Fixing NVIDIA Driver Package Conflict

Fixing NVIDIA Driver Package Conflict | Generated by AI

Home 2025.10

This looks like a classic package conflict during an NVIDIA driver update on Ubuntu (likely 22.04 based on the package versions). The nvidia-kernel-common-535 package is trying to overwrite a firmware file (gsp_ga10x.bin) that’s already owned by nvidia-firmware-535, causing dpkg to bail out. This is a known issue with NVIDIA 535-series drivers from Ubuntu repos.

Don’t panic—your system should still boot (though graphics might be in software rendering mode if the driver is partially broken). Here’s a step-by-step fix to resolve it safely. Run these in a terminal (use TTY if GUI is unstable: Ctrl+Alt+F3 to switch).

Quick Fix Attempt (Safest First)

Try auto-fixing the broken packages:
```
sudo apt --fix-broken install
```
This often resolves dependency/unpack issues without manual intervention.
If that fails (or partially succeeds but leaves errors), clean up the interrupted install:
```
sudo dpkg --configure -a
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
```

If Still Stuck: Force Overwrite the Conflicting File

The error is specifically on the nvidia-kernel-common-535 deb file. Force dpkg to overwrite the duplicate file:

sudo dpkg -i --force-overwrite /var/cache/apt/archives/nvidia-kernel-common-535_535.274.02-0ubuntu1_amd64.deb

This installs just that package, ignoring the file conflict.

Then run:

sudo apt --fix-broken install
sudo apt autoremove
sudo apt upgrade

Reboot after: sudo reboot.

Nuclear Option: Purge and Reinstall NVIDIA Packages

If the above doesn’t work (e.g., deeper version mismatch), remove the conflicting NVIDIA bits and reinstall:

Purge the problem packages (adapt versions if needed—check with dpkg -l | grep nvidia):
```
sudo dpkg --force-all -P nvidia-firmware-535-535.274.02 nvidia-kernel-common-535
```

Clean up:

sudo apt autoremove --purge
sudo apt autoclean

Reinstall the driver:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nvidia-driver-535

Reboot.

Prevention/Tips

Add the graphics-drivers PPA for more stable NVIDIA updates: sudo add-apt-repository ppa:graphics-drivers/ppa && sudo apt update.
If you’re on a laptop, ensure Secure Boot is disabled in BIOS before driver installs.
Test after reboot with nvidia-smi (should show your GPU) or prime-select query (if NVIDIA Optimus).
If this breaks your display entirely, boot to recovery mode and run the fixes from there.

If none of this works or you get a new error, paste the full output here for more tweaks.

References

Back

x-ai/grok-4-fast

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