Debian - FATAL: Error inserting fglrx

By matteo on June 17, 2010 6:31 PM

Upgrading the kernel is always a dangerous step. Anyway, under Debian, it is pretty simple. My main problem are ATI drivers. After each kernel upgrade this error appears: FATAL: Error inserting fglrx (/lib/modules/2.6.32-5-amd64/updates/dkms/fglrx.ko):Invalid module format

I think the problem is that the package fglrx-modules-dkms is upgraded after the kernel but before the reboot, so it is compiled under the old kernel version. So rebooting, the error rise because wrong kernel version.

If you have the same problem after the reboot you can try my way:

  1. Remove the module: rmmod fglrx
  2. Remove the fglrx-modules-dkms package: apt-get remove fglrx-modules-dkms
  3. Reboot
  4. I'm using GDM so, when the system is up, I switch to a textual console (ALT+CTRL+F1) and log in as root.
  5. Stop GDM: /etc/init.d/gdm stop
  6. Reinstall the fglrx-modules-dkms package: apt-get install fglrx-modules-dkms
  7. Load the fglrx module: modprobe flgrx
  8. Restart GDM: /etc/init.d/gdm start

That's all. These easy steps fix the problem on my PC always.

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