Linux Guide: Install gpu-unlock in One Command

Tested on Ubuntu 24.04 · Arch · Fedora 42 · Works with RTX 30/40 series

This is where it's at, honestly. If you can run your AI workloads on Linux — WSL2 counts — just do it. The original gpu-unlock kernel module by Zagitta is clean, safe, persistent across reboots, and doesn't need any UEFI shell gymnastics.

One-line install (recommended)

Clone, build, install. That's it.

git clone https://github.com/Zagitta/gpu-unlock
cd gpu-unlock
make install

Pick the right fork for your GPU series:

Step 2: Enable it on boot

The module is installed but won't do anything until you tell it to. Reboot first (so the module loads into initramfs), then add this parameter to your kernel command line.

Ubuntu / Debian (GRUB)

sudo nano /etc/default/grub
# Find the GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT line
# Append: gpu_unlock.targets=all
# Example: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash gpu_unlock.targets=all"
sudo update-grub

Arch Linux

# Same edit, then:
sudo grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

Fedora / RHEL

sudo grubby --update-kernel=ALL --args="gpu_unlock.targets=all"

systemd-boot users

# Edit your boot entry (bootctl status shows the path)
# Add gpu_unlock.targets=all to the options line

Step 3: Reboot & verify

sudo reboot

# After reboot, confirm it loaded:
journalctl -k -b | grep gpu_unlock

# You should see something like:
# gpu_unlock 0x88888888 0x8 → unlocked 0000:21:00.0 (GA102)
# gpu_unlock card reset complete

Stop it

Ever want to go back? Just remove gpu_unlock.targets= from the kernel command line and reboot. Done. No uninstall needed — the module sits idle without that flag.

Why Linux > Windows

Three big reasons: