Greetings and Felicitations!
I usually go by the mantra “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” but due to new support in NVidia video drivers I am looking at upgrading, but am unsure if my distro will play nicely. I am currently using v20.04 (everything works great, so I would like to stay put as long as I can), and my video drivers are 535.183.01 (the most current is 565.57.01). Therein lies my first question: Why, after updating the repository via “sudo apt update” do the following queries not show anything above v535:
~> Your Command, Oh Master? ubuntu-drivers devices
== /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:01.0/0000:01:00.0 ==
modalias : pci:xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
vendor : NVIDIA Corporation
driver : nvidia-driver-535-open - distro non-free
driver : nvidia-driver-535-server - distro non-free
driver : nvidia-driver-535 - distro non-free recommended
driver : nvidia-driver-535-server-open - distro non-free
driver : nvidia-driver-470 - distro non-free
driver : nvidia-driver-470-server - distro non-free
driver : xserver-xorg-video-nouveau - distro free builtin
~> Your Command, Oh Master? sudo ubuntu-drivers list
nvidia-driver-535, (kernel modules provided by linux-modules-nvidia-535-generic-hwe-20.04)
nvidia-driver-535-open, (kernel modules provided by linux-modules-nvidia-535-open-generic-hwe-20.04)
nvidia-driver-470, (kernel modules provided by linux-modules-nvidia-470-generic-hwe-20.04)
nvidia-driver-535-server, (kernel modules provided by linux-modules-nvidia-535-server-generic-hwe-20.04)
nvidia-driver-535-server-open, (kernel modules provided by linux-modules-nvidia-535-server-open-generic-hwe-20.04)
nvidia-driver-470-server, (kernel modules provided by linux-modules-nvidia-470-server-generic-hwe-20.04)
Is it because the current Nvidia version is not compatible with Ubuntu 20.04, and would cause problems with the kernel (which is up-to-date at v5.15.0-130-generic)? According to NVidia’s web site, the 565 drivers are compatible with an A100 GPU architechture, which I think my card is (RTX3060).
Second, if the NVidia 565 drivers will work on Ubuntu 20.04, do I need to uninstall the existing 535 drivers before upgrading, or can I simply install the 565 over them and reboot (sudo apt install nvidia-driver-565). If I need to remove the existing drivers first, what is the best way to do that (I am not a linux guru by any measure)?
Thanks!
Mongo
If ubuntu-drivers list is not showing the latest proprietary drivers from Nvidia then I would take that as evidence that the latest driver is not compatible with the Linux kernels in Ubuntu 20.04 LTS.
From the list it would seem that the newest Nvidia driver available for you is the 470 driver.
We can use Software and Updates>Additional Drivers tab to deactivate the existing driver and activate a replacement.
To use the command line we have to remove/purge the existing Nvidia driver before installing another proprietary video driver.
As some additional information for you to consider. Have you heard of Ubuntu Pro and Extended Security Maintenance (ESM)
I have this on my install of Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. A subscription is free for the home user with up to five machines. Support of Ubuntu 20.04 LTS is extended beyond April 2025 to April 2030.
https://ubuntu.com/pro
https://ubuntu.com/pricing/pro
Scroll down and see the Notes section.
N.B.: Subscriptions are not just for enterprise customers. Anyone can get a personal subscription for free on up to 5 machines
Regards
Hi Graymech,
Thank you for your reply. As for compatibility, I suspected as much (well, shazbot… the new Linux drivers have introduced several features I may have to live without for now). I plan to stick with 20.04 until a kernel upgrade breaks my VMWare setup (it has to re-build several modules with each new kernel, and occasionally a new kernel will not play nicely) . When that happens, I will upgrade to 24.04 (and VMWare to v17). Until then, I have been looking at Ubuntu Pro (personal use), but from what I have read the free license updates are beta, as opposed to stable for paid licenses…?
You also say that “From the list it would seem that the newest Nvidia driver available for you is the 470 driver.” Is the 470 driver more recent than the 535? According to NVidia’s site, they were both released on 6/4/2024…?!? I’m confused (most likely I am looking at the wrong stats)…
You are right I am wrong - about 535 driver being newer than the 470 driver. I need glasses.
As for Ubuntu Pro, well, that is a different subject for a different topic. Although I do not understand how one part of a service can be beta code and another part be stable code. It seems to me that obtaining a subscription is the same process. It is just the level of service that increases the more a persons pays for the service.
Regards
Moderator Note
Questions about Ubuntu Pro should be directed to…
We are your fellow users, volunteers, community support, and have no special insight into Pro.
Reminder: This venue (Ubuntu Discourse Help and Support) will cease answering all 20.04 questions, including questions by Pro subscribers, in April 2025 when that release reaches the end of 5-year community support.
Thank you Graymech, and my apologies for my Pro inquiry; I will ask in the appropriate forum.