I recently switched my laptop to Linux Mint with the i3 desktop environment, and I'm considering moving my desktop over as well. The desktop has an NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti, and I've heard NVIDIA hardware can sometimes be troublesome on Linux. Is getting it working merely a minor inconvenience, or should I expect serious compatibility problems? I'm currently considering Pop!_OS or Kubuntu.
4 Answers
NVIDIA support is much better than it used to be. For normal desktop use, gaming, and everyday applications, current drivers are generally fine. The more complicated issues tend to affect specialized setups rather than average users.
On Linux Mint, open the application menu and launch Driver Manager. Select the recommended NVIDIA driver, let it install, and reboot when prompted. For a supported card like the 3080 Ti, that should usually be all you need.
Your 3080 Ti should be fine. NVIDIA cards from the RTX generation are well supported with the proprietary drivers, and plenty of people use them successfully. Very old cards can have missing features or weaker support, but that generally doesn’t apply here.
Kubuntu is also a solid choice if you want a traditional desktop that stays out of the way. It’s fairly straightforward to install the proprietary NVIDIA driver and tends to work without much fuss.
That’s helpful, thanks. I’m mainly looking for something stable and uncomplicated, so Kubuntu sounds worth considering.