new nvidia grfx card

first of all' hi guys (again)

right, my new Ge-Force 6200 (INNO 3D, 256Mb DDR2, AGP X8, 64Bt, DVI +TV) i thought i could just bang the drivers in with Automatix (Check this) but after system froze on ever boot (including mouse)

BTW: where is the PCI ID of the grfx card ?

 

Code:

lspci

that should give you the info you need, but I can't remember if it works on AGP slots.

 

yeah, i found that on net, it return this about my grfx

is my PCI ID: NV44A ?

BTW: online with LiveCD

Edit: tried installing with Automatix and system froze, tried

Code:

sudo aptitude install nvidia-glx

[ot]after removing with Automatix[/ot]the above command removed nvidia-glx-new and installed nvidia-glx[ot]that booted but froze before login, black screen, blinking cursor[/ot]

BTW: what next ?

BTW: using vesa driver until i sort it

 

I don't like the idea of running pre-compiled NVidia drivers on *nix, since whether or not it works is pretty fragile and depends on many factors. I'd recommend simply downloading the matching kernel headers for the kernel you're running, then installing the drivers the NVidia way. See here:

http://www.hardwareforums.com/howto-install-nvidia-drivers-linux-debian-ubuntu-15319/

 

You should check whether the integrated graphics chip is completely disabled in the BIOS (if applicable)
Then you should boot the computer using VESA and uninstall the nvidia-glx package:

Code:

sudo aptitude remove nvidia-glx && sudo aptitude install nvidia-glx-new 

That command will also install the latest nVidia driver, which will work with your graphics card.

Once that's installed, you will need to edit your xorg.conf file:

Code:

kdesu kate /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Confirm that you have the following enabled:

Code:

Section "Module"
        Load    "i2c"
        Load    "bitmap"
        Load    "ddc"
        Load    "dri"
        Load    "extmod"
        Load    "freetype"
        Load    "glx"
        Load    "int10"
        Load    "type1"
        Load    "vbe"
EndSection

Then scroll to the 'device' section and check that the 'driver' and 'BusID' are identical to what you see below:

Code:

Section "Device"
        Identifier      "NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200"
        [COLOR="Red"]Driver          "nvidia"[/COLOR]
        Option          "NoLogo"
        [COLOR="#ff0000"]BusID           "PCI:1:0:0"[/COLOR]
EndSection

Finally, go to the end of the xorg.conf file and check you have this:

Code:

Section "DRI"
        Mode    0666
EndSection

Save and close the file once you've made the changes, then hit "CTRL+ALT+BACKSPACE" and cross your fingers!

 

Meh, can't say i've ever had a problem with the drivers in the Ubuntu repositories. Besides, if you compile the nVidia driver on Ubuntu, the ubuntu-restricted-modules package must be removed. Doing so will have the adverse effect of removing proprietory drivers for WI-FI etc.

 

[ot]Donkey, if in future you'd like a nice graphical way of seeing all the hardware installed in your computer, check out HardInfo. It's basically the 'Everest' for Linux. It can perform benchmarking too!

Code:

sudo aptitude install hardinfo

[/ot]

 

going to try it megas way first[ot]as it seem easier[/ot]BTW: i dont have a printer to print instructions to follow in runlevel 1

BTW: already tried recompiling kernel @ runlevel 1[ot]automatically[/ot]it was suggested that it would be better / safer to use runlevel 3

i presume <Ctrl> + <Alt> + <backspace> will get me to runlevel 3, correct ?

BTW: BIG thankies to AT[ot]god[/ot] & mega[ot]an angel well on his way to god-ship[/ot]thank you all who helped, including you kenji[ot]you also know a damn sight more than me, and it won't be long until you get your god-ship[/ot]seriously[ot]nearly an angel or already an angel, not sure[/ot]

 

well megas way didnt work, displayed Ubuntu screen for about 10 - 20 seconds then blank with flashing cursor[ot]pressing <Ctrl>+ <Alt> + <backspace> wasn't easy as the right <Ctrl> & <Alt Gr> didn't work but thankfully 3 screws helped me out[/ot]guess i have no alternative, i'll try ATs way :scared:

Edit: tried "Current" drivers from here, trying the "Legacy" drivers next[ot]i presume

Code:

killall kdm

drops the system to to runlevel 3, correct ?[/ot]

 

Don't be scared, it's not that difficult.

Killall KDM stops the KDE display Manager, dropping you out of the X server (aka out of the graphical environment). To go to a different runlevel, it's actually

Code:

init #

where # is equal to the runlevel, e.g. "init 3". You don't normally have to drop to a different runlevel in Debian and derivative systems, since they do things a little differently than most distros. Instead, usually just dropping out of X is enough.

As far as installing the driver, don't install the legacy one unless you have a very old card which isn't supported by the new drivers. Also, unless you have the kernel headers installed, the installation won't succeed. Also, remove any packages with the word 'nvidia' in it before proceeding, or they could potentially overwrite part of your shiny new driver later.

A final note: once you get the NVidia drivers working, keep in mind that they are mostly closed-source drivers. That means that if your system upgrades X.org, you will have to go through this process again. But don't worry, since the whole process only takes a few seconds when you're confident with it.

 

yeah, for you

so, why did my system recommend using runlevel 3 instead of runlevel 1

it already failed to install Legacy drivers

that explains why, removing headers & installing "Latest" again

i'm firing up Synaptic now

:swear: i'll have to learn to live in konsole :swear:

BTW: luckily most things required have a GUI to generate commands (although the command are fed directly to konsole, and are invisible, unless you start it from konsole)[ot]donkey hugs AT & asks AT for a French kiss[/ot]

BTW: this would be easier if i could browse net on one system and do things to another system, or if i had a printer to print the commands needed, can't wait to get my little LAN setup

 

In most systems, runlevel 1 is too low-level to do what you need to do. In deb-like systems, you can do it from runlevel one. However, you shouldn't need to change the runlevel in deb systems to install the NVidia drivers anyway, as long as X.org/KDM isn't running. You just have to specify an argument on the command-line to tell the NVidia installer not to worry about the runlevel. I run my NVidia installer with the following options on a real Debian system:

Code:

sh NVIDIA-[I]someversion[/I].run --x-module-path=/usr/lib/xorg/modules/ -aqNX --no-runlevel-check

The "--no-runlevel-check" is the important part from what we're discussing. As long as *ubuntu hasn't strayed too far from the beaten path, this should work for you also.

Yeah, that's to be expected. It's only for ancient GPUs, so anything since the turn of the century should use the newer driver.

You need the kernel headers which match the installed kernel in order to install the driver. The NVidia installer needs to look at your kernel headers in order to build the driver for you.

Once you understand the basics of what's going on, everything else falls into place. For me, it makes no difference whether I have to do something in a CLI or in a GUI, it's just a matter of accomplishing a task in an efficient manner. In time, you might find that you feel the same way.

That goes for any OS. The big difference is that in certain other OS'es, you don't have the option of running from CLI and getting all of the useful verbage back.

That's how I do maintenance on my wife's systems, my servers, etc. The servers don't even have a GUI installed, nor monitors, keyboards, etc. SSH is enough.

 

i think i'd be better waiting until i can use one system online to get commands to type into the other system, will i be ok to use the vesa driver for about 3 months ?

[ot]i thought SSH was a secure network protocol, what are you referring to ?[/ot]

BTW: major thankies to AT[ot]not asking this time, just ask your wife to look away, donkey give AT the biggest French kiss the world has ever seen[/ot]

 

You can use the vesa driver as long as you want, of course! However, you won't have any hardware acceleration of any kind until you have proper drivers. Additionally, you won't be able to use any but basic resolutions and refresh rates either as long as you use vesa.

Maybe you're thinking of SSL? SSH is Secure SHell, in other words, something similar to telnet but encrypted and secure. It's a great way to securely manage UNIX-like systems remotely, be it across the room or across the world.

Donkey breath!

 

:good: that'll be fine, i think i'll leave it for now, until i get my computer room setup[ot]computer room: a couple of crappy old systems i got off Freecycle[/ot]

yeah :swear:

i dont think i'm ready to be doing that, yet
[ot]

how can i breath if our tounges are interlocked[/ot]

BTW:thank you very very very very very much & adk your wife to give you a BIG French kiss from me :love:

 

Not sure if Kubuntu Feisty has this feature, but in Ubuntu feisty theres a restricted drivers manager which will install the driver for your kernel for you.

 

cheers, ill check it out

Edit: just used nvidia-xconfig-1.0 to make all xorg mods, but when i checked if all alterations had being made, they hadn't, so, i edited it manually

BTW: i should be using nvidia-glx-new, could someone please check my xorg as i think i may be making mistakes[ot]getting knackered[/ot] i've attached

xorg.conf.old.txt - xorg edited by nvidia-xconfig-1.0
xorg.conf.new.txt - xorg i manually edited

good ?


BTW thankies all

 

I've spotted several errors. I've made the changes and attached a new xorg.conf for you to use.

 

It's the same OS with the same repos. The only difference is the default window manager (KDE instead of Gnome).

 

thought i'd sorted it by removing nvidia-glx & nvidia-glx-new & a second kernel (something i read on Automatix forums) and installing driver with envy & rebooting, but it didn't work, cursor froze just after i selected "Solved" my system worked for 30 mins (longest it worked on th nvidia driver)

BTW: just rebuilding a new xorg, let you know how it goes