This guide is for installing the NVIDIA closed source binary drivers on a system running an NVIDIA graphics card. For other graphics cards refer to the BinaryDriverHowto.

Prerequisites

• The command lspci | grep -i nvidia prints out a line of text

• You want one or more of the following: hardware-accelerated 3D, TV-Out support, dual head support

Installation

Ubuntu 7.04 using 'Restricted Devices Manager'

As of Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn) the recommended way to install the binary drivers is to use System → Administration → Restricted Devices Manager. This will try and automatically choose the correct version out of:

• nvidia-glx-legacy (corresponds to the 71xx driver)
• nvidia-glx (which corresponds to the 96xx driver)
• nvidia-glx-new (which at the time of writing corresponded to the 97xx driver)

If your card does not appear in this [http://us.download.nvidia.com/XFree86/Linux-x86/1.0-9755/README/appendix-a.html list of cards known by Ubuntu 7.04 NVIDIA binary drivers] (e.g. the 8600GT) then there is no Ubuntu 7.04 supported binary driver. For unsupported workarounds try the links in [#seealso See Also].

Restricted Devices Manager may not work properly on machines that have previously used third party tools like 'envy' to install previous drivers

Kubuntu 7.04

Installing the driver

Kubuntu Feisty Fawn doesn't' have the Restricted Devices Manager so you have to install the packages manually. Open Adept K-Menu → System → Adept Manager and in the Search box put in nvidia-glx. You should see a few packages including nvidia-glx-new, nvidia-glx and nvidia-glx-legacy, use the link above to find the right driver for your card. Select the package for the driver you need to install (if you don't have linux-restricted-modules you should also select that package for install).

Activating the driver

Once the driver is installed you need to set the system to use the driver. Open Konsole from K-Menu → System → Konsole and enter the command

sudo nvidia-xconfig

That will set the driver to be used from now on. To start using the driver you will need to logout and select Restart X Server from the menu, or press Alt+E

Common Problems

Low Screen Resolutions

Often screen resolutions on offer are far lower than those offered with the open source driver. The NVIDIA binary driver seems to be very weak at reliably probing this information from the monitor and relies on additional information in xorg.conf. In Feisty, this information is not written into xorg.conf by default.

See this [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux-restricted-modules-2.6.20/+bug/91292 launchpad bug talking about lost resolutions when using the NVIDIA binary driver] along with FixVideoResolutionHowto for further details and potential workarounds.

Driver Uses Wrong Output

Another common problem for people using laptops with GeForce Go cards (and possibly other non laptop cards with displays connected by DVI) is that the driver sometimes defaults to displays on the external CRT socket. This is covered in a [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux-restricted-modules-2.6.20/+bug/109414 launchpad bug from a laptop user with a black screen] and details a workaround to put into xorg.conf.

The usual hint that you have this particular problem is you can hear the startup sound/Ubuntu drums but cannot see anything. If you do not hear any sound, you are more than likely experiencing unrelated problems.

Old Installs Conflicting

If either of nvidia-glx-legacy/nvidia-glx-new are installed a dotfile is created in /lib/linux-restricted-modules/ . Even after these packages are uninstalled the dotfile will remain and may frustrate efforts to use the nvidia-glx package. See this [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux-restricted-modules-2.6.20/+bug/106217 launchpad bug about the hidden file not being removed when nvidia-glx-new is uninstalled] (also applies if nvidia-legacy is removed) for details.

Other

If the above fails try checking the [#troubleshooting Troubleshooting] at the end of this page. If this still fails, or you are using a version of Ubuntu older than 7.04 or you wish to configure things manually then please read on.

Please note: Any problems that occur after installing drivers not provided by Ubuntu repositories should not be reported to the launchpad bug area. If the drivers were downloaded from the NVIDIA web site then the [http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=14 NVIDIA Linux web forum] is an appropriate place to report issues. If a third party installer was used please contact the third party for support. Other places for manual driver support can be found on the [http://www.ubuntu.com/support/communitysupport Community Support page].

Ubuntu/Kubuntu 6.10 and earlier

Enable restricted packages

• Note: If you are running Ubuntu/Kubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft) or later, the Restricted repositories might already be enabled.

The NVIDIA drivers are in the "restricted" section of the Ubuntu package repository, so before you will be able to install the drivers, you must enable this section on your system. If you are following the MythTV setup guide this should already be done.

In Ubuntu

1. Select the System menu at the top of the screen.

2. Select Administration then Synaptic Package Manager. Enter your password when prompted.

3. In the package manager, select the Settings menu, then Repositories.

4. In the Software Preferences dialog that comes up, click the Add button.

5. In the Edit Repository dialog, ensure that the Restricted copyright box is checked, then press OK.

6. Press OK to close the Software Preferences dialog, when Synaptic asks you to reload the package database, say yes.

In Kubuntu

1. Open Adept Package Manager K-Menu → System → Adept Manager and enter your password.

2. Go to File → Manage Repositories and make sure that a line similar to deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu main restricted exists, if not put that line in the New Repository box and click "Add" then "Apply".

3. You'll need to click "Fetch Updates" after you add the repository to apply the change.

You now have access to the many additional packages in the restricted section, including the NVIDIA driver packages.

Install and activate drivers

In Ubuntu

Packages may be installed by right-clicking on the package and selecting Mark for Installation.

1. Click the Search button and search for "linux-restricted-modules". You must have restricted modules enabled (see above).

2. Find the appropriate package for your kernel. For example, if you have linux-image-amd64-k8 installed, then you should install linux-restricted-modules-amd64-k8. Selecting one will also install nvidia-kernel-common. (Note: you have to select the restricted modules first because the nvidia-glx package automatically installs the i386 one - and if you have a generic kernel image, the X will not work.)

3. Click the Search button and search for "nvidia-glx".

4. You will install either nvidia-glx-legacy or nvidia-glx. If your graphics card is at the end of [http://download.nvidia.com/XFree86/Linux-x86/1.0-8762/README/appendix-a.html this list of cards] (marked as "legacy"), you will need to install nvidia-glx-legacy. Otherwise, install nvidia-glx.

5. If you are going to compile 3D applications, install nvidia-glx-dev. (You probably won't need this)

6. Click the Apply button to install the new packages.

7. Once Synaptic has finished applying your changes, exit the application.

8. Select the Applications menu at the top of the screen, then Accessories, then Terminal, then procede to the [#activating Activating The Driver] Section.

In Kubuntu

Packages may be installed by right-clicking on the package and selecting Request Install.

1. In the Search box type "linux-restricted-modules". You must have restricted modules enabled (see above).

2. Find the appropriate package for your kernel. For example, if you have linux-image-amd64-k8 installed, then you should install linux-restricted-modules-amd64-k8. Selecting one will also install nvidia-kernel-common. (Note: you have to select the restricted modules first because the nvidia-glx package automatically installs the i386 one - and if you have a generic kernel image, the X will not work.)

3. In the Search box search for "nvidia-glx".

4. You will install either nvidia-glx-legacy or nvidia-glx. If your graphics card is at the end of [http://download.nvidia.com/XFree86/Linux-x86/1.0-8762/README/appendix-a.html this list of cards] (marked as "legacy"), you will need to install nvidia-glx-legacy. Otherwise, install nvidia-glx.

5. If you are going to compile 3D applications, install nvidia-glx-dev. (You probably won't need this)

6. Click the Apply Changes button to install the new packages.

7. Once Adept has finished applying your changes, exit the application.

8. Open Konsole from K-Menu → System → Konsole, then procede to the [#activating Activating The Driver] Section.

Anchor(activating)

Activating the Driver

1. In the terminal window, if you are running Ubuntu/Kubuntu 6.10 Edgy, type the following:

   • sudo nvidia-xconfig

     If you are running an earlier version, type the following instead:

     sudo nvidia-glx-config enable

2. Close all your applications, then logout and choose Restart X Server from the log-in screen menu, or restart your computer, to restart the X server. If you see an NVIDIA splashscreen, your drivers are properly installed.

NVIDIA Legacy Driver in 6.10

The above instructions did not work for me in Edgy on a GeForce 1 using the legacy drivers nvidia-glx-legacy 1.0.7184+2.6.17.6-1

I had to manually edit /etc/X11/xorg.conf and change

• {{{ Section "Device"

  • Identifier "NVIDIA Corporation NV10DDR [GeForce 256 DDR]" Driver "nv" BusID "PCI:1:0:0"

EndSection }}} to

• {{{ Section "Device"

  • Identifier "NVIDIA Corporation NV10DDR [GeForce 256 DDR]" Driver "nvidia" BusID "PCI:1:0:0"

EndSection }}} If Driver "nvidia" is not found in xorg.conf then attempting to modprobe nvidia will result in an error message (thus sudo nvidia-glx-config enable would not work for me). After this change, to allow OpenGL programs to run the following had to be added to the bottom of /etc/X11/xorg.conf :

• {{{ Section "Extensions"
  • Option "Composite" "Disable"

EndSection }}} otherwise the following error occurred when running GL programs like glxinfo:

• Xlib: extension "GLX" missing on display ":0.0".

This is not documented anywhere in the the legacy drivers (i.e. there is no mention of this in /usr/share/doc/nvidia-glx-legacy/*) but thankfully the following warning will appear in /var/log/Xorg.0.log:

• {{{(EE) GLX is not supported with the Composite extension

}}}

By default Composite is turned on and this will prevent OpenGL from working - the above stanza simply turns Composite off. These steps are only needed for the legacy driver. More information about this problem can be found in the [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/restricted-manager/+bug/91064 launchpad bug about GLX being disabled on legacy drivers].

Remove the NVIDIA logotype

If you want to get rid of the NVIDIA logotype that shows up before your login screen you need to perform some manual edits in the Xorg configuration file.

1. Select the Applications menu at the top of the screen, then Accessories and then Terminal.

2. Type the following:

   • gksudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf

   or if you are using Kubuntu:

   • kdesu kate /etc/X11/xorg.conf

3. Find the line Driver "nvidia" in the Device section
4. Just after this line, add

   • Option          "NoLogo"

5. Save the file and exit

6. Close all your applications, then press Ctrl-Alt-Backspace to restart the X server. If the logotype is gone and everything seems to work you are done.

Anchor(troubleshooting)

Troubleshooting

• It seems that a reboot is sometimes necessary for these changes to take effect. If 3D acceleration isn't working, try this first.

• If 3D acceleration still isn't working, be sure that you have the right version of linux-restricted-modules installed. It must match the version of the running kernel.

• If you have the right version of linux-restricted-modules installed and 3D acceleration still isn't working, open your /etc/X11/xorg.conf file for editing with gksudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf or kdesu kate /etc/X11/xorg.conf if using Kubuntu. Be sure that the Driver entry under Section "Device" is set to "nvidia".

• If suspend no longer works, see NvidiaLaptopBinaryDriverSuspend (this applies to desktops too).

• If you have successfully enabled the binary driver but experience lockups/freezes after a few minutes under Ubuntu 7.04 or later, it might be due to the driver failing to cope with CPU speed changes. See this [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux-restricted-modules-2.6.20/+bug/109643 launchpad bug about lockups with a white screen and black lines when CPU speed scaling is on].

• If you are using nvidia-glx/nvidia-glx-new and the refresh rate appears wrong (or different to that actually reported by your monitor) in gnome-display-properties, you are probably seeing the effects of the DynamicTwinView feature. See this [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux-restricted-modules-2.6.20/+bug/92599 launchpad bug about being unable to "set" a proper screen refresh rate] for details of this behaviour.

• If you get an error while loading NVIDIA module try to rebuild module dependencies by running depmod:

  sudo depmod

• If you're feeling frisky and decide to fiddle around with the X Server Options for your Device in /etc/X11/xorg.conf and Firefox refuses to load (returns segmentation fault when launched from a terminal), this line may be the culprit:

  Option "NoRenderExtension" "On"

  Either comment it out (using a # at the beginning the line) or set it to Off.

• If you have problems with video playback, e.g. in mplayer, gxine, or mythtv frontend with a legacy card, it may be due to too high a color depth (e.g. using NT6 Vanta/Vanta LT "nvidia" driver, I experienced flickering vertical bars & blue screen flashing). To fix this, manually edit /etc/X11/xorg.conf and change DefaultDepth to 16.

• You may need to activate the "kernel framebuffer device interface" in X server. Copy/paste the below command into the terminal. The terminal will then start stepping you through each configuration setting. Most of the settings can be left at their defaults by pressing the ENTER button, but when you get to "Select the desired X server driver" (question 2), make sure to select "nvidia" and NOT "nv". At question 7 ("Activate kernel framebuffer device interface?") select "yes". Finish the rest of the questions (the rest of the settings can be left at their defaults) and then restart X server (or just restart your computer). If, when you reboot, you can't see the login screen, but instead get a message saying "X server failed to start (etc. etc.)", you will start in text mode (white text on black background) and it will ask you to login. After logging you will still be in text mode. Retype the same command below (make sure to write it down!) and then the configuration sequence will start again. This time at the "Activate kernel framebuffer device interface?") select "no" then restart your computer and your login screen will be restored. {{{sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

}}}

• There is a [http://us.download.nvidia.com/XFree86/Linux-x86/100.14.11/README/appendix-a.html list of cards supported by the latest NVIDIA binary drivers] (which are not necessarily shipped in a particular Ubuntu version) in the release notes of the latest driver (100.14.11 at the time of writing). A link to the latest stable driver can usually be found on the [http://www.nvidia.com/object/unix.html NVIDIA Unix portal page]. Links to beta drivers sometimes appear on the [http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=14 NVIDIA Linux web forum]. Also see the following point.

• Information (and common problems encountered) related to manual installation of the NVIDIA binary driver (using the .pkg from the NVIDIA website) can be read on the NvidiaManual page.

• List of [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bugs?field.searchtext=restricted+nvidia-glx&orderby=datecreated currently open NVIDIA binary driver bugs in launchpad].

• If dmesg | grep -i nv mentions NVRM: Xid your best bet is to [http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=46678 follow these instructions and then contact NVIDIA] as only NVIDIA have the source to decipher these error codes. Xid errors are caused for variety of reasons (interrupt issues, hardware conflicts/bugs, BIOS bugs, kernel bugs, driver bugs...) and [http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=1284698&postcount=23 receiving the same Xid code as someone else does not mean your problems are related].

• For other problems, please visit the forums at http://www.ubuntuforums.org/ .

Anchor(seealso)

See Also

NvidiaManual - Guide to installing the official NVIDIA driver .pkg from the NVIDIA website on Ubuntu. Explains the drawbacks and benefits of manual installation and how to safely avoid conflicts with the Ubuntu provided NVIDIA binary drivers.

[http://doc.gwos.org/index.php/Latest_nvidia_feisty Install NVIDIA proprietary drivers, Howto @gwos]

NvidiaMultiMonitors

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