What sort of mess are you expecting? If the GPU works with the proprietary Nvidia driver in your current build, it's going to be fine in the new one as well. Switching to AMD later is not a problem.

From my experience you should remove the nvidia driver before starting up on the amd card, in theory it shouldn't matter, but in practice it does.

As an added bonus, if your card runs on the latest nvidia driver (45x), if you were to get a used nvidia card, like a 1xxx, you can just put it in and it'll work out of the box.

Quoting: tuubiWhat sort of mess are you expecting? If the GPU works with the proprietary Nvidia driver in your current build, it's going to be fine in the new one as well. Switching to AMD later is not a problem.

I suppose it is a sign of 'Linux on the desktop' being more mature than it was when I started (20+ years ago) that you even ask that (and I feel foolish.)

My expectation was someone might say, "you're going to need to do some real deep-cleaning of your system files to remove every trace of the nV drivers, otherwise you'll just have a blank screen when you boot with the AMD card."

I am assured that this appears not to be the case.

Quoting: JSVRamirez

Quoting: tuubiWhat sort of mess are you expecting? If the GPU works with the proprietary Nvidia driver in your current build, it's going to be fine in the new one as well. Switching to AMD later is not a problem.

I suppose it is a sign of 'Linux on the desktop' being more mature than it was when I started (20+ years ago) that you even ask that (and I feel foolish.)

My expectation was someone might say, "you're going to need to do some real deep-cleaning of your system files to remove every trace of the nV drivers, otherwise you'll just have a blank screen when you boot with the AMD card."

I am assured that this appears not to be the case.

I totally get your apprehension. I switched to Linux on the desktop about 20 years ago as well. We've come far since then. My own switch was totally painless.

Uninstalling your Nvidia driver (just in case, like damarrin said above) and possibly ditching any custom Xorg.conf configuration created by the Nvidia control panel should be enough.

Quoting: JSVRamirez

Quoting: tuubiWhat sort of mess are you expecting? If the GPU works with the proprietary Nvidia driver in your current build, it's going to be fine in the new one as well. Switching to AMD later is not a problem.

I suppose it is a sign of 'Linux on the desktop' being more mature than it was when I started (20+ years ago) that you even ask that (and I feel foolish.)

My expectation was someone might say, "you're going to need to do some real deep-cleaning of your system files to remove every trace of the nV drivers, otherwise you'll just have a blank screen when you boot with the AMD card."

I am assured that this appears not to be the case.

A few months ago I went through the process from Nvidia to AMD GPU on my alt system. The process is pretty straightforward.

I don't know about the repo packages, but if you're using the .run package supplied by Nvidia, it will leave some log files upon uninstallation, nothing that will pose an issue though. You will also have to reinstall some Mesa packages as many of the libraries will be overwritten by the Nvidia driver so make sure to make a list of these. I repeat, this applies to the run package supplied by Nvidia, I have no experience how the Nvidia repo packages work.

Then as tuubi mentioned you might have to create a new xorg.conf file. First rename or remove your old xorg.conf then as sudo run "Xorg -configure". This will create a new xorg.conf file in your root account, which you'll have to move it in the same folder as the old one (on Debian the default is in /etc/X11).

Also depending on your distro/gpu, make sure you have the required firmware. On a modern (or rolling) distro you should be pretty much good to go in this regard.

You're a bit in luck with the GT 710, this gpu is old enough to boot to desktop without too much issues with Mesa, giving you time to cleanup and adjust the system for the new gpu. You'll only have to deal with xorg.conf upon installing the new gpu.

Quoting: Avehicle7887Then as tuubi mentioned you might have to create a new xorg.conf file. First rename or remove your old xorg.conf then as sudo run "Xorg -configure". This will create a new xorg.conf file in your root account, which you'll have to move it in the same folder as the old one (on Debian the default is in /etc/X11).

No, this isn't necessary. For a long while now, the recommendation is to have no Xorg.conf at all. If you actually need to add some configuration options later, do so by adding individual snippets under /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/.

Quite, I was under the impression only nvidia still used xorg.conf, anything based on mesa is better off without or with minimal settings if something doesn't work right.

I'm on an optimus intel/nvidia laptop now and I just have some keyboard settings in there, autogenerated by the system. So not even the nvidia card needs anything, but then it's not driving the screen.

Hi there, JSVRamirez. I did something similar. I built a new AMD machine, but I kept an old NVIDIA graphics card while I waited for the AMD card to arrive.

I am assuming you are doing a fresh install?

Some things to keep in mind:

• Use NVIDIA packages from Debian, not from NVIDIA directly. It will make removing them easier and cleaner.
• Old graphics cards may not initialize in pure EFI mode. You may need to enable CSM compatibility in BIOS.
• Make sure to install in EFI mode. Do not actually boot in compatibility mode.
• NVIDIA likes conservative systems with stable kernels. With AMD it is best to go bleeding edge, so use Debian Unstable as a default, with Mesa and kernel packages from Experimental as needed.

Alternatively get an AMD CPU like Ryzen 5 2400G with onboard graphics. It should be faster than GeForce GT 710, and you can always pop-in a dedicated graphics card afterwards.

Quoting: tuubiNo, this isn't necessary. For a long while now, the recommendation is to have no Xorg.conf at all. If you actually need to add some configuration options later, do so by adding individual snippets under /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/.

This is helpful to keep in-mind, but I'm pretty sure I haven't made changes to my xorg.conf in ages, so I should be able to get-by until the new card comes.

Quoting: LinasHi there, JSVRamirez. I did something similar. I built a new AMD machine, but I kept an old NVIDIA graphics card while I waited for the AMD card to arrive.

I am assuming you are doing a fresh install?

Some things to keep in mind:

• Use NVIDIA packages from Debian, not from NVIDIA directly. It will make removing them easier and cleaner.
• Old graphics cards may not initialize in pure EFI mode. You may need to enable CSM compatibility in BIOS.
• Make sure to install in EFI mode. Do not actually boot in compatibility mode.
• NVIDIA likes conservative systems with stable kernels. With AMD it is best to go bleeding edge, so use Debian Unstable as a default, with Mesa and kernel packages from Experimental as needed.

Alternatively get an AMD CPU like Ryzen 5 2400G with onboard graphics. It should be faster than GeForce GT 710, and you can always pop-in a dedicated graphics card afterwards.

Yes, complete fresh install for two reasons, one is that I have all kinds of legacy settings and part-processes running because of how old this is and I can't seem to remove them without breaking MythTV (such as the LCD daemon for the little screen on my case.) The other is that the new case (current one doesn't 'fit' so wife insisted I get a smaller one) doesn't have space for three HDDs, so I'm moving to an SSD.

Unfortunately, I've already bought the CPU, the only thing I'm missing from the build is the GPU, and it isn't one with onboard graphics.

My plan was to use Debian testing; will it be necessary to roll with Sid from now on? This is the main way we watch TV/play games and the family won't be happy if it breaks. Again, I haven't used Sid for years, so this might not be a worry I need to have?

Quoting: JSVRamirezMy plan was to use Debian testing; will it be necessary to roll with Sid from now on?

That depends on the GPU you're going for. The first generation of Navi hardware (RX 5000 series) should work just fine with the Mesa 20.2.4 and kernel 5.9.11 packages currently available in Testing. The new RX 6000 series might need fresher stuff to work properly.