1. Forum
  2. FidoNet
  3. linux.debian.user

  • When are new Nvidia GPU drivers added?

    From Zachary@3:633/10 to All on Sunday, February 22, 2026 23:10:01
    Good afternoon all!

    I was wondering how the process works for adding new versions of the proprietary Nvidia GPU driver to the non-free repo. Are new versions of
    the driver added after Nvidia releases them to the public as a stable
    version, or does the Debian team test the driver to any standard before
    adding them? Do new driver versions get added shortly after their
    release, or is there a wait?

    I'm looking to move from Kubuntu to Debian this year, and am trying to
    set my expectations on what the experience will be like. I hope this
    wasn't a dumb question. I only switched to Linux in 2024, and I'm still learning. Thanks for the input.

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.11
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Marco Moock@3:633/10 to All on Monday, February 23, 2026 10:50:01
    On 22.02.2026 23:10 Uhr Zachary wrote:

    I was wondering how the process works for adding new versions of the proprietary Nvidia GPU driver to the non-free repo. Are new versions
    of the driver added after Nvidia releases them to the public as a
    stable version, or does the Debian team test the driver to any
    standard before adding them? Do new driver versions get added shortly
    after their release, or is there a wait?

    IIRC they will be added to the next stable release, regarding Ubuntu.
    Do you need a more current version?
    A launchpad PPA exists.

    --
    kind regards
    Marco

    Send spam to 1771798201muell@stinkedores.dorfdsl.de

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.12
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Anssi Saari@3:633/10 to All on Monday, February 23, 2026 13:50:01
    Zachary <epilepticporygon@gmail.com> writes:

    Good afternoon all!

    I was wondering how the process works for adding new versions of the proprietary Nvidia GPU driver to the non-free repo.

    In Debian's non-free repo drivers are updated for a release for sure,
    which is every two years or so. In between, some update might be added
    to debian-backports.

    Alternatively, Nvidia now has a Debian repo. I didn't see a way to get
    working drivers for my RTX5070Ti except getting them from there.

    Maybe as an explainer how Debian works: stable release is stable,
    meaning no new versions, only security updates. Exceptions exist for
    some things like web browsers.

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.12
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Anssi Saari@3:633/10 to All on Monday, February 23, 2026 22:30:02

    On 2/23/26 15:47, Zachary wrote:


    On 2/23/26 06:45, Anssi Saari wrote:
    Alternatively, Nvidia now has a Debian repo. I didn't see a way to get
    working drivers for my RTX5070Ti except getting them from there.

    Sorry for the double reply, but can you share the Nvidia repo you're
    speaking of? I haven't found it mentioned on their site when looking
    on their driver pages. I'm curious about the details, and if adding a
    repo like that to Debian would be difficult to manage for a novice
    user like myself.ÿ

    Hi, I followed the instructions at https://docs.nvidia.com/datacenter/tesla/driver-installation-guide/debian.html. It's a little vague but mostly OK. Some more information is in the
    Debian wiki at https://wiki.debian.org/NvidiaGraphicsDrivers.

    BTW, responses to to a mailing list post should go to the mailing list,
    not to me personally.

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.12
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)