How to Install Mesa 19.2.1 in Ubuntu 18.04 via PPA

Last updated: October 25, 2019

Mesa 3D graphics library 19.2.1 now is finally made into PPA available to install in Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.

Mesa 19.2.x is the latest development series that features:

  • Mesa 19.2 now pretty much at parity or beyond the i965 OpenGL driver.
  • OpenGL 4.6 support for the Intel OpenGL driver
  • Radeon RX 5700 series (Navi 10) support in RADV and RadeonSI Vulkan/OpenGL drivers.
  • Initial Navi 12/14 support.
  • A big RADV performance boost for AMD GPUs.
  • EGL platform device support.

Canonical’s Timo Aaltonen has made Mesa 19.2.1 package into “Ubuntu-X” team PPA, available to install in Ubuntu 18.04.

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for ‘terminal’ from application menu. When it opens, run command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-x-swat/updates

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it prompts and hit Enter to continue.

2. After adding the PPA, do system update via command:

sudo apt-get dist-upgrade

apt-get update is not required any more in Ubuntu 18.04 since adding PPA automatically refreshes system package cache.

3. Finally check your driver version via command:

glxinfo | grep "OpenGL version"

Uninstall:

To restore changes and downgrade to the default drives shipped in Ubuntu 18.04, run command:

sudo apt-get install ppa-purge && sudo ppa-purge ppa:ubuntu-x-swat/updates

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3 responses to How to Install Mesa 19.2.1 in Ubuntu 18.04 via PPA

  1. Thank you for posting the directions, I appreciate it. For a brief moment, I was concerned that doing sudo apt-get dist-upgrade would end up upgrading my entire distro but it did not.

  2. $ glxinfo | grep “OpenGL version”
    OpenGL version string: 4.6.13572 Compatibility Profile Context 5.0.73.19.30

    Same as it was before. Reboot doesn’t help.
    Is there something I;m missing? I see that Mesa 19.2.1 is installed but seems like it’s not active(?).

  3. Mesa 19.3 is out are you sleeping? Chop chop;