-Zip, and extract the INF drivers. You just need the drivers, not the tons of other crap that Intel's incompetent software engineers shovel at you. (While Intel makes good hardware, I have very little faith in their software. Like how the latest Ivy Bridge drivers on their website are extremely crashy--it turns out that there is a newer version on WU that they didn't post to their website or how it took them almost an entire year to fix a very nasty bug that they introduced into their WiFi drivers last year that caused BSoDs when connecting to certain types of access points.)

    Sorry, I felt a little ranty today. :p
     
  3. bodean

    bodean MDL Novice

    Sep 4, 2013
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    Thanks. I don't run raid. Have 3 HD's, 1 SSD, but not in RAID. So I will uninstall Intel RST (Thought I needed it)
     
  4. ian82

    ian82 MDL Expert

    Mar 7, 2012
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  5. Enigma256

    Enigma256 MDL Senior Member

    Jan 17, 2011
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    LOL, "very essential"? It's like déjà vu all over again. The chipset drivers are not drivers. They're only INF files that slap Intel branding on component names in Device Manager if they didn't already exist. These have absolutely no effect on the operation of the system and are completely unnecessary. It's a common myth that you insist on perpetuating (with an even grander claim this time around) even though you've been told this before.

    Oh, and a funny thing: If you install the INF chipset driver, it will install a null driver for the IMEI, which basically disables the IMEI and breaks the things that depend on it (e.g., some types of protected media playback), which means that the user must then manually download and install the actual IMEI drivers. If they hadn't installed the (totally unnecessary) chipset package, the real IMEI drivers would've been installed automatically via Windows Update.
     
  6. bodean

    bodean MDL Novice

    Sep 4, 2013
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    Thanks. Ill skip that override all option. I already have teh chipset installed from a few months back.
    As for MEI, I found Management Engine Interface V9.5.10.1658 for Windows Win8.1 64bit---(WHQL).(1.5M) on Asus website
    Still keeping RST off as posted above, not needed if I am not in RAID.
     
  7. ian82

    ian82 MDL Expert

    Mar 7, 2012
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    yes it is, the IRST also contains an improved controller which gives better performance, try running a CyrstalDiskMark benchmark before IRST and after IRST and see for yourself

    n00b :smokecowboy:
     
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  8. andiherbst

    andiherbst MDL Novice

    Jan 11, 2013
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    Does anybody could please explain the purpose of the "Intel Management Engine" to me? I really tried to understand it but the explaination in Wikipedia is still unclear to me...
    Do I need to install it on a gaming notebook? I really don't have any use for remote management features. If it is really essential for the system, where can I get the latest drivers? I cant find them on the official Intel site. I do not want to install drivers from my notebook manufacturer (ASUS) since their modded drivers and software are buggy as hell. Are Intel Management Engine Drivers generic or specialized for my notebook?

    Thx very much in advance.

    PS: I have a G75VX ASUS notebook
     
  9. Enigma256

    Enigma256 MDL Senior Member

    Jan 17, 2011
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    Actually, I did exactly that when I weaned myself from RST because of its hotswap issue. Everyone says how RST has better performance, but when I tried it, I found that the two performed virtually identically (actually, msahci was sliiightly faster), within the margins of random variability. If you search for benchmarks online, you'll see that most of them would say something similar.

    Windows 8.1 bundles the latest RST RAID drivers (actually slightly newer than what's on Intel's website, IIRC). Microsoft could've just as easily bundled Intel's AHCI drivers, too, but they didn't, because there is no need to. msahci works just fine, just as fast, and I've been burned enough times by shoddy driver work that I'd rather trust Microsoft--a software company--for driver support.
     
  10. Enigma256

    Enigma256 MDL Senior Member

    Jan 17, 2011
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    The MEI isn't critical, and if you install Intel's (unnecessary) chipset package, it'll drop a null driver for the IMEI (basically, just an INF file that tells the Device Manager to stop marking the device as unrecognized, without actually installing a driver). But there are some things outside of enterprise management that makes use of IMEI. Blu-Ray, for example, uses IMEI to secure the decoding path--if IMEI is missing, a Blu-Ray player will be forced to decode the movie with reduced quality. There may be other uses for it, but that's the only one that I've personally encountered.

    It is generic and is not specialized for each OEM. So download the latest IMEI drivers from Intel's website, open the EXE with WinRAR or 7-Zip, and extract the Drivers folder. Inside, you'll find a subfolder containing HECI.inf, and that's what you can install using Device Manager. The actual driver is tiny, like less than 0.1MB, so it's not going to leave a footprint on your system.
     
  11. Akumajou

    Akumajou MDL Novice

    Jan 6, 2008
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    Where do you download the Management Engine Interface on Intel's site?
     
  12. bodean

    bodean MDL Novice

    Sep 4, 2013
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    Odd, ASUS has a different / newer version number for windows 8.1

    Management Engine Interface V9.5.10.1658 for Windows Win8.1 64bit-
     
  13. Enigma256

    Enigma256 MDL Senior Member

    Jan 17, 2011
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    The versions on Intel's website refer to the software version. The version of the actual driver in the package is "DriverVer=07/02/2013,9.5.10.1658" (for the link that EFA11 provided).
     
  14. andiherbst

    andiherbst MDL Novice

    Jan 11, 2013
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    Thx a lot for clarifying!

    Mmm, are These Management Engine drivers generic and apply to all chipsets out there? I followed the link provided by EFA11 and there it says that the download is valid for
    Intel® Desktop Board DH87MC
    Intel® Desktop Board DH87RL
    Intel® Desktop Board DZ87KLT-75K so I'm a bit unsure. I can't find any version specific for my chipset :/ (HM77 Express - ASUS Notebook). I wonder where people source these generic whql drivers... I'm obviously doing something wrong :(
     
  15. ian82

    ian82 MDL Expert

    Mar 7, 2012
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    The ones that I linked are the M versions for laptops and notebooks
     
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  16. Enigma256

    Enigma256 MDL Senior Member

    Jan 17, 2011
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    Yes. Intel's website will often say that driver X is only for product Y when it's really for the whole family of products that include Y.
     
  17. andiherbst

    andiherbst MDL Novice

    Jan 11, 2013
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    Thx a lot guys! You really helped me out! Have a great day! :)
     
  18. MonarchX

    MonarchX MDL Expert

    May 5, 2007
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    #20 MonarchX, Mar 2, 2014
    Last edited: Mar 2, 2014