LinuxQuestions.org - recompiled kernel break x windows, why?

It's most likely because of the Nvidia blob. If you compile or update to a new kernel, the Nvidia driver will need to recompiled too before it will work at all with the new kernel. You could use the nv driver instead, but it's basically a pile of poo.

There's a thread in the Debian subforum detailing the various methods of Nvidia driver installation. If you follow the method from the Debian Wiki, the "Debian Way" using module-assistant, you could use this script I threw together to simplify rebuilding the blob after a new kernel is installed/compiled:

Code:

#!/bin/sh



sudo /etc/init.d/kdm stop

sudo modprobe -r nvidia

sudo m-a clean,a-i -i -f nvidia-kernel-source # -t

sudo depmod -a

sudo /etc/init.d/kdm start

I have another script that simplifies installing the blob from the .bin package downloaded from Nvidia's website (and another that's good for just rebuilding the module and keeping the rest of the driver package as-is), but it's more convoluted and it doesn't work with the newer kernels from testing/unstable which have the headers package split up into (I think) arch-specific and arch-independent sections. The module-assistant way is much simpler.