I recently bought a Steam Deck and I have a lapdock on the way, intending to use the Deck as a dual-purpose gaming handheld and laptop replacement. So on that front, I was wondering what more experienced users could tell me about using it.
I did read through the official FAQ, and a few questions pop up. In no particular order:
- Is there a way to boot the Steam Deck directly into desktop mode, without going through the Steam environment first? (Strictly as a time saver)
- In practice, how well does
sudo steamos-readonly disableand installing things from pacman work out for you? In particular, I want to use PWAs For Firefox and it requires this package in order to work. Do packages actually get wiped with SteamOS updates, as the FAQ warns? - Is it possible to re-enable the read-only filesystem after installing a package, to safeguard it from accidental changes?
- Any other tips, tricks or warnings you’d like to share.
I am speaking from Bazzite experience so it might be slightly different, but I wouldn’t do #2. What I would do is install distrobox (pre installed on Bazzite, with boxbuddy for gui), create an Arch distrobox, and use that to access AUR.
If you want to install a package, you layer it using rpm-ostree. Don’t fuck with the immutability imo
Apparently distrobox come pre-installed. Also I don’t think there’s any rpm-ostree on steamos, that’s a Fedora Atomic thing.
As long as you’re using and plugging in your steamdeck reasonably often(every couple of days) the suspend mode is fantastic and there’s little reason to ever do a full shutdown or reboot in my experience. Boot into desktop mode the first time, and then just use the suspend mode to stay there, switching to gaming mode only when you want to play games. It also doesn’t take very long to switch from gaming mode to desktop mode or vice versa, I find the main time killer is the initial boot up into gaming mode the first time after shutdown.
Or you can just load games out of desktop mode, a recent update fixed a lot of the issues I had with the steam overlay not working in desktop mode and denying access to the powerful steaminput configuration options. That all works flawlessly now in desktop mode as well. I haven’t actually switched back to gaming mode for some time, since I use desktop mode to install games anyway and test the installation, it’s easier just to stay in desktop mode now.the suspend mode is fantastic and there’s little reason to ever do a full shutdown or reboot in my experience.
Thank you, that’s quite useful to know!
Slightly off-topic but you reminded me. Have you tried using Steam Deck as a “Steam Controller” for PC? I did look up an article on that once and at first glance it seemed to involve a bunch of caveats. Haven’t tried it properly yet.
- In practice, how well does sudo steamos-readonly disable and installing things from pacman work out for you? In particular, I want to use PWAs For Firefox and it requires this package in order to work. Do packages actually get wiped with SteamOS updates, as the FAQ warns?
As far as I know, a new update of SteamOS will revert these changes back. However Steam has builtin support for Nix package system, where you don’t need to disable readonly filesystem and changes to this directory / package system stays intact even after an update. Two articles explaining how to do this at https://sadatdaniel.dev/2023/11/install-nix-package-manager-on-your-steam-deck/ (2023) and https://chrastecky.dev/gaming/persistent-packages-on-steam-deck-using-nix (2025). Check if a certain package is available under https://search.nixos.org/packages . Now, I never did that, as I never had a need for. I can’t say if this helps you with the specific package, but it might be useful for you to look into this.
Can you explain this lapdock setup you’re talking about?
It’s probably something like a Nexdock or similar. I’ve got one from Dopesplay for example - Easier if you look it up, but basically it’s a laptop with no brains that just acts as a dock for other devices
It’s a hybrid between a laptop and a USB hub. Takes the monitor and keyboard of a laptop and makes them connect by USB to usually a phone, but here the Steam Deck.
Oh, so it’s like a portable monitor with a keyboard attached to it? I had no idea these were a thing.
Precisely! I like to describe it as: a portable external monitor, in the shape of a laptop, with a built-in keyboard and trackpad.
Many Android phones support a desktop mode when connected to an external monitor. Most notably Samsung’s higher-end phones, and they call this feature Samsung DeX. Lapdocks are perfect to make use of this functionality.
NexDock is a more reputable brand that makes high-quality lapdocks. Uperfect is another, but I get the feeling they don’t care as much about making good usable products, and instead just want to maximize their specs for marketability.
ELECROW, I never heard of before and it looks like chinesium, but it’s the only lapdock I found that actually ships to me so that’s what I ordered. Should arrive in a couple of weeks.
I wanted to get a Linux phone and a lapdock. Would give me one device that I could keep personal stuff on, but turn into a full workstation when needed. (But Linux phones are still very much a work in progress)
You’ll want a keyboard if you want to navigate TempleOS.
I think it would be much less hassle for you to install another OS instead of SteamOS. Like Bazzite. You should be able to configure that to your liking more easily.
Wanted to suggest the same thing.
Bazzite is immutable tho, unless I’m mistaken, so if you’d rather use a mutable distro you can look into CachyOS or DraugrOS.
Bazzite will present a similar experience to SteamOS. They’re both immutable/atomic in the same way, but Bazzite has the ability to persist some system changes via package layering, and
distroboxallows for installing packages in a semi-traditional way.But I agree, if you want a more standard Linux experience, CachyOS and others would be better.
Thanks for the advice. I’ll consider it long-term, but want to stick with SteamOS for now. I gave a more detailed reply to a different comment if you’re interested in reading it.
Hmm, yeah I read that. I think you are just not the target audience of SteamOS. It’s more or less meant for people who don’t want to tinker.
If you’re already familiar with Cachy it’s probably a great choice. Personally I went with OpenSUSE which was quite a hassle to get set up like I want. Especially since I couldn’t be bothered to hook up a keyboard. But I think Cachy has all the stuff I had to add manually already integrated.
When docked, the Deck works great as a desktop PC. But not as a laptop. It’s too much to carry (lapdock + deck). The lapdock would be more suitable for your phone.
Also, I wouldn’t change the Deck’s OS, the only viable alternative is going with Bazzite. Anything else would be either a risk or a downgraded experience.
When docked, the Deck works great as a desktop PC. But not as a laptop. It’s too much to carry (lapdock + deck). The lapdock would be more suitable for your phone.
Thanks for the advice. I’m going to find out for myself either way though.
I have a large backpack and I’m used to carrying a lot of weight. I often carry a laptop + Nintendo Switch + battery pack and a bunch of misc stuff. So size and weight will be fine.
And part of the plan is that on days where I don’t need a full Linux OS, I would only take the lapdock and indeed use it with my phone. Thus my portable computing options are a lot more modular.
For 2, there are ways to install packages without messing with the read only file system. Easiest ways are using nix packages or using distrobox to install non-flatpak software.
So for the linked aur PWA package you provided, you could create an arch linux distrobox, enter it, install yay (or another aur helper), install firefox and your pwa package, and then use the
distrobox-export --app <package>command to make the installed software directly runnable from the desktop.Very interesting, thank you for this tip!
To save you time, Nested Desktop can effectively get you into Desktop stuff much more quickly than the standard reboot-to-Desktop sequence.
That is an older post, but all of this still works exactly the same way now as it did then.
- Yes, kinda. This apparently breaks your ability to easily switch back to game mode, but you can still get back there by running the second command below and rebooting.
to boot into desktop mode by default
steamos-session-select plasma-persistentto boot into gaming mode by default (and to fix inability to go back to gaming mode from desktop)
steamos-session-select gamescope-
It will last until each update. Updates happen via an A/B partition switch, so the other partition gets updated, then that one becomes the default for booting (both still technically boot, but the original image will be behind).
-
If you mean accidental changes by you, then it would be
steamos-readonly enable. Note that changes happen via a persistent OverlayFS. Re-enabling might remove that overlay and your changes. Test with something easy to see if it persists. Note point 2 about permanence. -
Don’t bother messing with the system files if possible. Try to use an AppImage or Flatpak instead, as they exist in userspace and will persist over updates. The issue is that it’s the core system files that are written to a new image each update, not your home directory. Your home directory and settings will persist.
If you want something modifiable but still atomic, Bazzite is a good option. You can apply rpm packages via layering, and you can install packages from other package managers via
distrobox. You’ll still have the safety of images as restore points. If you want a more traditional Linux experience, though, look into something like CachyOS.Thanks, awesome answers all around!
Regarding another distro, I do use CachyOS on my desktop so that’s definitely an option, but for the time being I want to give SteamOS a fair shot before I go and install a different OS on it. There’s every chance I’ll cave and install CachyOS within a month or two.
Don’t bother messing with the system files if possible. Try to use an AppImage or Flatpak instead, […]
Yes, definitely; I was going to do that anyway. There are only a few corner-cases, like the PWAs For Firefox that I linked in the OP, where this isn’t possible or might require a lot more fiddling than I prefer. But in almost all cases, I can work with Flatpaks, AppImages, or through a web browser.
Thanks for answering, I was honestly not sure I’d get much good info here but you proved me dead wrong :)
Good luck! Incidentally, if you do end up going to CachyOS, I like
webapp-managerfor PWAs; should be in theextraarch repos. I’ve tried a few flatpaks for creating the necessary shortcuts, and I haven’t found one that felt quite as nice. Do go try some, though, because maybe there’s one that works better for you!I forgot to mention. Turns out PWAsForFirefox doesn’t work at all with the Flatpak version of Firefox https://github.com/filips123/PWAsForFirefox/issues/142 so the whole question is moot. The project’s dev seems to be actively involved in making that possible though. I guess I’ll live without nice web-apps on the steam deck for now, it’s not a deal breaker.
Someone said that Distrobox is installed by default, so I’m wondering if you could install Firefox via distrobox and also install PWAsForFirefox to that app in the same container.
I use it on Linux Mint, the biggest issue I have with it is external links:
https://github.com/linuxmint/webapp-manager#how-to-open-links-in-my-main-browser
How to open links in my main browser?
For Firefox, all links are always opened within the WebApp, either directly or using a new tab. To open a link in your main browser, right-click anywhere, select
Copy link locationand paste the link in your main browser.Really annoying. PWAs For Firefox fixes it, you just gotta change a setting.
Can’t you just use distrobox directly on steamos to save changing os?
Dunno, honestly. If it’s not preinstalled as part of the base image, it would be subject to the same removal issues as other packages.
Yeah looks like it’s installed by default. Can’t find an official announcement/changelog but according to an unsourced reddit thread it’s been there since steamos 3.5.
Wow, nice! I might have to make use of that myself.
I haven’t looked into 1 but from my experience yes, 2 does wipe your changes with every OS update. Coming from another arch-based system it was my preference too but I learned the hard way. Yes it’s annoying but for an immutable distro like SteamOS it’s simpler to install via flatpak.
If you’re using desktop mode in handheld it does take a minute for the trackpads to work because it uses steaminput, and the Steam client needs to start separately in desktop mode. Touch works immediately.
Make sure to put your go-to file paths in Places (I think that’s what it’s called) because navigating Dolphin in handheld can also be mildly annoying.
If you’re using a customizer like DeckyLoader holding off on updates for a week or so until there’s confirmation of stability and compatibility is advisable, but that’s more for handheld mode.
Thanks for the advice! I did already figure out the thing about the trackpads. I found the whole environment to be surprisingly usable in handheld mode, but definitely not ideal.
Thankfully that’s not how I’m planning to use it. I ordered a lapdock (specifically this one, which is the only one I’ve found that ships to my godforsaken country) and it should arrive in a couple of weeks and be the main way I use Desktop Mode. Then I don’t need Steam input.
If you’re using a customizer like DeckyLoader holding off on updates for a week or so until there’s confirmation of stability and compatibility is advisable, but that’s more for handheld mode.
Can you tell me more about DeckyLoader and why I might want to use it? Or just link to a page with that info. I never looked into it, and I’m wondering what’s actually missing from vanilla SteamOS.
Deckyloader is a plugin hub for all sorts of customization and QoL changes. I mainly use it for color customization, artwork changes, ProtonDB icons, and HowLongToBeat stats when I’m deciding on a new game.
I also use it to download custom boot animations and sounds. It’s mostly geek tweaks but gives you a sense of extra power over your device on the game mode side.
Here’s the primary website link: https://decky.xyz/
