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[Background]

I am running Ubuntu 12.04, my computer contains an NVIDIA Quadro K4100M and Intel HD Graphics.

[Usage Scenario]

My usage scenarios include training deep neural networks which require an NVIDIA GPU, and when not training, using the computer for development and web browsing.

[The Main Question]

I would like to leverage the Intel HD Graphics for just the desktop usage to cut down on a loud fan and high energy usage. While just reserving the GPU for DNN training. How can I achieve this?

[About Related Setups and Questions]

I have this set up in a Windows machine, and using NVIDIA's control panel, I can easily switch between the graphics modes for desktop. But I can't find anything like this on Ubuntu. I see people have mentioned things about Bios updates but it seems it means choosing one you cannot access the other no matter what.

Evan W.
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1 Answers1

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You can install the prime indicator and it allows you to switch manually without a password. More information can be found here. This works with the Unity desktop but you will need nvidia-331 or greater.

Open a terminal and type the following commands one at a time to install:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gdebi nvidia-prime nvidia-331 nvidia-settings python-appindicator
wget http://ppa.launchpad.net/nilarimogard/webupd8/ubuntu/pool/main/p/prime-indicator/prime-indicator_0.1-1+git20140109~webupd8~0_all.deb
sudo gdebi prime-indicator_0.1-1+git20140109~webupd8~0_all.deb

UPDATE: NEW INSTRUCTIONS

purge nvidia-331 and the prime-indicator with this command:

sudo apt-get purge nvidia-331 prime-indicator

Reinstall your old drivers (340 cuda etc...) and reboot the system using your preferred drivers.

Now, install git if not already installed on your system with this command:

sudo apt-get install git

Then, clone into the source code and install prime-indicator from source using the following commands (also, make sure your firewall is open to git I believe it's port:9418):

git clone https://github.com/beidl/prime-indicator.git
cd prime-indicator
chmod a+x setup.sh
sudo ./setup.sh

You can select y to start the indicator automatically or if it doesn't show up right away in your Unity panel up top, run the following command to get it started (no need to reboot):

nohup prime-indicator

You may now close the terminal.

Click here for more info>

mchid
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