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Much confusion and conflicting information in installing Nvidia drivers in Ubuntu. In my case Ubuntu-mate.

All I 've learned so far is
-don't use Nouveau!
and
- most problems I've encountered are due to improperly installed Nvidia drivers!

My goal is to use my Linux workstation exclusively for GPU rendering, so installing Nvidia drivers properly is of utmost importance!

The problem with most installation guides is they act as recipes, without actually telling you WHY this is a better approach or WHY you might try an alternative. Ok Rant over :)

A quick google search turns up the following 5 recent (within the past year) installation guides for Nvidia drivers on Ubuntu

A very simple breakdown seems to be between what I would call 'fully manual' methods using the command line (link #3 below) vs some combination of PPA + using the Software & Updates menu.

Question #1 Why PPA, and in what way might this be 'better' than a fully manual install? Link #5 below suggests PPA is untested ( so does that mean beta and possibly avoid?)

Question #2 If using a fully manual install (link #3) should I simply choose the most recent driver version? The reason i ask is in link#1 (official guide?) it says that the actual version

"depends on the version of Ubuntu one is using, and what graphics card one has installed."

Question #3 Is it one way or the other? ie If you install your driver manually should you avoid using the Software & Updates > Other Drivers window to avoid conflicts?

Question #4 If unsure what driver version you have currently installed, how do you properly remove ALL installed graphics drivers to start from scratch?

1 https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/Nvidia (using Software & Updates - additional drivers method only)

2 https://ubuntu-mate.community/t/how-to-install-graphics-card-drivers-in-ubuntu/3228 (both auto using Software & Updates and manual, but no explanation as to why manual)

3 https://linuxconfig.org/how-to-install-the-latest-nvidia-drivers-on-ubuntu-16-04-xenial-xerus (manual using sudo apt-get install)

4 http://www.ubuntugeek.com/install-nvidia-367-27-drivers-in-ubuntu-16-0415-10.html (manual using ppa +sudo apt-get install)

5 http://www.webupd8.org/2016/06/how-to-install-latest-nvidia-drivers-in.html (using PPA + Software & Updates window, suggests PPA is untested)

Bachalo
  • 753
  • PPAs usually have newer, but less tested, drivers, ...may or may not get updates. 2. Hard to tell, as we don't really know what Nvidia tested the driver against. 3. Yes. 4. There is no magic bullet.
    • – mikewhatever Dec 09 '16 at 20:06
  • Generally: You must decide what is important. apt-get / PPA is meant to be easy to install and remove, on top of the fact that updates are easy. All else is manual install, update and removal - and note that e.g. updates of kernel and X or other graphics related packages MAY break your install. Which is LESS LIKELY with an PPA. – Hannu Dec 09 '16 at 20:25
  • Thanks. Also came across this post which clarifies some things https://askubuntu.com/questions/61396/how-do-i-install-the-nvidia-drivers/681042 – Bachalo Dec 09 '16 at 21:46
  • Welcome to Ask Ubuntu! We’re sorry, but Ask Ubuntu is not a forum, but a Question & Answer site: it works best if you ask one question, so you can receive one answer. When you ask multiple questions, you need to find one expert versed in multiple areas, which becomes unlikelier the more questions you put into, well, one question! ;-) So please, split up your question into multiple questions and drop me a comment so I can answer one of your questions. – David Foerster Dec 10 '16 at 06:50
  • Specifying Nvidia in particular (as this question does) makes this an important & relevant question, separate (but related) to the common question of "to PPA, or not to PPA". And the answer will probably evolve over time as more people try to get their gpu configured for machine learning with the correct & specific patches, vs merely "stable vs latest" patches for eg basic display functionality or even gaming. – michael Aug 16 '18 at 04:35