How to do a custom installation of the nVidia drivers

Use these instructions if there are no RPMs available, or if the available RPMs don't work for you.

Make sure you have the lastest drivers.

Now print this out, or write it down. Then:

1. You must have kernel-source installed for this to work. Check the "Add/Remove Applications" tool in System Settings on the red-hat menu.
2. Shut down X (as root, do telinit 3 in a terminal).
3. Log in as root and go to the directory where you downloaded the nVidia drivers.
4. Type CC="gcc32" sh NVIDIA-Linux-x86-1.0-4496-pkg2.run --add-this-kernel.
5. There will be some whirring and wailing, and then do CC="gcc32" sh NVIDIA-Linux-x86-1.0-4496-pkg2-custom.run That will do a correct install of your nVidia drivers.
6. Follow nVidia's instructions to set up the driver. (Read the "EDITING YOUR XF86CONFIG FILE" section.)
7. You can now restart X by typing telinit 5.

If none of this works, do rpm -e --nodeps XFree86-Mesa-libGL and then restart your computer. The need to do this should soon be eliminated -- watch this FAQ or the fedora-list. Note that if you update XFree86, this package will be reinstalled and you will need to remove it again. This solves the "DRI" problem.