How Do I Invoke My Nvidia X-server Settings At Startup?

[jdrichardson]

I have an Nvidia display driver that I'm using as installed from PCLinuxOS (64-bit). I can set things up with the Nvidia X-Server Settings app but the settings will not be reapplied when I reboot. It would seem that I need to place something in the Autostart file, but I don't know what that is.

Can anyone help? I would appreciate it!

[Bald Brick]

There are several Autostart folders but if you are running KDE I suggest you use the KDE one.

Systemsettings ("Configure Your Desktop")->"System Administration"->"Startup and Shutdown" will give you this window:



Click "Add Program" and navigate through "More Applications" and "Configuration" to "NVIDIA Display Settings".

But while it should be quite possible to run the Nvidia settings program at every login you shouldn't have to. If you can't save your settings from within the application it may be because you're running it as your ordinary user. In that case it can't save the necessary changes to /etc/X11/xorg.conf. Try starting it from a terminal as root. The path to the app is /usr/bin/nvidia-settings.

[jdrichardson]

I agree that I shouldn't have to run Nvidia-Settings app at each log-in but it seems that's the only way to apply the settings. I don't like seeing the open window at each startup.

I removed Nvidia-Settings from startup. I then saved the settings as root per your suggestion, but no settings were applied when I rebooted.

I tried to have the application run from startup with no splash (/usr/bin/nvidia-settings -nosplash) but had no success. It put the system in a FUBAR state and I had to re-intsall.

Now I've installed xgamma and am running /usr/bin/xgamma -gamma 0.7 at startup. At least I'll have that setting applied.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated!

[jberkpc]

I might be missing something here, but I've never been able to use nvidia-setttings in any distribution (KDE). I just start PCC, go to hardware, then Configure Video Card, select the proper video card, that selection seems to start the script to ask you: Do you want to use the Proprietary Driver?, select your monitor, resolution (that you should know for your flat panel or monitor), select your options, reboot and xorg.conf is written for you. Then you restart your computer and your settings have been applied and your off and running.That's what is so great, it's all done for you and you can add some lines shown in the Nvida appendix if you want. Most  settings don't apply to newer Nvidia Cards, but I set it up once with a 480GTX, just to be able to control the speed of the cooling fan on the video card and it worked.
You don't give your model of your card so I don't know if your card is older or newer, but that's one reason I've stuck with Nvidia cards because their Proprietary Drivers work well, even though there is a rift between Linus and Nvidia for not giving them more source to work with to develop the Open Source drivers.

[jdrichardson]

I don't have any problems installing the driver for my GE6150 graphics chip. I do things just as you said - it's set up well for you in PCLinuxOS. The problem comes when I use the Nvidia-Settings app to set gamma values, brightness and contrast values, digital vibrance, etc. The app will let me set things, but will not reapply them on reboot, even though they're saved in a file. Upon further googling, I found out that's how things work by design - your settings are not reapplied. One has to restart the app every time after reboot to reapply the settings. Go figure!

[Just17]

I don't have any problems installing the driver for my GE6150 graphics chip. I do things just as you said - it's set up well for you in PCLinuxOS. The problem comes when I use the Nvidia-Settings app to set gamma values, brightness and contrast values, digital vibrance, etc. The app will let me set things, but will not reapply them on reboot, even though they're saved in a file. Upon further googling, I found out that's how things work by design - your settings are not reapplied. One has to restart the app every time after reboot to reapply the settings. Go figure!

Can the contents of the saved file from one setting be saved elsewhere and re-applied (saved over the default) before log in?
Would that work?

[Bald Brick]

I don't have any problems installing the driver for my GE6150 graphics chip. I do things just as you said - it's set up well for you in PCLinuxOS. The problem comes when I use the Nvidia-Settings app to set gamma values, brightness and contrast values, digital vibrance, etc. The app will let me set things, but will not reapply them on reboot, even though they're saved in a file. Upon further googling, I found out that's how things work by design - your settings are not reapplied. One has to restart the app every time after reboot to reapply the settings. Go figure!

Ah, you never told us which settings you wished to save. Those that aren't global and saved in /etc/X11/xorg.conf go by default into /home/<yourname>/.nvidia-settings-rc. To get them there you have to click "Save Current Configuration" on the "nvidia-settings Configuration" tab of nvidia settings. You can do this as your ordinary user and you can change the file-name and location.

(Clicking "Save to X Configuration File" on the "X Server Display Configuration" does not help; for that you have to be root and that's for global settings.)

After you've created the file .nvidia-settings-rc you should edit the file you earlier created in an Autostart folder. These days System Settings will probably have created the file in /home/<yourname>/.config/autostart instead of the traditional ~/.kde4/Autostart, so the file you want to edit will be ~/.config/autostart/nvidia-settings.desktop. In that file, change the line

Code: [Select]

Exec=/usr/bin/nvidia-settingsto

Code: [Select]

Exec=/usr/bin/nvidia-settings --load-config-only
After that the Nvidia settings should be loaded on log-in but the settings window shouldn't open.

(At least that's how it should be unless you've created and edited /etc/sysconfig/nvidia-settings.)

[jdrichardson]

After reading your post, I reinstalled PCLinuxOS again, and gave it another go. I followed your instructions and my settings were restored on re-boot. Problem solved!!!

Thank you very much for your help.