How to make use of CUDA with Nvidia in Linux Pop! OS?

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1

Screenshot from 2020-08-23 21-10-54
Specs:
OS: Pop!_OS 20.04 LTS x86_64
Kernel: 5.4.0-7642-generic
CPU: Intel i7-8700 (12) @ 4.600GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
Memory: 16 Gb

Where should I start?

Thanks guys

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You might have to download and install the Nvidia developers CUDA toolkit you can download here. If I remember Pop is an Ubuntu base. https://developer.nvidia.com/cuda-downloads?target_os=Linux&target_arch=x86_64&target_distro=Ubuntu

3

Thanks a bunch ajm! I’ll give it a try! :slight_smile:

4

You already have CUDA toolkit installed from repositories as I already mentioned in this thread:

It is not a good idea to do repeating threads on the same topic.

Official Blender downloaded from the official Blender website includes precompiled CUDA kernels, this does not require you to have CUDA Toolkit installed at all. They just need you to have the nvidia driver installed correctly (that is, with computation runtime packages that should be installed automatically when installing the driver). So if you installed latest drivers and official Blender downloaded from the official Blender website still don’t work, this should be reported to your Linux distribution maintainers.
You do what I had already recommended, you uninstall everything related to cuda toolkit and old nvidia driver. Add PPA and install new drivers.

5

I am sincerely sorry about this. I got mixed up. I have the same problem with a laptop (AMD Radeon graphics).

6

Exactly, I’ll do just that and get back to you.

Thank you Yafu :slight_smile:

7

You feel free to ask questions when in doubt.
To uninstall CUDA toolkit from the distro package manager, you search with “cuda” word and you check to uninstall the related packages that are installed. To uninstall the driver you search with the words: nvidia 440
And you uninstall all packages related to that result.

Then preferably without restarting the computer, from the linux terminal you add nvidia ppa (you need to be connected to the internet):
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:graphics-drivers/ppa

sudo apt-get update

and you install the driver:

sudo apt install nvidia-driver-450

If everything ends well from the linux terminal, you now restart the computer.
Test with official Blender (extract the file to a new folder, you enter that folder and you run/double click “blender” file there).

Edit:
Additionally you should report the problem to Pop! _OS maintainers. If they boast of being a distro with nvidia components out of the box, then you shouldn’t have a problem with Blender.

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Is it as efficient to use Synaptic to remove the driver?
Screenshot from 2020-08-26 21-17-58

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Compared to what? With driver manager?
You can use Synaptic package manager if you want.

10

Guess what Yafu?!
I downloaded a standalone Blender from Blender.org, as you adviced. And it can use CUDA from both the GPU & the CPU!
I also installed it from Steam, and it also was able to use CUDA!
So, I am not installing Blender from the Pop Store anymore - until that is fixed anyway.
Apparently I didn’t need to tinker with the drivers after all :slight_smile:

I will need your help again with a new laptop with Radeon graphics. I might post it tomorrow. Depending on how busy I’ll be at work :wink:

11

For that you open a new thread. AMD/OpenCL is completely different from nvidia/CUDA.

I do not know much about AMD/OpenCL, but I will try to help as much as possible.