How to Install Drivers in Ubuntu-4 best Methods

You’ve come to the correct place if you recently switched from Windows or macOS to Ubuntu and are looking for information on how to install drivers in Ubuntu. We have included four comprehensive ways to upgrade drivers in Ubuntu, from downloading new drivers to installing the most recent graphical drivers from Nvidia. In addition, for novice Linux users, we have assembled the best screen recording software for Ubuntu. Let’s go on to learning how to manually install drivers in Ubuntu now.

Table of Contents

How to Install Drivers in Ubuntu

How to Install Drivers in Ubuntu. We’ve added four additional ways to install drivers in Ubuntu in this article. Everything has been covered, from adding more drivers to switching to the newest branch for cutting-edge updates. The table below can be expanded so you can navigate to any area.

Install Drivers in Ubuntu From Software and Updates (GUI Method):-

In case you were unaware, drivers for Ubuntu or Linux are handled by the system automatically because they are directly embedded into the kernel. Therefore, drivers are instantly patched whenever the kernel is upgraded. You don’t have to hunt down and manually install every driver, unlike Windows.

However, as there are both proprietary and open-source drivers for graphics and Wi-Fi hardware, there are certain exceptions. Even for those gadgets, Ubuntu has simplified the driver installation process using a GUI. The Additional Drivers menu in Ubuntu can be used to install drivers in the following manner.

First, open “Software and Updates” in the App Launcher on Ubuntu. Additionally, you can access “Additional Drivers” directly.

Go to the “Additional Drivers” area after that. You can see that it is already utilizing the tested and proprietary driver suggested for my Nvidia GeForce GT 730 graphics card in this screenshot.

If you want to upgrade to an older graphics driver or switch to an open-source driver, choose it from the list of alternatives and click “Apply Changes.” You will now switch to the specific driver version after restarting your computer.

Install Drivers in Ubuntu From Terminal (CLI Method)

There are a number of commands you may use in the Terminal to update drivers in Ubuntu. Start by launching the Terminal using the app launcher or by hitting “Ctrl + Alt + T.”

Next, execute the command below to list the drivers. Ubuntu has something akin to a Device Manager, but with a command-line interface. It shows the Nvidia graphics card on my computer.

ubuntu-drivers devices

From this point, you can pick which driver to install. Run the command as shown below, for instance, to install the most recent recommended driver, which is nvidia-driver-470.

sudo apt install nvidia-driver-470

sudo ubuntu-drivers install nvidia:470

You can also use the command listed below to have Ubuntu automatically install all of the suggested drivers.

sudo ubuntu-drivers autoinstall

Restart your computer after the installation is complete, and you will be using the most recent stable version. To determine the current driver version, run the command below.

nvidia-smi

Install the Latest (Beta) Nvidia Drivers in Ubuntu

Users can install the Ubuntu beta Nvidia drivers if they wish to stay on the cutting edge. Just create a new PPA repository, that’s all. The instructions are listed below.

Launch Ubuntu’s Terminal and enter the command listed below to add the graphics driver PPA.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:graphics-drivers/ppa

Next, execute the commands listed below to update all the packages.

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade

Next, run the command below to get a list of all the most recent drivers, including both beta and stable builds. However, in my instance, version 470 is the most recent driver, surpassing even the 465-version beta build. I can therefore comfortably stay on 470.

ubuntu-drivers devices

If a new version of the drivers for your graphics card appears, you can install the beta Nvidia drivers by running the command below. Simply swap out 470 with your most recent beta build.

sudo apt install nvidia-driver-470

Install Nvidia Drivers in Ubuntu Using Official Installer

You may use Ubuntu to obtain Nvidia drivers in a manner similar to how you would on Windows. But to do this, you must entirely disable the GUI interface and make the adjustments via the command line. The GUI interface needs to be enabled again after that. Yes, the procedure is a little drawn out and complicated, but if you want to use it this way, then follow the instructions listed below. Before moving on to the next, be sure to have your login and password in mind.

Open the Nvidia website and enter the information for your graphics card. For stable drivers, select “Production Branch,” while for beta drivers, select “New Feature Branch.”

Download the Nvidia driver for your Ubuntu system from the following page. A file in the .run the format will be downloaded.

After that, find the downloaded file and perform a right-click. Next, select “Properties.”

Select “Allow executing file as program” under the “Permissions” tab.

After completing that, you must switch to the Text console mode. To close the GUI interface, press “Ctrl + Alt + F3.” Do not worry; simply press “Ctrl + Alt + F2” to return everything to how it was.

Log in using your Ubuntu username and password in the text terminal mode. Run the command shown below to disable the graphical server after that.

sudo systemctl isolate multi-user.target

Execute the command below to unload the Nvidia driver that is currently active.

sudo modprobe -r nvidia-drm

To begin the driver installation, type the command below. Ensure that the filename is changed to the correct name of the downloaded file. To run the script, you might need to navigate to the “Downloads” folder first.