With a leap 15.1 and a M$ dual boot setup, I find myself in need for a hardware upgrade pretty soon.

So to start with, I am just swapping out my Graphics card first, from an NVIDIA make (1050) to an AMD make (rx 580, Gen 4). I just want to know if there is anything I am missing out -

My plan so far -
a. Uninstall Nvidia Driver, use nouveau, reboot, verify.
b. swap GPUs, reboot, install AMDGPU, verify

After this, do I need to remove/blacklist nouveau again ?

[I understand a fresh OS installation would be so much better, but I'll have to do it anyway when I replace the CPU + MoBo a few weeks down the line, so I'd rather save myself the hassle this time.]

Honest Abe,

I know this does not answer your specific question, but with regard to a new build, I can strongly recommend the MSI B450 Tomahawk MAX motherboard along with a Ryzen CPU of your choice to use with the RX580:
https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...og.php?b=38257

Customer feedback:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-B450-TO...tronics&sr=1-2

Unless you need advanced OpenCL type stuff there is no need to install official AMDGPU proprietary driver from AMD. For ordinary graphics acceleration the mesa/xorg version of amdgpu will automatically just work if your system is using nouveau properly just before you swap out the cards, and will work just as well or better if you just want ordinary graphics adapter functions. Blacklisting nouveau won't be necessary for this. One caveat would be if you are using a very old version of mesa and or kernel without proper RX580 support.

I installed OpenSuse Leap 15.0 on a computer with an RX580 and it worked fine. Updated to 15.1 and then again to 15.2 and all is well. OpenSuse Leap has supported the RX580 since at least 15.0.

@beachboy2, yes A ryzen 3600 cpu and a x570 mobo are on their way. Not a hardcore gamer, but I think I will be good for next 5 years at least. And more VMs/containers etc to play with thanks to 12 threads.

@biker_rat & @kilgoretrout, I do not intend to use amdgpu pro (the proprietary driver). I guess I should be fine with the normal open source one , which is why I inserted a hyperlink to the one I want to use in my post above. But thanks for the heads up. In fact, Linux is my main work/media box and M$ is only for gaming, so I am not too bothered about the GPU support on linux. As long as it displays UIs fine and doesn't stutter VLC, I am good.

Another question, how can I make sure that all my installed stuff (Realtek driver module, few utilities and softwares etc) also gets automatically installed when I reinstall the OS after CPU/Mobo change ? I kinda miss puppet/ansible here and good old rpm -qa is a lengthy route I don't want to take. Any quick, nifty tool y'all can think of ?

If you eliminate all blacklisting, and perfectly uninstall proprietary drivers and xf86-video-nouveau and xf86-video-ati, you should be able to run automatically the modesetting DDX (upstream default) on the NVidia, then have X automatically use modesetting DDX for the AMD when you make the switch until xf86-video-amdgpu is available, unless it already is, in which case the new GPU should use the amdgpu DDX automatically. Check out the video primer before doing anything. AFAIK, there is no proprietary driver available from AMD for 15.1 or 15.2.

1 members found this post helpful.

First items in the File menu in YaST Software Management is import and export of package lists designed just for what you seem to want.

I wouldn't assume any need for a fresh installation when you buy the new components. Just try what you have first. I've done it often, routinely cloning and putting the cloned disk with a different motherboard/PC. Other than accommodating a new MAC address if you have a static IP configuration, automatic module loading might handle everything.

Unless I'm missing something: why are you side/down-grading the graphics from the GTX 1050 to the RX 580?

Background on this question: RX 580 is a very old GPU, and you will give up various video codec support and probably some performance in various tasks with this switch. The RX 580 may give you slightly higher frame rates in some games (at least according to UserBenchmark), but it isn't an all-around upgrade from the 1050. I would suggest looking at a more up-to-date Radeon like the RX 5600 or RX 5700, or going further up the nVidia line (e.g. 1070 or a 20-series card) so that you both retain feature-level *and* increase performance.

RX 580 is much more powerful than a GTX 1050 for gaming. It is supercheap used ($100 if you shop around enough, $150 any day any time). RX5700 is a $400 card, very hard to get a deal on used. If you only have a 60Hz 1080p monitor anything more than a RX 580 is probably wishful thinking, and money wasted. If you have 144hz refresh rate monitor or a 4k resolution monitor, RX 5700XT would be a necessary upgrade. The GTX 1050 for laptop is relatively more wonderful than than the GTX 1050 desktop, but compared to the GTX 1050 desktop the RX 580 desktop is great. Also, if you have a Ryzen 3600 and can multithread the video decode on the cpu, who needs hardware video decoding on the gpu anyway?

Thanks for your precious inputs. Today I switched the CPU and mobo and everything looks fine. [The rx580 was a dud so it will be sent back for refund.]. For the time being I am still using the 1050.

I consider this an upgrade because I am going from a 2G 1050 to a 8G Rx 580. It is purely for playing games on M$. Sniper Elite 4 stutters on that puny 2G 1050 .

The work and study I do on linux does not involve graphics card at all. But I still need one as ryzen 3600 does not have in built graphics.

Okay, I do see need for few troubleshooting. The audio output from the MoBo is not working on Suse but I know that the port is not bad cuz it works in M$. Pointers ?

Should this go to a different thread ?

HonestAbe,

Install pavucontrol and go through the settings:
https://software.opensuse.org/package/pavucontrol

Just logged out after a long day. I didn't even do any troubleshooting yet.

Thanks indeed, @beachboy2. I'll get more info tomorrow.

According to userbench it is going to be somewhat faster for some games, and not much at all for others. It's older and thats why its cheap (not to mention most of those 'cheap cards' are former mining boards). You can see this yourself if you like:
https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compar...580/3650vs3923 (scroll down to 'Game FPS') - some show a difference of only 15-25% while others are much greater (up to 92% in one case) - also consider in terms of absolute frame rate, where there isn't a clear-cut 'playable vs unplayable' divide (it isn't going from 5 FPS to 40 FPS in any case).

My point remains: its relative to what you're specifically meaning the computer to do as to what makes sense.

Also I feel this reply is disingenuous because I did not only suggest RX 5700 (and it looks like you're taking pricing data on RX 5700XT at that, to cherry pick the highest possible price point for brand new part versus 'supercheap deals' on a used card - RX 580/590 are around $200 brand new).*

* This all assumes US prices in USD.

Historically speaking the idea of '1080p cards' or '60hz cards' (or '4k cards' or whatever) is a really bad way to approach hardware upgrades. I do not see this trend changing anytime soon - it really depends on what specific game(s) are being played and how the rest of the system is configured.

Spoiler alert: most folks. CPUs have multi-threaded 'the video decode' for years, but it doesn't change that dedicated hardware is substantially faster (and more power efficient) - 4K playback is a significant ask for even a 6 core CPU (expect many dropped frames). For DRM-protected 4K content you generally need a modern Intel IGP, although some providers (like Netflix) support nVidia 10-series and newer cards as well, which offer the appropriate hardware decoding. AMD has supported this in hardware since Vega, but does not appear to be supported on the software side as well - maybe this will change with Navi.

If you don't care about any video content (or are only watching DVDs or DVD-alikes), none of this matters at all - my point was exactly that. The RX 580 will likely be faster in some games and other applications but it is a few generations older, so it is give and take as opposed to a universal 'upgrade.' I completely agree with you that newer cards cost more - that's been a rising trend for years, and shows no signs of abating.

Power consumption/usage is also important - RX 580 uses a good deal more wattage than GTX 1050, so if it requires a PSU upgrade to support, it becomes less attractive as an upgrade.



I actually found you an article that may be of interest, since you've mentioned the game you're after:
https://www.techpowerup.com/review/s...ce-test/4.html

Note that the RX 580 is a re-badge of the RX 480, and this article predates the Navi GPUs (so no 5600/5700 comparisons), but it looks like GTX 1060 or 1070 would be an overall 'better choice' based on their results. The 580 should be at least something of an upgrade over the 1050 (especially at lower settings/resolution), based on their results as well. To borrow from the other poster's idea of buying used boards, GTX 1060s look to run around $140-170 on fleabay from a quick search. The 1070 appears to go up to around $200-220.


To the audio: I'd agree with installing pavucontrol and making sure the 'output configuration' is set for the port you're trying to use, and that it isn't muted. I've noticed on many newer motherboards that linux seems to respect the 'auto sense' a lot more rigidly than Windows, so if you're using an analog output and don't have something plugged in, it makes that port unavailable until it detects a plug (whereas Windows generally allows you to make changes to those ports even when they're not plugged in).

@beachboy2, thanks for the tip. The pavucontrol gui is nice. I now have audio output on both devices -

The Nvidia audio output is carried via the HDMI through the monitor. Using the same can (creative aurvana), MoBo's audio output is much better. [no mixing/ANC/profiling, same song, out of the box]. Possibly because I am still using Nouveau. I do have the nvidia repository added, so switching to the proprietary driver is no big deal. I am delaying because of the graphics card which I am yet to switch.

@obobskivich,

The primary use of this machine is to learn stuff. I can have a lot more VMs than I was earlier able to, hence the switch from Blue to Red. But I would still like to have a graphics card which is better than the 2G 1050. Sniper Elite 4 is the most recent title in my steam library and I am thinking of getting COD:WWII soon.

So, a very high FPS/online gaming/4K gaming etc are definitely not my priority. I was happy with the 2G Nvidia 1050 for close to 4 years, that should tell you lot about the 'demanding' games I play.

Also, my PSU (smps) is of 500w and I do not have any extra power hungry components, so a change is not immediately required on that front.

Looking at my local amazon for reference, I see these in my budget. Note that I am not in US, so prices vary a lot in my country.

1. https://www.asus.com/us/Graphics-Car...500XT-O8G-EVO/ [price > rx580]
2. https://www.zotac.com/us/product/gra...1660-6gb-gddr5 [price ~ rx580]
3. https://www.gigabyte.com/us/Graphics...-8GD-rev-10#kf [price >> rx580]

What I see is -

1. Both are very comparable with rx5500xt drawing a bit less power with marginal gain in graphics quality (link). I can save on the electricity bill in the longer run. I'll have to see if my favorite HW shop (brick n mortar) can give me a deal.

2. I really like what I see here (link).

3. Even more power hungry (link). I need to get a new SMPS.. So, Nope.

Thoughts ?