system76-driver.md

title	description	keywords	facebookImage	twitterImage	hidden	section	tableOfContents
System76 Driver (Install)	Learn how to add the System76 Driver to your System76 computer after reinstalling Ubuntu	system76 driver NVIDIA support	/_social/article	/_social/article	false	software	true

This guide will show you how to add the System76 software repository and install the driver on Ubuntu.

Please note these steps are not necessary in Pop!_OS, which includes the repository and the appropriate drivers installed by default.

Adding the Apt Preferences File

If you are running Ubuntu 19.10 or later, you will need to manually add an apt preferences file to "pin" the System76 repository. This will tell apt to prefer System76 packages over standard Ubuntu packages. Installing the System76 Driver will not be possible until this step is completed.

Create the apt preferences file here:

sudo gedit /etc/apt/preferences.d/system76-apt-preferences

Add the following six lines (seven if you count the space in the middle):

Package: *
Pin: release o=LP-PPA-system76-dev-stable
Pin-Priority: 1001

Package: *
Pin: release o=LP-PPA-system76-dev-pre-stable
Pin-Priority: 1001

Save the file. Now you should be able to install the System76 Driver as described below.

Installing the Driver

To install our Driver you need to run the following commands in the Terminal:

sudo apt-add-repository -y ppa:system76-dev/stable
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt install system76-driver

This installs the System76 driver and related utilities which are needed to enable full functionality for your system.

Installing the System76 NVIDIA Driver for Systems with NVIDIA GPUs

If your system has an NVIDIA graphics card, you will want to go ahead and use this command to install the System76 Driver with NVIDIA graphics drivers built-in:

sudo apt-get install system76-driver-nvidia

In addition to the standard packages, that will pull in the latest NVIDIA drivers as packaged by System76, and all related packages needed to take full advantage of your dedicated NVIDIA graphics card.

Install System76 Driver on Other Operating Systems

DISCLAIMER: This section explains how to install the System76 Driver on Arch and Fedora.

Except in some rare cases, System76 QA and Engineering teams do not test other OSes on our hardware. This section is provided for informational purposes only. System76 encourages users to take ownership of their machines and install whatever software or operating systems they prefer.

However, System76 does not guarantee the success or quality of experience when installing other Operating Systems. Support typically makes best-efforts to offer direction or troubleshooting for other distributions.

We may determine that troubleshooting has exceeded the scope of support. If that's the case, further questions should be referred to those Operating System(s)' support forums.

NOTE at this time it is recommended to use the NVIDIA driver from the Arch and Fedora repositories.

Arch

First let's install some packages needed for the build process of the System76 Firmware Daemon and the System76 Driver:

sudo pacman -S --needed base-devel git linux-headers

Install Paru

git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/paru.git
cd paru
makepkg -si

NOTE that by default Paru uses vim standards so when you see a ":" press the q key to continue. You may also need to import some public keys by using the y key.

Now the System76 Driver can be cloned, built and installed using these commands:

git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/system76-driver.git
cd system76-driver
makepkg -srcif
sudo systemctl enable --now system76

NOTE choose the first software option listed after running the Paru command.

paru -s system76-driver
sudo systemctl enable --now system76

Fedora

Run these commands in a Terminal to enable the community Fedora COPR and install the System76 Driver :

sudo dnf copr enable szydell/system76
sudo dnf install system76-driver