Fedora 43 Wokstations Tips and Ticks

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When I first ran Fedora Core 1 (20+ years ago) I created notes with various Tips and Tricks (especially with regards to mutlimedia drivers and codecs) and posted them here on this blog.   Today, using Gemini I was able to recreate some of the old magic on my Windows/Fedora dual boot workstation

In the world of AI, Gemini is your Friend!  In the past I'd spend hours googling the output of terminal error messages, now all you have to do is start a conversation with Gemini, follow the steps, and share the intermittent errors and terminal output a long the way.  

Now if I can  only find a pack of unused punch cards.... :)


How to Fix Multimedia & Hardware Acceleration on Fedora 43 (Dual-Boot Guide)

If you are coming back to Linux after a long hiatus or dual-booting with Windows, you’ll notice Fedora is faster than ever but still lacks proprietary codecs out of the box. Use this guide to enable full hardware acceleration (VA-API) and fix common dual-boot quirks.

1. Fix the "Dual-Boot Clock" (Windows vs. Linux)

Windows and Linux treat the motherboard clock differently, which causes SSL errors in Linux and "Time Travel" in Windows. Fix this first so dnf doesn't fail.

  • Command: timedatectl set-local-rtc 1 --adjust-system-clock
  • Force Sync: sudo chronyc -a makestep

2. Enable RPM Fusion Repositories

Fedora’s default repos are FOSS-only. You need RPM Fusion for the "good stuff" (codecs and drivers).

sudo dnf install https://mirrors.rpmfusion.org/free/fedora/rpmfusion-free-release-$(rpm -E %fedora).noarch.rpm https://mirrors.rpmfusion.org/nonfree/fedora/rpmfusion-nonfree-release-$(rpm -E %fedora).noarch.rpm

3. Install the "Freeworld" Multimedia Stack

Fedora ships with "stub" drivers. We need to swap them for the unrestricted versions from RPM Fusion.

  • Swap Mesa Drivers (AMD/Intel):
sudo dnf swap mesa-va-drivers mesa-va-drivers-freeworld --allowerasing
sudo dnf swap mesa-vdpau-drivers mesa-vdpau-drivers-freeworld --allowerasing
  • Install Essential Codecs:
sudo dnf install libavcodec-freeworld gstreamer1-plugins-bad-freeworld gstreamer1-plugins-ugly gstreamer1-libav ffmpeg

4. The Fedora 43 "Secret Path" Fix

In Fedora 43, the freeworld drivers are often placed in /usr/lib64/dri-freeworld/. You must tell the system to look there so apps like Firefox can find them.

  1. Edit the environment file: sudo nano /etc/environment
  2. Add this line to the bottom: LIBVA_DRIVERS_PATH=/usr/lib64/dri-freeworld/
  3. Reboot to apply changes.

5. Enable Firefox Hardware Acceleration

Browsers don't always use the GPU for video by default. nudge it manually:

  1. In Firefox, go to about:config.
  2. Search and set media.ffmpeg.vaapi.enabled to true.
  3. Search and set media.rdd-ffmpeg.enabled to true.

6. Fix Flatpak Permissions (Sandbox Fix)

If you use Flatpaks (Spotify, VLC, etc.), they can't see your drivers unless you poke a hole in the sandbox.

flatpak override --user --env=LIBVA_DRIVERS_PATH=/usr/lib64/dri-freeworld/ --filesystem=/usr/lib64/dri-freeworld/:ro

7. How to Verify Everything

Run these two commands to make sure your GPU is doing the work:

  • Check 3D Performance: glmark2 (Looking for high FPS/Score)
  • Check Video Codecs: vainfo (Look for VAEntrypointVLD)

Quick Cheat Sheet for the 20-Year Veteran

  • DNF5: The old yum is gone. Use dnf. It's faster and uses less RAM.
  • Wayland: The modern display protocol. If screen sharing fails in Discord, install xdg-desktop-portal-gnome.
  • Windows Files: If your Windows drive is "Locked," disable Fast Startup in Windows settings (powercfg /h off).



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