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I understand why functions like ElementData or CountryData need to download up-to-date data when first launched. However, when trying to use CUDA for the first time in Mathematica, I ran:

Needs["CUDALink`"]; CUDAQ[]

which downloaded data for several minutes. Given that I have a quite fast net connection, that must amount to a really large amount of data. What does Mathematica download in that case? I guess drivers, but how can I check what it downloads?

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Oh, and it took almost 10 minutes to say: False. Now I'm pissed off! – F'x Mar 25 '12 at 11:39
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There are a few reasons why it would give False, if you evaluate CUDAInformation[] it might give you some hints and it will forward you to the CUDA setup page (reference.wolfram.com/mathematica/CUDALink/tutorial/Setup.html) – adk Mar 25 '12 at 16:54

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It installs CUDA Resources, as indicated in the manual page. The resources are platform and driver specific and can also be downloaded manually from here.

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Thanks for the links; I had found the first one, not the second. I guess the crux of the question is still unanswered: CUDA functions can download “CUDA resources”, yes, but of what consist said resources? – F'x Mar 25 '12 at 15:36
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the resources consist of the CUDA Toolkit (found on developer.nvidia.com/cuda-toolkit-41) plus some extra resources that avoid users hunting for different packages to install. The point of the paclet is to make GPU usage simple, with the only requirement being that the user has appropriate hardware and the nvidia driver. Hope this helps. – adk Mar 25 '12 at 16:53
If you think about it, the way they do this is smart. This probably allows wolfram to add support for new hardware without a versioned update. Not sure if they do so of course. – nixeagle Mar 25 '12 at 21:03

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