Maximus VIII Extreme with ThunderboltEX 3 Problems

[RParis]

Hi ROG forum experts. Does anyone out there have ThunderboltEX3 working with Maximus VIII Extreme???

Need your help! Thanks in advance.

So far it has been an extremely frustrating exercise. I've tried everything i can think of without success - including trying the card in each of the 4 PCI slots X8_1 / X4_2 / X4_3 / X4_4. Currently the card is in the X4_4 slot which i believe is driven by the South Bridge. Cable connected to the TB_HEADER socket on the motherboard. Bizarrely the card is partially functional -- the USB 3.1 functions do work -- i can connect both Type-A and Type-C USB sticks to copy files etc.

Problem is that Windows 10 and the Thunderbolt utility isn't showing any Thunderbolt ports.

I actually have 2 of the ThunderboltEX 3 cards as i want to use them for Thunderbolt networking between 2 of my gaming machines. I've successfully had each of the cards separately configured and running in my Rampage V Extreme rig which shows 2 x Thunderbolt ports - so i know the problem is not the cards or the cables.

MAXIMUS VIII EXTREME CONFIGURATION
System Information:-
Windows 10 Pro version 10.0.14393 Build 14393 (latest "Anniversary" edition)
Processor i7-6700K
BIOS 2202 19/09/2016
SMBIOS version 3.0
BIOS Mode UEFI
Secure Boot State On

ASUS ThunderboltEX 3 located in PCI slot X4_4. No other PCI cards installed.
--> the Thunderbolt software that comes with card has been run to install the driver, service and utility.

Removed my EVGA 980Ti card from the system - so only using native GPU for graphic display via HMDI.
Displayport cable from onboard Displayport to ThunderboltEX3 Displayport in
System boots from Samsung 950 Evo SSD on Sata port 1

BIOS reset using "load optimized defaults" then changes as follows:-
BOOT\Fast boot Disabled
SECURE BOOT\Secure boot Disabled
ADVANCED\Onboard Device Configuration
PCIE4_4 Bandwidth X4 Mode
Intel Thunderbolt/USB3.1 controller configuration\
AIC Location Group SB PCIE Slot
AIC Location PCIE4_4

Other settings in BIOS
CSM is enabled
Boot control device UEFI and Legacy OPROM

AFTER BOOT INTO WINDOWS
The machine boots into Windows 10 without problem.
Thunderbolt software utility shows
Software package version 15.3.39.250
Application version 15.3.39.10
Service version 15.3.39.7
Controller driver version Unknown
Networking driver version Unknown

View attached devices doesnt show any Thunderbolt ports -- expecting to see Port1 and Port2 as per when this card runs on the Rampage V Extreme.
Also expect to see the Controller driver version and details of the Thunderbolt card eg NVM version etc.

Device manager doesnt show any System/Thunderbolt devices or any unknown devices!
This is further investigated using the Microsoft "devcon" utility
$ devcon findall * | grep -i Thunder doesnt show any devices. On the Rampage V it comes back with details of Thunderbolt device
$ devcon listclass Unkown doesnt list any unkown devices.

Very confusing. I expect to see the System/Thunderbolt device along with Thunderbolt Port 1 and Port 2 as per Rampage V Rig which is running the same Windows and Thunderbolt driver software.

Its as though the BIOS hasn't detected the Thunderbolt device...and hence not reporting it to the Operating System.

Any ideas around the BIOS settings?
Is PCI X4_4 the best slot to be running this card in?

Hoping to get Thunderbolt peer-peer networking up and running at 10Gbps as soon as possible- which will be very awesome.

Thanks
Richard P.

[Chino]

There's an option to enable Intel Thunderbolt Technology under the Advanced tab in the BIOS. Have you enabled it?

[RParis]

Yes. The Thunderbolt / USB 3.1 function under bios Advanced is enabled. See the attached BIOS screenshot

[hoeman]

Look, I'm not trying to rock the boat here. I like Asus products. I almost exclusively use Asus boards only, but this Thunderbolt issue for Z170 boards has to be addressed. We paid good money for these parts, and it's in official Asus documentation that they work together, with proof that they work in older bios versions, so please, fix the later bios releases to include a FUNCTIONAL Thunderbolt bios module. It's broken right now.

[Praz]

Closing this thread as it is 1-1/2 years old.