[SOLVED] Mint 19.3 nvidia driver installation problem--libc headers?

Endgrain · 05-27-2020, 10:02 PM

Hi, and thanks for reading.

I'm installing Mint 19.3 and attempting to install the Nvidia driver for my gpu to remedy screen tearing/scrambling/flickering issues.
I've managed to blacklist Nouveau, close down the x server, and get the Nvidia driver installation started in the command console, but I get an error message telling me that I need to install the libc header files or the libc development package. I think I've gotten pretty close to doing this, but I don't know how to pick the right one.

Am I on the right track trying to install linux-header-* files? If I am, how do I find the correct one?

My version (from uname -or) is: 5.0.0-32-generic GNU/Linux

Here's the /var/log/nvidia-installer.log file:

Unable to load: nvidia-installer ncurses v6 user interface

Using: nvidia-installer ncurses user interface
-> License accepted.
-> Installing NVIDIA driver version 304.137.
-> There appears to already be a driver installed on your system (version: 304.137). As part of installing this driver (version: 304.137), the existing driver will be uninstalled. Are you sure you want to continue? ('no' will abort installation) (Answer: Yes)
-> Running distribution scripts
executing: '/usr/lib/nvidia/pre-install'...
-> done.
-> The distribution-provided pre-install script failed! Continue installation anyway? (Answer: Yes)
-> Would you like to register the kernel module sources with DKMS? This will allow DKMS to automatically build a new module, if you install a different kernel later. (Answer: No)
ERROR: You do not appear to have libc header files installed on your system. Please install your distribution's libc development package.
ERROR: Installation has failed. Please see the file '/var/log/nvidia-installer.log' for details. You may find suggestions on fixing installation problems in the README available on the Linux driver download page at www.nvidia.com.
"/var/log/nvidia-installer.log" 22L, 1434C 22,4 Bot

berndbausch · 05-28-2020, 03:55 AM

I'd just install linux-headers (no extension) and try again.

EDIT: Oops, perhaps linux-libc-dev. Also, did you read the README mentioned in the log file?

EDIT2: Sorry for the confusion, but https://docs.nvidia.com/datacenter/t...tes/index.html mentions linux-headers.

business_kid · 05-28-2020, 04:11 AM

There may be a case of 64+32 bit problems here. Libc headers are essential, and all basics are installed. I don't think you should be installing libc headers, and here's why.

includes are 'promiscuous, in that they can be read by 32 or 64 bit systems. Libraries, OTOH, are not promiscuous. Take the case of /lib/ld-linux.so which does basic operations, and every program is linked against. On Mint, a 64 bit program needs /lib/ld-linux.so to be 64bit; A 32 bit program needs /lib/ld-linux.so to be 32 bit.
If you've got 32 bit drivers for a 64 bit system, or vice versa, they will not work. I might be able to do it on Slackware, which uses /lib64 for 64bit,* /lib for 32bit, so 64 & 32 bit stuff can coexist. It's messy to get Mint doing that.

Run around with file and check the headers, the drivers and anything you are suspicious of.

Endgrain · 05-29-2020, 09:12 AM

Thanks for your advice. Digesting it has required a little study.

The Linux headers are already the latest version (as business_kid predicted).

I've re-installed the OS and downloaded a fresh copy of the driver. Everything says it is 64-bit. Is it likely that I have a 64bit/32bit conflict? I've looked around for problems using file, but I don't really know what I am looking for.

I also tried installing a couple older driver versions just to see if they would work. Same problems.

I found the readme for my driver version. Thanks for the reminder to read the instructions.

This passage looks relevant--am I right? If it is, can you point me in the right direction to act on it? I am sure I can learn how to use --kernal-include-dir, but I am not sure I would know which header files to use.

Quote:

I cannot build the NVIDIA kernel module, or, I can build the NVIDIA kernel module, but modprobe/insmod fails to load the module into my kernel.

These problems are generally caused by the build using the wrong kernel header files (i.e. header files for a different kernel version than the one you are running). The convention used to be that kernel header files should be stored in /usr/include/linux/, but that is deprecated in favor of /lib/modules/RELEASE/build/include (where RELEASE is the result of uname -r. The nvidia-installer should be able to determine the location on your system; however, if you encounter a problem you can force the build to use certain header files by using the --kernel-include-dir option. For this to work you will of course need the appropriate kernel header files installed on your system. Consult the documentation that came with your distribution; some distributions do not install the kernel header files by default, or they install headers that do not coincide properly with the kernel you are running.

business_kid · 05-29-2020, 11:05 AM

OK. Forget the 64/32 bit thing. If you downloaded the wrong driver, That would arise.

Next thing I'd try is installing the kernel source, if it isn't already installed. cd into it and run

make mrproper

which wipes everything. I'm personally not taking their guff about kernel headers too seriously - they're includes. But the kernel needs a compiled source, and you don't have that. As root,run

Code:

cp /boot/config-correct-version ./.config

Then run make and head away for coffee if your cpu is fast, or several beers if your cpu is tardy. That gives you a compiled source.

So you now have kernel-version = config-version = compiled source. NOW try installing Nvidia's drivers.

Endgrain · 06-08-2020, 05:27 PM

Business_Kid, I appreciate your help. I've learned a lot working on this.

It appears that NVIDIA 304 drivers are not supported by 18.04/Mint 19.3, which is fair enough given that my GPU is at least 11 years old. I avoided the problem by re-installing Mint 18.1 (4.4.0-53) and then installing the Nvidia-304 package from the repository.

Everything appears to work just fine.

19.3 is fun to play with using a bootable USB on my Lenovo/AMD/Windows laptop, where the nouveau driver works just fine.

Regards,
Endrain