Kubuntu 9.04 64-Bit, Kernel 2.6.30.1, and NVIDIA…

I went ahead and decided to upgrade my kernel, and to go to the latest NVIDIA driver (180.51).  I downloaded the kernel and the nvidia driver file, built the kernel, and removed the nvidia restricted driver.  This is on a 64-bit build of Kubuntu 9.04.

However, I was not done.

When I tried to install the kernel image file, I kept getting dkms errors relating to nvidia-common.  I eventually removed the nvidia packages using “apt-get remove --purge nvidia*” (as root), but this still would not allow me to install the kernel. Also my xorg.conf file was empty.

I fixed xorg by typing “dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg” and adding in the line “Driver "vesa" ” to the “Device” section, so I would have something when I rebooted.

Only when I removed dkms (“apt-get remove dkms“), was I able to install kernel 2.6.30.1.  I use lilo since I run RAID-10, but did not have to update the /etc/lilo.conf file.  Upon reboot, I stopped X with “/etc/init.d/kdm stop“.

I next installed the NVidia driver first (and chose to install the 32-bit compatibility files as well). After that, I ran “nvidia-xconfig” and my xorg file was ready.  When testing with the “X” command, it just pulled up a blank screen, but I took a chance and started KDM (“/etc/init.d/kdm start“).

Everything came up fine.  Typing “glxgears” in a terminal showed decent enough acceleration (about 3000 fps).

So far, no other ill effects. And no firmware issues.