Newbie to Linux here. Started using ZorinOS a few months back and honestly, been enjoying the Linux life.
I have come across an oddly specific issue whilst playing World of Warcraft that I do not fully understand and would like to see if someone can help shed some light on.
Relevant Specs (lemme know if a Neofetch is needed)
CPU: Intel i5-10400F (12) @ 4.300GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Lite Ha
Memory: 10253MiB / 15927MiB
Context of issue:
I play WoW through Faugus Launcher and its been stable
The game normally plays flawlessly but whenever I am specifically tanking I get what I believe to be Display Hangs (the game will continue running, I head abilities going off and it using the abilities I select, just the visual is frozen). This lasts anywhere from a few seconds to minutes.
All other games in Steam and such play fine.
Have tried several of NVIDIA drivers available in the Zorin software manager but the only in which the GPU will be recognised is the Open Kernel Metapackage one nvidia-driver-590-open (proprietary).
Am I doing something wrong or is this just my GPU getting old? Any suggestions appreciated I do not understand why is it only when tanking.
P.S: what is the best way to know the right GPU driver to use in Linux.
As you are only having issues with WoW and not other games, have you checked if there have been any game updates that require higher graphics spec?
Another possibility is if your kernel in use is 6.17 as there have been numerous posts about this. See if dropping to an earlier kernel resolves the WoW issue. During power on try repeatedly pressing the Left Shift key (or Esc(ape) if Left Shift does not work) to bring up the GRUB menu, choose Advanced Options and choose an earlier kernel.
In terms of choosing the correct driver, if you start Software Updater, stop it before it fully launches by clicking on 'Stop', a new 'Settings' button appears, click on this and a new interface opens. Next, click on 'Additional Drivers'. This usually lists all the Nvidia drivers available and one of these is usually marked 'recommended' so choose this one.
Additionally, Zorin defaults to the Wayland display protocol which is known not to work well with Nvidia graphics. When you select your user name at login, a cog appears lower right of screen. Click on it and make sure Zorin on xorg is selected. Then login and see if things improve.
A new expansion has indeed just released which has increased the requirements, but I still would assume it not being it as the issue is mainly when tanking only.
I do have Kernel 6.17 at the moment. Is there any risk (safety and all) in dropping to earlier kernels? And won't these be constantly auto updated to 6.17 as the current when it scans for updates? (am still new to this part of Linux)
For the drivers I do not have a recommended but from my previous trial and error I know that its the single one that says tested. Funnily enough, my GPU is not recognised when I install that one
The Wayland Display Protocol is one that I did read about, I will look into it and report.
Hi you can drop down to the earlier kernel of 6.14 by following my earlier reply. There is a way to prevent that kernel from being installed again, but first you need to remove it after logging in using 6.14.
Install Synaptic Package Manager (it's in Software), and on launch you will need to enter your login password to elevate to root.
Next click on search button, then in the box that appears, type kernel.
This should then come back with all the kernels installed on your system. To ensure all installed elements get to the top, click on the small 's' that appears above the tiny squares in the column to the left of each pkg name; this brings all installed pkgs to the top of the screen. Right-click on the green square next to the kernel you wish to remove and select 'Mark for complete removal', then click on Apply.
There is a way to prevent 6.17 from getting reinstalled by holding it back, will post back later.
You could follow @Aravisian 's excellent guide on how to install a newer/higher kernel here:
How to prevent 6.17 being installed again - see @Aravisian 's reply to a similar instance here:
Can confirm that I was already using Xorg instead of Wayland it seems. Out of curiosity tried Wayland as well and similar results, everything runs fine except when tanking.
Had a go at trying to find the GRUB advanced options menu you mentioned but Esc took me to the GRUB bash (couldn't find any button/option for advanced options) and left shift did nothing. I also checked Advanced options for Zorin OS 18 and had only 6.17 options there.
I've run out of time for tonight but I'll continue investigating tomorrow.
I have also wondered about whether it could be a Faugus Launcher limitation. I currently have it as a flatpak as I believe those tend to be more stable due to containing all they need in the package (I am still learning Linux so apologies for any blunders).
* I also tried to set it up through steam as Lutris did not work for me. I had some difficulties with not being able to install it on the desired SSD driver but I will experiment again today.
Understood, shame it is trial and error the best way but I will keep that in mind going forward.
Thank you as well for the manual kernel instructions.
* Out of curiosity is this kernel hopping a normal thing in Linux? Saw some mentions online that it can introduce un-patched vulnerabilities which does not sound ideal as a long-term solution.
I will continue trying and let you know if I solve it.
It can be neccessary when a System with a current Kernel doesn't work. If You concerned about Security Issues there would be the Option to install a newer Kernel, too.
When You try Steam, I would suggest to download the .deb Version directly from Steam:
That is not directly wrong. Flatpak bring their own Dependencies with it. But Flatpaks also run containerized - with limited Permissions. And that can sometimes cause Issues. You could use a Program called Flatseal to set up Permissions to individial Flatpaks. But this is sometimes a bit fiddleing to find the right Stuff to set up. With a .deb Version it is more simple with this.
While it can be trial and error to find the right Nvidia driver; I do not think that applies to this thread. In general, all of the drivers should work just fine. It is implausible that your issue arises from a Nvidia Driver problem.
The same goes for the Linux Kernel. Barring a very few exceptions; a released Linux Kernel is stable and vetted (though the 6.17 has been problematic).
This is far more probable.
This package does not just launch - it also manages which WINE version and what layers are used.
Following your suggestion that the launcher was more likely to be the probable cause I have gone back to the drawing board and did some experimenting:
Tested launching via Steam (which is installed via Zorin OS's APK) - similar results until I started messing with the Proton layers some more. Initially was using "Proton Experimental" and tried Proton 10.4. Marginal improvements but still freezing.
Tested Lutris - couldn't get it to work
Looked into Bottles - couldn't get it to work
Tested Faugus again (which has always worked well for me so far) - this time I tried Proton-GE, UMU-Proton and Proton-EM layers. In order of improvements Proton-GE < UMU-Proton < Proton-EM. The launcher defaults to Proton-GE.
All of the above were tested with the same dungeon, pull size and specc for consistency. The game now was playing normally and not having display hangs even whilst tanking. This was Proton-EM.
Sharing this in case it helps others, if using Faugus, the launcher has its settings but right-clicking the game in question also allows to Edit and change the default compatibility layer that will be used for that game. This seems to override the Faugus Launcher general settings which default all installations to Proton-GE.
For now I will deem it as resolved but will report if not with further time to stress test it.
I do not understand why is it only when tanking.
