NVIDIA has released Linux display driver 590.48, marking the first stable release in the R590 New Feature Branch. One of the most notable changes is a raised minimum Wayland requirement to version 1.20, alongside an increased minimum glibc version to 2.27 and an X.Org Server minimum of 1.17.
On the Wayland side, NVIDIA resolved several long-standing EGL multisampling bugs affecting both egl-wayland and egl-x11, issues that previously prevented multisample configurations from working correctly.
This version also fixed a Wayland-related bug that caused the PowerMizer preferred mode dropdown in the nvidia-settings control panel to malfunction, restoring expected GPU power management controls under Wayland sessions.
Moreover, the driver brings Vulkan improvements, most notably better performance when recreating swapchains. This change helps reduce stuttering when resizing Vulkan application windows, a problem commonly observed in games and graphics-intensive applications.
Additional Vulkan fixes address issues that prevented applications from running correctly on Venus VirtIO virtual GPUs, improving support for virtualized and containerized environments.
Regarding display handling, NVIDIA fixed a DPI reporting bug affecting certain monitors, including the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9, which could lead to incorrect scaling and layout behavior on Linux desktops.
At the kernel level, the update resolves a bug that could cause system freezes on PREEMPT_RT kernels, an important fix for users running real-time or latency-sensitive workloads.
As always, Linux users can obtain the driver directly from NVIDIA’s website. As a New Feature Branch release, it is best suited for users who need the latest Wayland, Vulkan, and platform updates, while those prioritizing long-term stability may still prefer NVIDIA’s Production Branch drivers.
For a complete list of changes and downloads, visit the release notes.
