Odd problem: 3d programs only working when root

[alphatronics]

This may be more of a linux configuration issue than an nvidia driver issue, I'm basically a newb:

I just installed the new (4349) drivers on Mandrake 9.1, and they work great provided I'm logged in as root. However, for some reason, any 3d app will fail to load at all if I happen to be logged in as a normal user (loading X and 2d apps work fine as any user, but 3d only works if I'm logged in as root). This never happened when I was using the 4191 drivers.

[greentoast]

i had this same problem.
seems that the nvidia stuff in the dev directory has the wrong permissions.
i did this:

cd into the /dev directory

as root type:

chmod 666 nvidia0
chmod 666 nvidiactl

that worked for me.

[alphatronics]

Worked, thank you!

I guess this can be considered a bug with the installer, to any nvidia staff who happen to be reading.

[Andy Mecham]

This is actually probably the PAM issue referenced in the README:

Q: OpenGL applications exit with the following error message:

Error: Could not open /dev/nvidiactl because the permissions
are too restrictive. Please see the FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
section of /usr/share/doc/NVIDIA_GLX-1.0/README for steps
to correct.

A: It is likely that a security module for the PAM system may be
changing the permissions on the NVIDIA device files. In most cases
this security system works, but it can get confused. To correct this
problem it is recommended that you disable this security feature.
Different Linux distributions have different files to control this;
please consult with your distributor for the correct method of
disabling this security feature. As an example, if your system has
the file
/etc/security/console.perms
then you should edit the file and remove the line that starts with
"<dri>" (we have also received reports that additional references to
<dri> in console.perms must be removed, but this has not been verified
by NVIDIA). If instead your system has the file
/etc/logindevperms
then you should edit the file and remove the line that lists
/dev/nvidiactl. The above steps will prevent the PAM security system
from modifying the permissions on the NVIDIA device files. Next,
you will need to reset the permissions on the device files back
to their original permissions and owner. You can do that with the
following commands:
chmod 0666 /dev/nvidia* chown root /dev/nvidia*


--andy

[ozeroc]

This happened to me also BUT when I rebooted my system (mdk9.1) it would not boot and I had to boot the rescue disk to put that dri line back in before I could get the system up again.

[Dracula]

Edit: False alarm, I got it fixed.
This forum is a great resource, thanks for its existance!