Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

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luckyduck99

Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

Lots of people are posting about the state of AMD graphics drivers in Linux Mint 18. I created this thread to tell you folks how to install AMDGPU-PRO drivers for (potentially) better graphics performance if you are having issues with the ones installed by default.

IMPORTANT: Full list of compatible cards:
  • ​Radeon™ RX 480 Graphics
    ​Radeon™ RX 470 Graphics
    ​Radeon™ RX 460 Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 Fury X Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 Fury Graphics
    ​AMD Radeon™ R9 Nano Graphics
    ​AMD Radeon™ R9 390X Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 390 Graphics ​
    AMD Radeon™ R9 380X Graphics
    ​​AMD Radeon™ R9 380 Graphics

    AMD Radeon™ R9 M395X Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 M385 Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 M380 Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 M270X Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 360 Graphics
    ​AMD Radeon™ R9 290X Graphics
    ​AMD Radeon™ R9 290 Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R9 285 Graphics
    ​AMD Radeon™ R7 260X Graphics
    AMD Radeon™ R7 260 Graphics
If you do not see your card listed, DO NOT attempt this installation!

Ok, so now that that's out of the way, the first step is to download the driver from the AMD site: http://support.amd.com/en-us/kb-article ... Notes.aspx
(Scroll down and find the link that says "AMDGPU-Pro Driver Version 16.30 for Ubuntu 16.04" and download it)

Assuming the file is saved to your "Downloads" folder, enter the following commands into the terminal:

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cd Downloads

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tar -Jxvf amdgpu-pro_16.30.3-315407.tar.xz

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cd amdgpu-pro-driver

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nano amdgpu-pro-install
You have now extracted the amdgpu-pro_16.30.3-315407.tar.xz file and are currently editing the install script. Replace the code currently in the install script with this code:

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#!/bin/bash
#
# Copyright 2016 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
#
# Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a
# copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"),
# to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation
# the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense,
# and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the
# Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
#
# The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in
# all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
#
# THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
# IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
# FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT.  IN NO EVENT SHALL
# THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER(S) OR AUTHOR(S) BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR
# OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE,
# ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR
# OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

set -e

REPOSITORY="/var/opt/amdgpu-pro"

usage() {
	cat <<END_USAGE
Usage: $PROG [options...]

Options:
  -h|--help  display this help message
  Unless the -h|--help option is given, 'apt-get' options may be present.

END_USAGE
}

function stderr() {
	cat - 1>&2
}

function os_release() {
	[[ -r  /etc/os-release ]] && . /etc/os-release

	case "$ID" in
	linuxmint)
		PACKAGES="amdgpu-pro amdgpu-pro-lib32 amdgpu-pro-dkms"
		;;
	steamos)
		PACKAGES="amdgpu-pro-driver amdgpu-pro-lib32 "`
			`"glx-alternative-amdgpu-pro amdgpu-pro-dkms"
		;;
	*)
		echo "Unsupported OS" | stderr
		exit 1
		;;
	esac
}

function source_list() {
	local dir etc sourceparts

	eval $(apt-config shell dir Dir)
	eval $(apt-config shell etc Dir::Etc)
	eval $(apt-config shell sourceparts Dir::Etc::sourceparts)

	echo ${dir}${etc}${sourceparts}/amdgpu-pro.list
}

function amdgpu_pro_install() {
	local src=$(cd ${0%/*} && pwd -P)
	local index=$src/Packages.gz

	os_release
	amdgpu_pro_uninstall $@

	if [[ -r $index ]]; then
		$SUDO mkdir -p $REPOSITORY && $SUDO cp -af $src/* $_
		$SUDO ln -s $_/$PROG $SBIN/${PROG%-*}-uninstall

		echo "deb file:$REPOSITORY/ ./" | $SUDO tee $(source_list)
		$SUDO apt-get update ||:
		$SUDO apt-get $@ install $PACKAGES
	fi
}

function amdgpu_pro_uninstall() {
	local p
	local installed=()

	[[ -r "$(source_list)" ]] || return 0

	for p in $(zcat $REPOSITORY/Packages.gz | awk '{
		if ($1 == "Package:")
			p = $2;
		else if ($1 == "Architecture:")
			print p ":" $2
	}')
	do
		if dpkg -s $p >/dev/null 2>&1; then
			installed+=($p)
		fi
	done

	$SUDO apt-get $@ remove --purge ${installed[@]}
	$SUDO rm -rf $SBIN/${PROG%-*}-uninstall $(source_list) $REPOSITORY
	$SUDO apt-get update ||:
}

PROG=${0##*/}
ARGS="$@"
SUDO=$([[ $(id -u) -ne 0 ]] && echo "sudo" ||:)
SBIN="/usr/bin"

while (($#))
do
	case "$1" in
	-h|--help)
		usage
		exit 0
		;;
	*)
		shift
		;;
	esac
done

set -- $ARGS
amdgpu_pro_${0##*-} $@
Press control + o to save, hit enter, then press control + x to exit nano.

One last terminal command:

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amdgpu-pro-driver/amdgpu-pro-install
Alrighty! Now that we have that done, it's time to uninstall those pesky old default drivers. Open up the mint software manager and search for "radeon". Find "Xserver-xorg-video-radeon", double click, and hit "Remove."

IMPORTANT: Make sure your user account is a member of the "video" group.

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sudo usermod -a -G video $LOGNAME
....And that's it! Open the terminal and type "reboot." You should now have a functional graphics driver! :D

If anyone has any questions or this does not work, let me know and I can try to help.

[EDIT]: Fixed some typos.
[EDIT]: R7 260 missing from list of compatible cards
[EDIT]: Forgot an important step
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 4 times in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
LizziAS

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by LizziAS »

Works like a charm! Thanks!
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

LizziAS wrote:Works like a charm! Thanks!
No problem, glad I could help!
nonbeing

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by nonbeing »

I copypasted in the code, but still got an "unsupported os" message.

Using Sarah and RX 480. It installed previously on kubuntu 16.04
LizziAS

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by LizziAS »

you have to save the document after copying and pasting it.
LizziAS

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by LizziAS »

Now how about if i need to uninstall these drivers?

sudo amdgpu-pro-uninstall
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

LizziAS wrote:Now how about if i need to uninstall these drivers?

sudo amdgpu-pro-uninstall
You can also uninstall by running the install script again.
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

nonbeing wrote:I copypasted in the code, but still got an "unsupported os" message.
Did you press control + o in nano after copypasting? You could also edit it with the gui text editor if that would be easier (right click -> open with text editor or something like that).
LizziAS

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by LizziAS »

What about folks with r7's integrated in their APU's. Like say an A10-7850 ? Is amdgpu-pro available for them?
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

LizziAS wrote:What about folks with r7's integrated in their APU's. Like say an A10-7850 ? Is amdgpu-pro available for them?
Unfortunately no. :? There is a full list of compatible cards on the AMD site and in my post. People with APUs are stuck with the radeon drivers that ship with mint :(

However, I have an APU in one of my laptops and the drivers installed by default work fine, at least for me. Are you having a problem with them?
nonbeing

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by nonbeing »

luckyduck99 wrote:
nonbeing wrote:I copypasted in the code, but still got an "unsupported os" message.
Did you press control + o in nano after copypasting? You could also edit it with the gui text editor if that would be easier (right click -> open with text editor or something like that).
I originally did do it with gedit. When it didn't work, I tried again with nano to see if that made a difference, and I did indeed press ctrl+o.

I've done well over a dozen clean installs of different distros in the last two weeks, and nothing has worked so far. (Kubuntu installed the drivers but virtually everything else was broken, apparently for unrelated reasons). I recall seeing someone on another thread I read say that this is essentially the worse time to be installing AMD drivers on linux, but that once the transistion to AMDGPU had settled down things would get better. At this point I think I'll just use Windows until Yakkety and Plasma 5.8 are released. It's just a month after all, and with the term starting I really don't have time to mess around with my OS all day.

I do appreciate the help, however. Thanks anyway.
macieG
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 16
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 8:49 am

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by macieG »

I've got two screens connected to my computer - a typical screen connected with VGA cable and a TV connected with HDMI. After applying this solution i was unable to get my screen working even though everything in settings was fine. There was no signal for my screen but TV worked correctly.
Didn't know how to fix it so I just reinstalled Mint. I'm using Mint 18 64-bit with KDE and Radeon R7 260. Any solution?
🇵🇱 🇬🇧 🇩🇪 🏴‍☠️
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

macieG wrote:I've got two screens connected to my computer - a typical screen connected with VGA cable and a TV connected with HDMI. After applying this solution i was unable to get my screen working even though everything in settings was fine.
Did you try installing arandr? (sudo apt-get install arandr, then run it by typing "arandr")
Try playing around with that.
LizziAS

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by LizziAS »

Once i install amdgpu-pro, should i uninstall mesa?
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

LizziAS wrote:Once i install amdgpu-pro, should i uninstall mesa?
Yes, definitely.
gerdyus

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by gerdyus »

Hi Lucky
Thanks for this.
I also got the "Unsupported Os" message.
I see the change you suggest to the shell script simply looks for "linuxmint" in the /etc/os-release file

hardinfo gives me:
-Version-
Kernel : Linux 4.4.0-21-generic (x86_64)
Compiled : #37-Ubuntu SMP Mon Apr 18 18:33:37 UTC 2016
C Library : Unknown
Default C Compiler : GNU C Compiler version 5.4.0 20160609 (Ubuntu 5.4.0-6ubuntu1~16.04.2)
Distribution : Linux Mint 18 Sarah

and

Display controller : Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] Topaz XT [Radeon R7 M260/M265 / M340/M360] (rev ff) (prog-if ff)

and os-release reads:
NAME="Ubuntu"
VERSION="16.04 LTS (Xenial Xerus)"
ID=ubuntu
ID_LIKE=debian
PRETTY_NAME="Ubuntu 16.04 LTS"
VERSION_ID="16.04"
HOME_URL="http://www.ubuntu.com/"
SUPPORT_URL="http://help.ubuntu.com/"
BUG_REPORT_URL="http://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/"
UBUNTU_CODENAME=xenial


so if I run the original the drivers seem to install, then after removing the old and rebooting I had trouble with safeboot(?) which left me with no screen. I had to reboot in safe mode to revert to original setting

did I mess something up?
luckyduck99

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by luckyduck99 »

gerdyus wrote:
so if I run the original the drivers seem to install, then after removing the old and rebooting I had trouble with safeboot(?) which left me with no screen. I had to reboot in safe mode to revert to original setting

did I mess something up?
Sorry for the late reply, I hope you see this.

Try making sure your user account is a member of the "video" group.

List groups with:

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groups
If "video" is not listed, do this:

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sudo usermod -a -G video $LOGNAME
CaptainMogan8008

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by CaptainMogan8008 »

Hey,

I am encountering a problem at this point:

Assuming the file is saved to your "Downloads" folder, enter the following commands into the terminal:
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cd Downloads

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tar -Jxvf amdgpu-pro_16.30.3-315407.tar.xz

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cd amdgpu-pro-driver

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nano amdgpu-pro-install


It isn't finding the 315407.tar.xz in the download from AMD. Any suggestions?
JeremyB
Level 21
Level 21
Posts: 13881
Joined: Fri Feb 21, 2014 8:17 am

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by JeremyB »

See if

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locate amdgpu-pro_16.30.3-315407.tar.xz
Shows the location of the file
Clopy

Re: Get AMD drivers on Mint 18 [ONLY FOR R7, R9, OR RX CARDS]

Post by Clopy »

I think the problem is that the link is broken. I tried opening a forum thread at the amd forums but it is still going through moderation. The download for the 16.04 version returns an empty file. If anyone has another link or can upload the driver somewhere in the mean time that would be great.
Locked

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