Madrake 10.1 CE NVIDIA problems initializing graphics device

Just to let you all know, I am aware of the Driver "nv" entry. This was the only way I could get X to run. This is my first Mandrake install :-)

it said unable to load. no mention if it could be found. i've edited both XF86Config and xorg.conf. no diference.
i've tryed both the rpm version and the .run version

i've located this.
/lib/modules/1.4.19-16mdk/kernel/drivers/nvidia.o

One thing that struck me is that you say you have both your regular AGPGart and the nvidia one loaded. I'm sure that's not right. Here's a qupte from the nvidia Readme:

Option "NvAGP" "integer" Configure AGP support. Integer argument can be one of: 0 : disable agp 1 : use NVIDIA's internal AGP support, if possible 2 : use AGPGART, if possible 3 : use any agp support (try AGPGART, then NVIDIA's AGP) Please note that NVIDIA's internal AGP support cannot work if AGPGART is either statically compiled into your kernel or is built as a module, but loaded into your kernel (some distributions load AGPGART into the kernel at boot up). Default: 3 (the default was 1 until after 1.0-1251).

Try forcing it to use your native AGPGart by adding this at the end of your section which lists the nvidia driver:

Option "NVAGP" "2"



The second issue re your original error message. You can get that when you compile the driver when the kernel headers/source do not jive with the kernel you are running. Double check this by running:

$ uname -a

and

$ rpm -qa | grep kernel-source

the version numbers should jive.

Here's a link to the Readme:

ftp://download.nvidia.com/XFree86/Li...629/README.txt

Thanks for the info. I won't be able to chek this out until this evening (at work at the moment), so i'll post back then.

kilgoretrout :

ABSOLUTELY!

This is probably the problem plaguing a lot of people.

I played around with this again last night, but again to no avail.

I added Option "NVAGP" "2" to my xorg.conf as suggested, but I still cannot startx with the "nvidia" driver. I have also played around with AGPGART. I have tried taking all entries out of modprobe.preload, just loading the nvidia-agp etc, but again I cannot startx.

Is there any way I can tell if AGPGART is statically compiled into my kenel because I definitely don't see it loaded as a module (when i run lsmod) but x still fails to start.

I have checked that my kernel level ties up with the level of kernel-source installed so this is definitely not the problem.
At the moment I'm quite happy running with the "nv" driver.

If anybody out there knows of the location of the rpms please post it here and ill give them a try.

I downloaded and installed the latest NVIDIA driver last nite. In addition to what's in the readme file, I had to add 'modprobe nvidia' to rc.local and that was about it. My problem now is it somehow broke runlevel 5, as Mandy 10.1CE doesn't startx automatically anymore. No amount of futzing with the GUI control center makes it work, and when I manually edit inittab and specify a display manager it complains about 'starting too fast' or something like that. Seems if it's not one thing it's another. Guess I have to use the Windows fix-it approach and completely reinstall the OS now. glxgears reports 1600+ FPS now though... much better than 150 FPS I was getting with the default 'nv' driver!

most displaesing. i like mandrake. can't get that darn driver working thou.

i dont know the post anymore but i found the answere somewere on linuxquestions.org

same mandrake and same modules (drivers)

you already installed your drivers and changed the glx and nvidia rules in xorg.conf. Now when you reboot, x wont start. This is what i did:

in console you type
# su
# modprobe nvidia

this shouldnot give any errors.

now type:
# startx

x will start.

go to /etc/modprobe.conf file and add this line:

alias eth0 nvidia

just like that, not alias nvidia (what i did the first time, did not work)

save it, and reboot.

x will start now. Dont forget to change init 3 to init 5 in /etc/inittab if you havent done that yet.

luck

ok. somthing i hadn't cofiged yet was modprobe. that may be what i need. going to install 10.1 official in a day or 2. so this post is just in time

thnks

there are allot good nvidia guides for mandrake 10.1 on linuxquestions.org. A little search might be enough. Luck.

i like the this one the most, its from otis:


the non-official, updated periodically, should work if you follow these instructions, Nvidia drivers install "how to"..........

last updated 12-14-04 to include "modprobe.preload" info.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
first, to see how much improvement these drivers will get you, before doing any of the following, open a terminal as root & type glxgears (hit enter). a small box with coloured gears spinning will appear on your screen. let it run for 30 seconds to a minute, then close the box. you will see output on your terminal screen showing how many FPS (Frames Per Second) your card is getting you. after you install the drivers, run glxgears again & compare the results. now, on with the show..............

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

first, you need to install the nvidia drivers. you can get them HERE .

on the above linked page choose "graphics driver" in box 1, pick your board type in box 2, choose your platform in box three, click "go". if you have a normal AMD or Intel CPU, use the IA32 drivers. if you have AMD64=AMD64 drivers, Intel64=IA64 drivers.

download the file called NVIDIA-Linux-x86-1.0-XXXX-pkg1.run & save it to your hardrive somewhere, then follow the instructions below to install............ (XXXX=current version number)

PLEASE NOTE:you must have the kernel-source installed that matches your kernel in order for the nvidia drivers to function! in terminal as root type uname -a to get current kernel version. then, in terminal as root do urpmi kernel-source-(same kernel number here).

1. start the computer & choose the "failsafe" option to boot from. (this will boot you into text mode & dump you at a login prompt)

1b.NOTE: the above boot from "failsafe" mode isn't neccessary if you already have GUI access. this only comes in handy if you're having trouble starting X. if you have GUI access, then ignore the "failsafe" method, open a terminal as root & type init 3 (hit enter). this will kill X & dump you at command line. login as root, then proceed to step 4.

2. at the login prompt, type your user name (enter) password (enter)

3. type su (enter) password (enter) this will put you in root mode. then type...... init 3 (hit enter) to kill xserver. relogin as root.

4. navigate to the directory where you have the nvidia installer script.

5. type ls (enter) that will list the contents of the directory (in case you have more than one file on there. you're going to need to know the install script file name, in full.)

6. type the following. this is CapSenSItIve....... sh NVIDIA-LINUX-x86-1.0-XXXX-pkg1.run (XXXX=current version number)

6b.NOTE: there are some issues with the Nvidia 6111 driver & certain kernels. if the driver install errors out using the 6111 drivers, run the install command as follows....... sh NVIDIA-LINUX-x86-1.0-XXXX-pkg1.run --add-this-kernel ........it will then compile a new script for your kernel in the same directory called NVIDIA-Linux-x86-1.0-XXXX-pkg1-custom.run. you would then install the drivers using that (-custom) script.

7. accept the agreement, then answer yes to the prompts. it will load the drivers & when it's done it will dump you back at the prompt.

7b.NOTE: if you get a warning during the install about rivafb being a kernel module, blah, blah, blah, ignore it & proceed with the install. this pertains to riva chipsets. the module will not interfere with the Nvidia drivers unless you have a riva chipset, in which case you need to disable the module from loading.

8. we're going to use VIM to edit your xf86config (or xorg.conf......see 9b.) file. follow the steps exactly as i type them. again, it's CapSensiTIve.

9. type vim /etc/X11/XF86Config-4 (enter)

9b. with the advent of xorg becoming the default X server on many distros, if you are using xorg, then the edit command would be....... vim /etc/X11/xorg.conf (enter)

10. type i (this is for insert mode so you can isert the proper driver line)

11. use your arrow keys & scroll to the section where it says Section "Module". under that, make sure there's a line that says Load "glx" # 3d layer . if there isn't, add it as the last line, then hit esc .

12. if it says either or both of the following under the "Module" section (Load "DRI" Load "Glcore"), remove them by typing i & using the arrow keys to navigate to them & the space or backspace bar(s) to remove them. hit esc .

13. type i & use your arrow keys to navigate to where it says Section "Device". navigate to where it says Driver "nv" or Driver "vesa" & make it read Driver "nvidia" .........that's Driver(space)(quotes)nvidia(quotes)

14. hit the esc key.

15. type :wq (enter) ..........that's (colon)wq then hit the enter key.

15b. if you think you did something horribly wrong while editing & just want to exit without saving the changes so you can start over, after hitting the esc key type :q! (enter) ........that's (colon)q(exclamation mark) then hit the enter key.

16. type reboot

16b. there appears to be a bug/glitch/compatability issue in MDK10.1 with udev & Nvidia drivers. if after rebooting you find that X won't start, do the following....... from a terminal prompt as root, use vim (or vi) to edit the /etc/modprobe.preload file. simply add a line under the header of that file saying nvidia. save it, then reboot (or startx) again.

you're computer will now reboot, choose linux from lilo as you normally would. if all went well (& it should have) you'll see a nvidia splash screen just before your GUI login.

also, one note. sometimes the nvidia drivers can cause random lockups. if you find that happening, use your favourite text editor, open that same XF86Config-4 (or xorg.conf) file, & directly under where you changed Driver "nvidia", add the follwoing line..........

Option "NvAGP" "3" (that's Option(space)(quotes)NvAGP(quotes)(space)(quotes)3(quotes).

that will try to use the kernel agp drivers first, then nvidia agp if the kernel drivers don't work. other numerical options you can use with that are........

"0" (uses no agp support)
"1" (uses nvidia agpart only)
"2" (tries kernel agpart only)

save it, then restart X or reboot. smoke 'em if ya got 'em. you'll see the Nvidia splash screen before you get to your login screen. if you decide the splash screen is oogly & you want to disable the it, use a text editor to open XF86Config-4 (or xorg.conf) & under the "device" section, add the following line.........

Option "NoLogo" "1

another Nvidia feature that many don't know about......... in a terminal as root type nvidia-settings (hit enter). you'll get a nice GUI panel where you can tweak/fine tune various video/monitor settings & an explanation for what each setting does.

otis