H265 60fps videos playing with terrible artifacts on laptopt with dedicated graphics.

[fotl]

Hi, I am using Debian 11 with KDE, on my laptop with both an integrated CPU graphics card and a dedicated nvidia 840M card. I am trying to play some gopro recordings in H265@60fps, however with any media player the videos appear extremely choppy and full of grey artifacts; basically unwatchable. It seems like the system is not using my dedicated GPU for hardware acceleration.

I have tried many media players: vlc, mplayer, mpv, dragon.
At first, I was using the nouveau drivers, but even after installing nvidia-drivers the situation did not change at all.
here is some information:

(outputs of: vdpauinfo, vainfo, inxi -Gxx)

Code: Select all

d@debian:~$ vdpauinfo 
display: :0   screen: 0
libva info: VA-API version 1.10.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_10
libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 1
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_8
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
API version: 1
Information string: OpenGL/VAAPI backend for VDPAU

Video surface:

name   width height types
-------------------------------------------
420     4096  4096  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 NV24 YV24 P010 P016 Y_U_V_444_16 
422     4096  4096  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 NV24 YV24 P010 P016 Y_U_V_444_16 
444     4096  4096  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 NV24 YV24 P010 P016 Y_U_V_444_16 
420_16  4096  4096  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 NV24 YV24 P010 P016 Y_U_V_444_16 
422_16  4096  4096  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 NV24 YV24 P010 P016 Y_U_V_444_16 
444_16  4096  4096  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 NV24 YV24 P010 P016 Y_U_V_444_16 

Decoder capabilities:

name                        level macbs width height
----------------------------------------------------
MPEG1                          --- not supported ---
MPEG2_SIMPLE                   --- not supported ---
MPEG2_MAIN                     --- not supported ---
H264_BASELINE                  51 16384  2048  2048
H264_MAIN                      51 16384  2048  2048
H264_HIGH                      51 16384  2048  2048
VC1_SIMPLE                     --- not supported ---
VC1_MAIN                       --- not supported ---
VC1_ADVANCED                   --- not supported ---
MPEG4_PART2_SP                 --- not supported ---
MPEG4_PART2_ASP                --- not supported ---
DIVX4_QMOBILE                  --- not supported ---
DIVX4_MOBILE                   --- not supported ---
DIVX4_HOME_THEATER             --- not supported ---
DIVX4_HD_1080P                 --- not supported ---
DIVX5_QMOBILE                  --- not supported ---
DIVX5_MOBILE                   --- not supported ---
DIVX5_HOME_THEATER             --- not supported ---
DIVX5_HD_1080P                 --- not supported ---
H264_CONSTRAINED_BASELINE      51 16384  2048  2048
H264_EXTENDED                  --- not supported ---
H264_PROGRESSIVE_HIGH          --- not supported ---
H264_CONSTRAINED_HIGH          --- not supported ---
H264_HIGH_444_PREDICTIVE       --- not supported ---
VP9_PROFILE_0                  --- not supported ---
VP9_PROFILE_1                  --- not supported ---
VP9_PROFILE_2                  --- not supported ---
VP9_PROFILE_3                  --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN                      --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_10                   --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_STILL                --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_12                   --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_444                  --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_444_10               --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_444_12               --- not supported ---

Output surface:

name              width height nat types
----------------------------------------------------
B8G8R8A8         16384 16384    y  
R8G8B8A8         16384 16384    y  
R10G10B10A2      16384 16384    y  
B10G10R10A2      16384 16384    y  
A8               16384 16384    y  

Bitmap surface:

name              width height
------------------------------
B8G8R8A8         16384 16384
R8G8B8A8         16384 16384
R10G10B10A2      16384 16384
B10G10R10A2      16384 16384
A8               16384 16384

Video mixer:

feature name                    sup
------------------------------------
DEINTERLACE_TEMPORAL             -
DEINTERLACE_TEMPORAL_SPATIAL     -
INVERSE_TELECINE                 -
NOISE_REDUCTION                  -
SHARPNESS                        -
LUMA_KEY                         -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L1        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L2        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L3        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L4        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L5        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L6        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L7        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L8        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L9        -

parameter name                  sup      min      max
-----------------------------------------------------
VIDEO_SURFACE_WIDTH              -  
VIDEO_SURFACE_HEIGHT             -  
CHROMA_TYPE                      -  
LAYERS                           -  

attribute name                  sup      min      max
-----------------------------------------------------
BACKGROUND_COLOR                 -  
CSC_MATRIX                       -  
NOISE_REDUCTION_LEVEL            -  
SHARPNESS_LEVEL                  -  
LUMA_KEY_MIN_LUMA                -  
LUMA_KEY_MAX_LUMA                -  


corrupted size vs. prev_size in fastbins
Aborted
d@debian:~$ vainfo 
libva info: VA-API version 1.10.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_10
libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 1
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_8
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
vainfo: VA-API version: 1.10 (libva 2.10.0)
vainfo: Driver version: Intel i965 driver for Intel(R) Haswell Mobile - 2.4.1
vainfo: Supported profile and entrypoints
      VAProfileMPEG2Simple            : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileMPEG2Simple            : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileMPEG2Main              : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileMPEG2Main              : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264ConstrainedBaseline: VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264ConstrainedBaseline: VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264Main               : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264Main               : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264High               : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264High               : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264MultiviewHigh      : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264MultiviewHigh      : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264StereoHigh         : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264StereoHigh         : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileVC1Simple              : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVC1Main                : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVC1Advanced            : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileNone                   : VAEntrypointVideoProc
      VAProfileJPEGBaseline           : VAEntrypointVLD
d@debian:~$ inxi -Gxx
Graphics:  Device-1: Intel Haswell-ULT Integrated Graphics vendor: Lenovo driver: i915 v: kernel bus ID: 00:02.0 
           chip ID: 8086:0a16 
           Device-2: NVIDIA GM108M [GeForce 840M] vendor: Lenovo driver: nvidia v: 470.129.06 bus ID: 03:00.0 
           chip ID: 10de:1341 
           Device-3: Acer Lenovo EasyCamera type: USB driver: uvcvideo bus ID: 2-6:4 chip ID: 5986:055e 
           Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.11 compositor: kwin_x11 driver: loaded: modesetting,nvidia 
           unloaded: fbdev,nouveau,vesa alternate: nv resolution: 1920x1080 s-dpi: 96 
           OpenGL: renderer: Mesa DRI Intel HD Graphics 4400 (HSW GT2) v: 4.5 Mesa 20.3.5 compat-v: 3.0 
           direct render: Yes 

[L_V]

libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed

intel-media-va-driver: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so

Install intel-media-va-driver and vdpau-driver-all and xserver-xorg-video-intel first, reboot, and check again.

[sunrat]

https://wiki.debian.org/NVIDIA%20Optimu ... er_Offload

[fotl]

libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed

intel-media-va-driver: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so

Install intel-media-va-driver and vdpau-driver-all and xserver-xorg-video-intel first, reboot, and check again.

All those packages were already installed. Secure boot is disabled.

Code: Select all

d@debian:~$ sudo apt install intel-media-va-driver
[sudo] password for davide: 
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
Reading state information... Done
intel-media-va-driver is already the newest version (21.1.1+dfsg1-1).
intel-media-va-driver set to manually installed.
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
d@debian:~$ sudo apt install vdpau-driver-all
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
Reading state information... Done
vdpau-driver-all is already the newest version (1.4-3).
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
d@debian:~$ sudo apt install xserver-xorg-video-intel
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
Reading state information... Done
xserver-xorg-video-intel is already the newest version (2:2.99.917+git20200714-1+deb11u1).
xserver-xorg-video-intel set to manually installed.
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.

https://wiki.debian.org/NVIDIA%20Optimu ... er_Offload

Hi, I checked the link (I had already read the page), and I tried to launch vlc with environments variables, still no change at all.

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d@debian:~$ __NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1 __GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia vlc
VLC media player 3.0.17.4 Vetinari (revision 3.0.13-8-g41878ff4f2)
[00005633b26aa5b0] main libvlc: Running vlc with the default interface. Use 'cvlc' to use vlc without interface.
[00005633b2749740] main playlist: playlist is empty
uint DBusMenuExporterDBus::GetLayout(int, int, const QStringList&, DBusMenuLayoutItem&): Condition failed: menu
uint DBusMenuExporterDBus::GetLayout(int, int, const QStringList&, DBusMenuLayoutItem&): Condition failed: menu
[00007fa21c004190] gl gl: Initialized libplacebo v2.72.0 (API v72)
libva info: VA-API version 1.10.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_10
libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 1
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_8
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
[00007fa2300527f0] main video output error: video output creation failed
[00007fa235583420] main decoder error: failed to create video output
[00007fa21c012b90] gl gl: Initialized libplacebo v2.72.0 (API v72)
libva info: VA-API version 1.10.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_10
libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 1
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_8
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
[00007fa21c012b90] glconv_vdpau gl error: glVDPAUInitNV failed: 0x502

[00007fa235583420] avcodec decoder: Using OpenGL/VAAPI backend for VDPAU for hardware decoding
[hevc @ 0x7fa23558dc80] Failed setup for format vdpau: hwaccel initialisation returned error.
[00007fa235583420] avcodec decoder error: existing hardware acceleration cannot be reused
[00007fa21e18e320] gl gl: Initialized libplacebo v2.72.0 (API v72)
[00007fa21e18e320] gl gl: Initialized libplacebo v2.72.0 (API v72)
[hevc @ 0x7fa23559e6c0] Could not find ref with POC 41
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355b7d40] Could not find ref with POC 43                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355c84c0] Could not find ref with POC 45                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355d8e80] Could not find ref with POC 47                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa23558dc80] Could not find ref with POC 49                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa23559e6c0] Could not find ref with POC 51                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355b7d40] Could not find ref with POC 53                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355c84c0] Could not find ref with POC 45                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355d8e80] Could not find ref with POC 47                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa23558dc80] Could not find ref with POC 49                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa23559e6c0] Could not find ref with POC 51                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355b7d40] Could not find ref with POC 53                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355c84c0] Could not find ref with POC 55                                                                       
[hevc @ 0x7fa2355d8e80] Could not find ref wit

[sunrat]

Install inxi and show the output of

Code: Select all

inxi -Gx

[fotl]

Install inxi and show the output of

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inxi -Gx

Hi, It was in the original post the result of inxi -Gxx. I will report it again:

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d@debian:~$ inxi -Gxx
Graphics:  Device-1: Intel Haswell-ULT Integrated Graphics vendor: Lenovo driver: i915 v: kernel bus ID: 00:02.0 
           chip ID: 8086:0a16 
           Device-2: NVIDIA GM108M [GeForce 840M] vendor: Lenovo driver: nvidia v: 470.129.06 bus ID: 03:00.0 
           chip ID: 10de:1341 
           Device-3: Acer Lenovo EasyCamera type: USB driver: uvcvideo bus ID: 2-6:4 chip ID: 5986:055e 
           Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.11 compositor: kwin_x11 driver: loaded: modesetting,nvidia 
           unloaded: fbdev,nouveau,vesa alternate: nv resolution: 1920x1080 s-dpi: 96 
           OpenGL: renderer: Mesa DRI Intel HD Graphics 4400 (HSW GT2) v: 4.5 Mesa 20.3.5 compat-v: 3.0 
           direct render: Yes 

and, inxi -Fxx

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d@debian:~$ inxi -Fx
System:    Host: debian Kernel: 5.10.0-17-amd64 x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 10.2.1 Desktop: KDE Plasma 5.20.5 
           Distro: Debian GNU/Linux 11 (bullseye) 
Machine:   Type: Laptop System: LENOVO product: 20354 v: Lenovo Z50-70 serial: <superuser required> 
           Mobo: LENOVO model: Lancer 5A5 v: 31900058WIN serial: <superuser required> UEFI: LENOVO v: 9BCN91WW 
           date: 07/21/2015 
Battery:   ID-1: BAT0 charge: 24.0 Wh condition: 24.0/41.4 Wh (58%) model: Lenovo IdeaPad status: Full 
CPU:       Info: Dual Core model: Intel Core i7-4510U bits: 64 type: MT MCP arch: Haswell rev: 1 L2 cache: 4 MiB 
           flags: avx avx2 lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx bogomips: 20751 
           Speed: 816 MHz min/max: 800/3100 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 816 2: 809 3: 802 4: 821 
Graphics:  Device-1: Intel Haswell-ULT Integrated Graphics vendor: Lenovo driver: i915 v: kernel bus ID: 00:02.0 
           Device-2: NVIDIA GM108M [GeForce 840M] vendor: Lenovo driver: nvidia v: 470.129.06 bus ID: 03:00.0 
           Device-3: Acer Lenovo EasyCamera type: USB driver: uvcvideo bus ID: 2-6:4 
           Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.11 driver: loaded: modesetting,nvidia unloaded: fbdev,nouveau,vesa 
           resolution: 1920x1080 
           OpenGL: renderer: Mesa DRI Intel HD Graphics 4400 (HSW GT2) v: 4.5 Mesa 20.3.5 direct render: Yes 
Audio:     Device-1: Intel Haswell-ULT HD Audio vendor: Lenovo driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus ID: 00:03.0 
           Device-2: Intel 8 Series HD Audio vendor: Lenovo driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus ID: 00:1b.0 
           Sound Server: ALSA v: k5.10.0-17-amd64 
Network:   Device-1: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet vendor: Lenovo driver: r8169 v: kernel 
           port: 5000 bus ID: 01:00.0 
           IF: enp1s0 state: down mac: 68:f7:28:3d:27:5f 
           Device-2: Realtek RTL8723BE PCIe Wireless Network Adapter vendor: Lenovo Z50-75 driver: rtl8723be v: kernel 
           port: 4000 bus ID: 02:00.0 
           IF: wlp2s0 state: up mac: 74:29:af:9b:77:17 
Bluetooth: Device-1: Realtek RTL8723B Bluetooth type: USB driver: btusb v: 0.8 bus ID: 2-7:5 
           Report: ID: hci0 state: up running pscan bt-v: 2.1 lmp-v: 4.0 address: 74:29:AF:9B:77:18 
Drives:    Local Storage: total: 931.51 GiB used: 337.2 GiB (36.2%) 
           ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Samsung model: SSD 870 QVO 1TB size: 931.51 GiB 
Partition: ID-1: / size: 718.99 GiB used: 337.16 GiB (46.9%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda5 
           ID-2: /boot/efi size: 96 MiB used: 33.6 MiB (34.9%) fs: vfat dev: /dev/sda1 
Swap:      ID-1: swap-1 type: partition size: 978 MiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) dev: /dev/sda6 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 45.0 C mobo: N/A 
           Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A 
Info:      Processes: 174 Uptime: 4h 58m Memory: 11.59 GiB used: 2.46 GiB (21.2%) Init: systemd runlevel: 5 Compilers: 
           gcc: 10.2.1 Packages: 1784 Shell: Bash v: 5.1.4 inxi: 3.3.01 

[stevepusser]

First rule of troubleshooting: Try and narrow down the parameters.

Can you get video acceleration to work with h.264 videos?

Haswell graphics is kind of elderly now...maybe it predates h.265? Get an idea of what your card supports with vainfo (install vainfo if necessary)...here's one from a 2021 integrated AMD gpu:

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$ vainfo
libva info: VA-API version 1.14.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/radeonsi_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_14
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
vainfo: VA-API version: 1.14 (libva 2.10.0)
vainfo: Driver version: Mesa Gallium driver 22.0.5 for AMD RENOIR (LLVM 14.0.5, DRM 3.46, 5.18.0-2mx-amd64)
vainfo: Supported profile and entrypoints
      VAProfileMPEG2Simple            : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileMPEG2Main              : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVC1Simple              : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVC1Main                : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVC1Advanced            : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264ConstrainedBaseline: VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264ConstrainedBaseline: VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264Main               : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264Main               : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileH264High               : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileH264High               : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileHEVCMain               : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileHEVCMain               : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileHEVCMain10             : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileHEVCMain10             : VAEntrypointEncSlice
      VAProfileJPEGBaseline           : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVP9Profile0            : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileVP9Profile2            : VAEntrypointVLD
      VAProfileNone                   : VAEntrypointVideoProc

In case anyone is wondering WTH this is:

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vainfo: Driver version: Mesa Gallium driver 22.0.5 for AMD RENOIR (LLVM 14.0.5, DRM 3.46, 5.18.0-2mx-amd64)

it's backported MX 21 AHS Mesa, llvm-14, and kernel on the MX 21 Bullseye base, because this hardware is pretty new for Bullseye.

[Hallvor]

Haswell graphics is kind of elderly now...maybe it predates h.265?

I have two computers with Haswell myself. H.265 plays fine most of the time. Huge files with 60fps... I wouldn't count on it.

OP: If you have a short clip, you can upload the file somewhere, and I'll test it on my own hardware. If it sucks for me too, it's just your hardware.

[stevepusser]

Haswell graphics is kind of elderly now...maybe it predates h.265?

I have two computers with Haswell myself. H.265 plays fine most of the time. Huge files with 60fps... I wouldn't count on it.

OP: If you have a short clip, you can upload the file somewhere, and I'll test it on my own hardware. If it sucks for me too, it's just your hardware.

Easy way to cut a short clip is to enable advanced controls in VLC, then hit the Record button for a short time.

[fotl]

Can you get video acceleration to work with h.264 videos?
Get an idea of what your card supports with vainfo (install vainfo if necessary)

Hi, I posted the output of vainfo in the original post, could you chieck it? Also, I have both an intel and an nvidia card, and both should support H265. Also, on windows (on the same machine) the H265 videos play perfectly with vlc and others. So it can't be an hardware limitation, right?

Also, the vainfo/vdpauinfo commands report this error

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libva info: VA-API version 1.10.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_10
libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 1
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_8
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
vainfo: VA-API version: 1.10 (libva 2.10.0)
vainfo: Driver version: Intel i965 driver for Intel(R) Haswell Mobile - 2.4.1

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vdpauinfo
display: :0   screen: 0
libva info: VA-API version 1.10.0
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_10
libva error: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so init failed
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 1
libva info: Trying to open /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_drv_video.so
libva info: Found init function __vaDriverInit_1_8
libva info: va_openDriver() returns 0
API version: 1
Information string: OpenGL/VAAPI backend for VDPAU

What exactly is "iHD_drv_video.so"?
Also as a counter-counter point, I tried playing the H265 video and checking the nvidia GPU usage in the nvidia-settings control panel: the GPU stayed at 0% while the video lagged. I could probably upload some of it, however it contains other people and as I said the same exact videos are playing 100% smooth on windows 10.

Thank you. I have in the meantime reinstalled most packages, and it seems nothing is missing. So why is[ b] iHD_drv_video.so[/b] failing?

[L_V]

What exactly is "iHD_drv_video.so"?

intel-media-va-driver: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iHD_drv_video.so

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Description: VAAPI driver for the Intel GEN8+ Graphics family
 The VA-API (Video Acceleration API) enables hardware accelerated video
  decode/encode at various entry-points (VLD, IDCT, Motion Compensation etc.) 
  for the prevailing coding standards today (MPEG-2, MPEG-4 ASP/H.263, MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, and VC-1/WMV3).
  It provides an interface to fully expose the video decode capabilities in today's GPUs.

[fotl]

Actually I mean what is the "iHD" and "i965" part of the name: it seems they are both modules for intel's integrated graphics, but why isnt vdpau calling something related to the nvidia card? Also, why is PRIME not available in debian? On a tangent note, is there an easy bechmark tool that I can use to see if and how much the two GPUs are working?

I would like to add that I also installed firmware-linux and "vdpau-va-driver_0.7.4-7_amd64" from the Debian website, with no success.

Oh and I also have an audio skipping problem, which I am trying to fix via editing the pulseaudio configs, may that be related?

[stevepusser]

Vainfo doesn't show any support for HEVC for your Intel graphics, therefore it doesn't support acceleration. HEVC=x265. The same for vp9, which is the default video codec that Youtube serves up. You seem to be stuck with h.264.

If your Nvidia GPU is the same vintage---extremely likely in a laptop--it may also not support hardware decoding. A web search to determine what it does support sounds like a worthy exercise.

[fotl]

Well it seems that neither my 840m supports H265, however I thinkered around on windows and on the same exact files I manged to get a way better performance: even tough I could still see some artifacts in high-bitrate camera movements, the videos were "watchable". Unfortunately on debian the performance is waaay worse, which makes me think I could still try to improve it some more. On a final note, the issue seems only on H265 AND 60fps videos: neither debian or windows have issues playing H265/30fps files perfectly.

At this point I'm thinking I should just avoid HEVC, maybe converting all of my videos in H264, even tough as H265 they are already hugely sized? I would care more about framerate than quality.

[stevepusser]

Since the system is using the CPU to play the videos, can you check to make sure it's using all cores/threads in order to decode the video?

[ticojohn]

I don't know if this is relevant, but I have an Intel NUC5i5ryh with the Broadwell chipset (I think that is newer than Haswell, but not sure).
The cpu is i5-5250u, and it has the Intel 6000 graphics. The Intel specs for the NUC indicate that the chipset is not capable of hardware acceleration for .h265.

Again, I don't know if it is relevant but I thought I would just throw that out there.