Scalable Link Interface

<p>Scalable Link Interface (SLI) is the brand name for a now discontinued multi-<a href="/facts/Graphics_processing_unit/PTK1RQVp">GPU</a> technology developed by <a href="/facts/Nvidia/8QfCgqbu">Nvidia</a> (The technology was invented and developed by 3dfx and later purchased by Nvidia during the acquisition of 3dfx) for linking two or more <a href="/facts/Video_card/bcKfPyFt">video cards</a> together to produce a single output. SLI is a <a href="/facts/Parallel_computing/nQzcpzQt">parallel processing</a> algorithm for computer graphics, meant to increase the available processing power.
</p><p>The <a href="/facts/Initialism/nlHK7aRt">initialism</a> SLI was first used by <a href="/facts/3dfx/8t0LNDBb">3dfx</a> for <a href="/facts/Scan-Line_Interleave/Swl0pPLP">Scan-Line Interleave</a>, which was introduced to the consumer market in 1998 and used in the <a href="/facts/Voodoo2/mXsgoaTQ">Voodoo2</a> line of video cards. After buying out 3dfx, Nvidia acquired the technology but did not use it. Nvidia later reintroduced the SLI name in 2004 and intended for it to be used in modern computer systems based on the <a href="/facts/PCI_Express/ADhsLCUK">PCI Express</a> (PCIe) bus; however, the technology behind the name SLI has changed dramatically.
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Scalable Link Interface open-in-new

Scalable Link Interface