How to Fix DaVinci Resolve Not Launching on Linux

DaVinci Resolve can run on Linux, but getting it working properly is a mountain of work, so if Davinci Resolve doesn't launch, shows library problems, or fails to recognise your GPU, we'll show you how to fix those issues in this guide. As with most things on Linux, this isn't exactly going to be simple of straight forward!

How to Fix DaVinci Resolve Not Launching on Linux

DaVinci Resolve is built for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and related distributions such as Rocky Linux and AlmaLinux. These distributions are designed to remain stable for long periods without constantly changing system libraries. That stability is part of why Resolve targets them. If you are using a more frequently updated Linux distribution, or a modern one like Bazzite, you won't get Davinci Resolve to work.

Below are a few Linux versions you can use that Resolve will work on.

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux
• Rocky Linux
• AlmaLinux
• Arch Linux
• Ubuntu
• Debian

Fix Library Mismatches

One of the first you'll more than likely come across in Davinci Resolve on Linux is a library mismatch. Resolve ships with some libraries but also relies on libraries from your Linux system. On a modern Linux distribution, your system libraries may be newer than the versions Resolve expects. Quite often this causes Resolve to do nothing when you try to launch it.

• You can find a utility to fix this over on Github
• This will make Resolve use newer libraries available on your system rather than incompatible older libraries.
• Once the newer libraries are available to Resolve, it can get past the library check and launch normally.

When to Use the Fix

• If Resolve does not launch at all, try launching it from the command line.
• If the terminal reports a library mismatch, this can help identify the problem.
• The source also notes that Resolve can be installed through Arch packages or bundled packages on Ubuntu, depending on your setup.

Check GPU Support

After dealing with library problems, the next major issue is GPU support. Davinci needs functioning GPU support to work, which doesn't happen automatically on Linux.

Check OpenCL

Run:

A shorter overview can be shown with:

Check Your GPU

You can also see your graphics card type with:

And again for more detailed information:

Install the Right GPU Libraries

NVIDIA

First, check whether the NVIDIA driver is working:

If this command fails, Resolve's GPU problems may actually be driver problems.

On Ubuntu, you can check the recommended NVIDIA driver with:

The appropriate driver package depends on your Ubuntu release, so do not blindly copy an old driver version from another guide.

After installing or updating the driver, reboot:

NVIDIA driver installation and OpenCL support are separate from Resolve itself; Resolve cannot use an NVIDIA GPU correctly if the underlying driver stack is not functioning.

AMD

For AMD GPUs, check that the kernel sees the card:

Then verify OpenCL:

On modern AMD systems, the appropriate OpenCL/ROCm package depends heavily on the GPU generation and Linux distribution. Install the OpenCL stack recommended for your particular distribution and GPU rather than copying a package name from an unrelated release.

Intel

For Intel GPUs, check:

Then:

Recent Intel hardware may require a newer Intel GPU/OpenCL stack than older Intel GPUs. Again, use the packages appropriate to your distribution and GPU generation.