NVIDIA Drivers Support Asking! (Install .run Files)

[Aevum]

Allright guys, I've to ask you somethng as I'm kinda new of this all, I used to have Ubuntu 9.04 and all my NVIDIA Drivers were working properly allowing all improved effects / Compiz / Several desktops. As I upgraded to 9.10, I feel like the drivers are working still, but it's like, they're working in a different way. I still can play games as I used to and do whatever graphic card drivers are needed for but most effects as compiz ones, or even extra effects (change background -> desktop effect) are changed.
So I decided to download agtain the drivers rom the NVIDIA website and I got this .run file, that I didn't know how to run, I googled t and i found i should you a command like this:

sh thefile.run

but this file requires root user, so i used this other command

su Username
Password

but still when i run it I get like I'm not on my root "account". I know I may sound pretty stupid but I'm really not into this for a long time, could you help me out?
Thanks in advance!

[Aevum]

Ok, wait. After i did the "su username" and then password i tried to run the file with

sh filename.run

but doing it like this

sudo sh filename.run

it loads the file but then i get an error from the nvidia thingy that says like this:

ERROR: You appear to be running an X server; please exit X before
installing. For further details, please see the section INSTALLING
THE NVIDIA DRIVER in the README available on the Linux driver
download page at www . nvidia . com

what does it mean that i'm running an X server? and how can i solve that?

[D-cat]

try sudo sh ./filename.run

Oh, and before running it, save anything you have open, drop to a text terminal ([Ctrl + Alt + F1]); log in and type

sudo init 3

This will shut down X.

Then install the nVidia driver.

Then run

sudo init 5

to bring X back up.

[Aevum]

How can you leave the text terminal to come back to the "graphic" version without rebooting everytime? :P Thank you!

[D-cat]

Short answer.
sudo init 5

X is the "graphic version."

Long drawn out answer:
Unlike Windows NT based OS's, linux is not built around the graphic terminal, rather the graphic terminal was an add-on. Thus, it can be loaded or unloaded at will.

To fully answer the question, I need to give a "quick" explanation of init levels. The init level affects what services are running at any given time. The default level for most distros is 5, which is a multi-user graphical terminal (yes, you can log more people on at the same time in this init level). Init 3 is multi-user text only, so X and any programs running in it are shut down. You usually have 6 local text terminals available to you in inits 3-5 (Use [Alt+Fn] to switch between them, where "n" is the terminal number). In inits 4 and 5, X takes tty7 by default. In init 5, starting additional terminals for local login will take additionally higher terminals. In X, you'd switch between them with [Ctrl + Alt + Fn], again where "n" was the tty number. 1-6 will drop you to the corresponding text terminal.

Inits 1/2 and 4 are the single user (or single log-on) versions of if init 3 and 5 respectively. While the actual implementation of these is in the control of a distro's developers, I think the intended use is init 1 and 2 doesn't run certain servers and services that would allow multiple persons to use the system locally or remote... just a single local text login terminal. init 4 I'm guessing would be like init 5 without the multiple terminals option. This is not consistent between distros, so probably should not be used unless you know what what or why a particular distro does use a particular init level for. e.g. some guides say init 1 is single user, init 2 is the same as 3 (multi-user) but without nfs/networking support and init 4 isn't used at all. Honestly, I don't know off hand which scheme Ubuntu uses.

What is consistent is usually inits 3 and 5, and then init 6 reboots the computer, init 0 halts it (do not invoke 0 or 6 directly, always use some form of the shutdown command).

A regular user logged in to a local text terminal in init 3 can also still invoke their default X desktop by typing startx at the prompt.

I hope that is a satisfactory answer.

[jmadero]

is your nvidia card not showing in restricted drivers? There shouldn't be a reason to manually install the nvidia driver....unless you have one of a few undetected cards....

go to system -> adminstrator -> hardware drivers

[devils casper]

I agree with jmadero. Un-install Nvidia Driver, if you have installed it already and try Hardware Drivers option in Menu.