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---
draft: false
pinned: false
hidden: false
title: "Artix w/ Intel Integrated XE Graphics"
subtitle: "Resolving GTK Rendering Issues"
feathericon: "monitor"
author: Hyperling
date: 2026-09-11T08:00:00-07:00
#started: 2026-07-15T14:59:10-07:00
#lastmod: 2026-07-15T14:59:10-07:00
toc: true
audio: false
images:
tags:
- tech # food, drink, craft, poetry, blog, video, tech, tourism
- linux
- arch
- artix
- runit
- systemd
- gnome
- lxqt
- cinnamon
- intel
- xe
- i915
- gtk
- qt
series:
- sysadmin
categories:
- guides # recipes, musings, videos, articles
- articles
aliases:
- /posts/blog/20260911-artix-intel-gpu
- /posts/blog/artix-intel-gpu
- /posts/guides/tech/20260911-artix-intel-gpu
- /posts/guides/tech/artix-intel-gpu
- /artix-intel-gpu
---
## Introduction
After installing Artix with LXQT and `runit` on my NovaCustom laptop I was finding that many GUI applications were failing to run properly.
When running the failing applications via terminal to see output, there were all sorts of `dconf` related errors.
These were related to issues in the `/run/user/` hierarchy, such as the `1000` directory not being created
When trying to get it and elogind working properly the directories were just getting deleted if created manually.
Eventually this being related to dconf helped me realize that it was only the GTK programs such as `kitty`, `transmission-gtk`, `gnome-system-monitor`, etc.
Apps such as `qterminal`, `firefox`, and `transmission-qt` were working with no issues!
This seemed odd since on my mid-2010s Macbook everything had been working flawlessly from the start, but it was installed with a Cinnamon `runit` ISO
, so I thought maybe I was missing some graphics drivers that come with GTK desktop environment.
After doing some pacman-fu with `-Qqn` from the Macbook to the newer system it still did not resolve the issues
, so I figured it must be something specific to the laptop
, similar to how the ISO needed booted with `nomodeset` [see this article](/artix-new-hardware).
The steps below are what got me successfully running all GUI applications properly with Intel Integrated 12th-gen XE graphics.
## Instructions
Check the GPU and driver in use.
```shell
$ lspci -k -d ::03xx
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-P GT2 [Iris Xe Graphics] (rev 0c)
DeviceName: VGA compatible controller
Subsystem: CLEVO/KAPOK Computer Device 4041
Kernel driver in use: i915
Kernel modules: i915, xe
```
Ensure the Intel drivers are all installed.
```shell
sudo pacman -Sy mesa vulkan-intel lib32-mesa lib32-vulkan-intel intel-media-driver
```
You may need to enable the 32-bit repo in /etc/pacman.conf first.
```shell
$ sudo vi /etc/pacman.conf
[lib32]
Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist
```
Get the PCI ID (value after the colon in [xxxx:yyyy]).
```shell
$ lspci -nn | grep VGA
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-P GT2 [Iris Xe Graphics] [8086:46a6] (rev 0c)
```
Switch to `xe` driver using the PCI ID above in the kernel parameters for GRUB.
```shell
$ sudo vi /etc/default/grub
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT='quiet i915.force_probe=!46a6 xe.force_probe=46a6 ...'
$ sudo update-grub
```
Enable `xe`'s hardware acceleration modes (GuC and HuC).
```shell
echo 'options xe enable_guc=3' | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/intel-xe.conf
```
Remove legacy drivers which may get in the way.
```shell
sudo pacman -Rns xf86-video-intel
```
Reboot the system.
```shell
reboot
```
Check which driver is now in use.
```shell
$ lspci -k -d ::03xx
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-P GT2 [Iris Xe Graphics] (rev 0c)
DeviceName: VGA compatible controller
Subsystem: CLEVO/KAPOK Computer Device 4041
Kernel driver in use: xe
Kernel modules: i915, xe
```
Validate whether GTK applications are happy now.
In my case, `kitty`, `gnome-system-monitor`, `codium`, `transmission-gtk`, `mullvad-vpn`, and all other GTK apps are now all running properly and their GUI interfaces are now working flawlessly. :D
Artix is feeling fast as ever and the simplicity of using a feature-complete init system like `runit` are at their full power! >:)
---
[blog.hyperling.com/artix-intel-gpu](/artix-intel-gpu)