How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

screentearing235 · 2025-12-21 04:49:01

My GPU is "GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER" for reference.

Some days ago, a number of NVIDIA drivers began causing issues with many desktop environments, including XFCE4 and its compositor function. The flickering of the desktop environment would get so bad that even using a terminal emulator was very difficult, because it would flicker every time the screen redrew itself, like when you type a character. At first I just downgraded to the packages I was using as of 15 December, but I found out from another thread that changing my "vblank" setting in XFCE (whatever that means) can stop the flickering.

However, these new open drivers appear to cause screen tearing, and since I am not an expert on linux drivers, I have decided to just keep my drivers downgraded indefinitely, which works well enough. However, I was curious how some of you real experts solved this issue. I couldn't find a thread talking about it, so here I am asking

seth · 2025-12-21 09:11:29

I was curious how some of you real experts solved this issue.

Downgrade and nag nvidia to fix their driver.

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=311055
Subscribe there, report this one as duplicate, https://bbs.archlinux.org/misc.php?report=2279072

screentearing235 · 2025-12-21 09:57:34

seth wrote:

I was curious how some of you real experts solved this issue.
Downgrade and nag nvidia to fix their driver.
https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=311055
Subscribe there, report this one as duplicate, https://bbs.archlinux.org/misc.php?report=2279072

Interestingly, after trying to isolate the packages for a few hours, I found that updating my `linux' kernel package can cause tearing as well, not just 'nvidia-open' + 'nvidia-utils'.

seth · 2025-12-21 10:03:38

You cannot update linux and nvidia-open independently, you'll have to use nvidia-open-dkms and install the linux-headers for that as well.

screentearing235 · 2025-12-21 11:02:49

seth wrote:

You cannot update linux and nvidia-open independently, you'll have to use nvidia-open-dkms and install the linux-headers for that as well.

Interesting, how did you get the knowledge that they cannot be updated independently? I would love to know how I could have figured out such a thing myself.

sudo pacman -Syy linux
[sudo] password for USERNAME: 
:: Synchronizing package databases...
 core                                        117.8 KiB  20.1 KiB/s 00:06 [########################################] 100%
 extra                                         8.1 MiB  6.54 MiB/s 00:01 [########################################] 100%
 multilib                                    126.6 KiB   688 KiB/s 00:00 [########################################] 100%
resolving dependencies...
looking for conflicting packages...

Packages (1) linux-6.18.2.arch2-1

Total Installed Size:  143.61 MiB
Net Upgrade Size:        0.35 MiB

:: Proceed with installation? [Y/n] y
(1/1) checking keys in keyring                                           [########################################] 100%
(1/1) checking package integrity                                         [########################################] 100%
(1/1) loading package files                                              [########################################] 100%
(1/1) checking for file conflicts                                        [########################################] 100%
(1/1) checking available disk space                                      [########################################] 100%
:: Running pre-transaction hooks...
(1/2) Removing linux initcpios...
(2/2) Remove DKMS modules
:: Processing package changes...
(1/1) upgrading linux                                                    [########################################] 100%
:: Running post-transaction hooks...
(1/4) Arming ConditionNeedsUpdate...
(2/4) Updating module dependencies...
(3/4) Install DKMS modules
(4/4) Updating linux initcpios...
==> Building image from preset: /etc/mkinitcpio.d/linux.preset: 'default'
==> Using default configuration file: '/etc/mkinitcpio.conf'
==> WARNING: Deprecated option 'ALL_microcode' found. Update '/etc/mkinitcpio.d/linux.preset' to use the 'microcode' hook instead.
  -> -k /boot/vmlinuz-linux -g /boot/initramfs-linux.img
==> Starting build: '6.18.2-arch2-1'
  -> Running build hook: [base]
  -> Running build hook: [systemd]
  -> Running build hook: [autodetect]
  -> Running build hook: [microcode]
  -> Running build hook: [modconf]
  -> Running build hook: [kms]
  -> Running build hook: [keyboard]
  -> Running build hook: [keymap]
  -> Running build hook: [sd-vconsole]
  -> Running build hook: [block]
  -> Running build hook: [filesystems]
  -> Running build hook: [fsck]
==> Generating module dependencies
==> Creating zstd-compressed initcpio image: '/boot/initramfs-linux.img'
  -> Early uncompressed CPIO image generation successful
==> Initcpio image generation successful
==> Building image from preset: /etc/mkinitcpio.d/linux.preset: 'fallback'
==> Using default configuration file: '/etc/mkinitcpio.conf'
==> WARNING: Deprecated option 'ALL_microcode' found. Update '/etc/mkinitcpio.d/linux.preset' to use the 'microcode' hook instead.
  -> -k /boot/vmlinuz-linux -g /boot/initramfs-linux-fallback.img -S autodetect
==> Starting build: '6.18.2-arch2-1'
  -> Running build hook: [base]
  -> Running build hook: [systemd]
  -> Running build hook: [microcode]
  -> Running build hook: [modconf]
  -> Running build hook: [kms]
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'ast'
  -> Running build hook: [keyboard]
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'xhci_pci_renesas'
  -> Running build hook: [keymap]
  -> Running build hook: [sd-vconsole]
  -> Running build hook: [block]
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'qed'
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'qla1280'
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'bfa'
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'wd719x'
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'qla2xxx'
==> WARNING: Possibly missing firmware for module: 'aic94xx'
  -> Running build hook: [filesystems]
  -> Running build hook: [fsck]
==> Generating module dependencies
==> Creating zstd-compressed initcpio image: '/boot/initramfs-linux-fallback.img'
  -> Early uncompressed CPIO image generation successful
==> Initcpio image generation successful

I cannot seem to find where the nvidia-open package is installed automatically when installing the linux package. Is it just implicit somehow?

WorMzy · 2025-12-21 11:31:14

You're running partial updates. Don't do that. Also don't use two 'y' flags with pacman -S.

https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/System … nsupported

Fully update your system.

pacman -Syu

seth · 2025-12-21 13:25:01

how did you get the knowledge that they cannot be updated independently?

It's an out-of-tree kernel module, those have to be compiled for a specific kernel - that's why DKMS exists.

screentearing235 · 2025-12-22 00:22:31

WorMzy wrote:

You're running partial updates. Don't do that. Also don't use two 'y' flags with pacman -S.
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/System … nsupported
Fully update your system.
pacman -Syu

So are you saying that I cannot / should not update packages on my system if I don't want to update them all? Updating every package just results in this screen tearing issue that prompted me to downgrade in the first place. I suppose this is just the nature of a rolling release distro, then.

Admin Edit

For anyone reading this thread: Downgrade your kernel and NVIDIA drivers to what they were on ~December 15, and ideally downgrade all of your packages to what they were before this update. Try to avoid updating any packages until NVIDIA fixes their new driver bugs and it becomes feasible to update your whole system.
Also, do follow all of those NVIDIA forum threads, here's one: https://forums.developer.nvidia.com/t/5 … ion/341205

~~This problem's cause and solution are identified so I guess this question is answered.~~

The part above is bad advice and likely to cause much bigger problems then a bit of tearing.

In case someone wants to downgrade their while system to an earlier date , use https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Arch_L … cific_date .

Last edited by Lone_Wolf (2025-12-22 09:35:58)

seth · 2025-12-22 09:20:24

You don't need to downgrade *all* packages but you either need to keep the OOT module (aka nvidia) builds in sync with the installed kernel (ie. downgrade the kernel accordingly, to the exact version) or use dkms (which will require the linux-headers package to build a kernel module)

Arch Linux

#1 2025-12-21 04:49:01

How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#2 2025-12-21 09:11:29

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#3 2025-12-21 09:57:34

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#4 2025-12-21 10:03:38

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#5 2025-12-21 11:02:49

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#6 2025-12-21 11:31:14

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#7 2025-12-21 13:25:01

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#8 2025-12-22 00:22:31

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

#9 2025-12-22 09:20:24

Re: How did everyone handle the new NVIDIA screen tearing issue?

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