Viewing topic 7870 preferred drivers for stable operation?

7870 preferred drivers for stable operation?

TheLinuxPleb Aug 21, 2018

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So. I have tried Oibaf and Padoka PPA's with AMDGPU and amdgpu.dc=1 and SI stuff in kernel parameters.
Most if not all my games crash the way that i have to reboot my machine. On Windows i can run Furmark and Prime95 with no problems.

The one that just comes out of the box lags in normal desktop usage so i would not like to use that also.
I have bios modded my gpu though, but it runs totally fine with full load on Windows.

So is there anything that anyone can recommend?

I installed Windows to second hard drive to bios mod it to stock, but now that i see it runs totally fine i think that it might be the drivers and/or games that are the problem.

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Samsai Aug 21, 2018

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I would propose disabling DC. You probably don't need it and at least for me it did cause instability. BIOS modding the GPU might cause different sorts of behaviour between the Linux and Windows installs, since they use different drivers entirely, so keeping it stock is probably a good idea. Also, unless you really need the Vulkan support, it might be a good idea to check if switching to the "radeon" kernel module nets you better results than using AMDGPU. My R7 370 used to behave a bit strange with AMDGPU last I tried it, though it's been some time.

As for driver versions, latest stable Mesa is a decent bet. Some people swear by git versions but at this point there is no pressing need for git versions and stable at least won't have sudden regressions. Back when I was on Ubuntu https://launchpad.net/~paulo-miguel-dias/+archive/ubuntu/pkppa was the PPA of choice for stable Mesa. If you are on the latest version of Ubuntu or a derivative you probably don't need to worry about kernel versions but if you are running an old LTS you might want to check if you can update to a backported kernel.

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TheLinuxPleb Aug 22, 2018

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Thanks. Tried original bios. No go. Seems like amdgpu and vulkan is out of the question for this. :(
Damn experimental support only. No Steam Proton etc. for me then...

Is there any way that i could contribute my rig for testing or something?

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TheLinuxPleb Sep 3, 2018

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Thanks for the help. It seems like AMD driver for 7870 is a total disaster. Tried Ziggurat with Radeon driver. Crash.
Tried Ziggurat with Padoka stable. Flashing screen. Tried Windows with latest amd driver. Works fine for hours.

Tried stock vbios. Tried underclocked vbios. Tried different distros. Tried different drivers and none is stable. It is stable for 2d use, but 3d is just broken. Buyers beware 7870 if you wan't to use Linux for gaming.

Windows has a shitty Twitch performance, because it just freezes all the time. It seems like Linux is better for normal use and Windows for gaming. Dual boot seems to be the solution for me.

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tuxintuxedo Sep 3, 2018

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That card is a bit problematic for a while now. As far as I know, this is the only AMD card truly suffering on Linux right now. You can check this link and can try to help improve the situation.
bug page

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