CUDA @ WSL2 Ubuntu

CUDA @ WSL2 Ubuntu#

This guide is for setting up the CUDA Toolkit and cuDNN on WSL2 Ubuntu. WSL or Windows Subsystem for Linux is a Windows feature that enables users to run native Linux applications, containers and command-line tools directly on Windows 11 and later OS builds.

Warning

If you need CUDA for TensorFlow, think twice if you really want and need to install CUDA locally.

Before proceeding with a local CUDA setup, consider your specific needs. If your intent is to use CUDA with TensorFlow, TensorFlow.org provides a pip installer that includes the necessary CUDA packages within your environment. This avoids the complexity and potential compatibility issues of a local CUDA installation.

Unless there are specific reasons to have a local CUDA setup, using the pip installation from TensorFlow.org can be a more straightforward and efficient approach. Issues with TensorFlow are unlikely to be fixed by a local CUDA setup, and it might be worth investigating those problems within the context of TensorFlow instead.

Installing CUDA Toolkit 11.8#

The following steps guide you through the installation of the CUDA Toolkit 11.8:

1. Download the CUDA repository package:#

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  wget https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/wsl-ubuntu/x86_64/cuda-wsl-ubuntu.pin

2. Move the downloaded file to /etc/apt/preferences.d/ directory#

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  sudo mv cuda-wsl-ubuntu.pin /etc/apt/preferences.d/cuda-repository-pin-600

3. Download CUDA 11.8 installation package:#

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  wget https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/11.8.0/local_installers/cuda-repo-wsl-ubuntu-11-8-local_11.8.0-1_amd64.deb

4. Install the downloaded CUDA package:#

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  sudo dpkg -i cuda-repo-wsl-ubuntu-11-8-local_11.8.0-1_amd64.deb

5. Copy the keyring file to the appropriate directory:#

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  sudo cp /var/cuda-repo-wsll-ubuntu-11-8-local/cuda-*-keyring.gpg /usr/share/keyrings/

6. Update your repository information:#

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  sudo apt-get update

That’s it! You’ve installed CUDA Toolkit 11.8 on your machine.

Adding CUDA to System Paths#

Verify CUDA version#

After installing your CUDA version, verify the installation using the following command:

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
  nvcc --version

Removing the CUDA Toolkit#

If you need to uninstall the CUDA Toolkit, refer to the official CUDA Documentation for instructions. Here’s the main command to do so:

Terminal (WSL2 guest)#
    sudo apt-get --purge remove "*cuda*" "*cublas*" "*cufft*" "*cufile*" "*curand*" "*cusolver*" "*cusparse*" "*npp*" "*nvjpeg*" "*nvvm*"
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