Regarding the dummy plugs, can't you still force Windows 7 to detect a monitor even when it's not connected? That's what I had to do to make PhysX work.
GenL said:Q: How do I set up a fake display?
A: First you need a driver to be installed for your NVIDIA GPU already (default MSDN driver is suffice). Open "Display Properties" ("Screen Resolution") dialog, click "Detect". Select a display assigned to your NVIDIA GPU, then set the "Multiple Displays" to "Try to connect anyway on: VGA" option. Click "Apply".