This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/steamdeck by /u/derPatecopa on 2025-01-01 18:10:49+00:00.

Hello there!

I bought my Steam Deck a couple of months ago, and its possibilities have blown me away. It’s incredible what this device is capable of! However, the limited hardware means that most games can only be played on low settings, which don’t look as good as they do on my PC. And that is something that really annoys me about it.

To address this, I turned to streaming. There are a lot of guides that explain In-Home Streaming. But since I spend at least half the week away from home, I needed both an In-House and an external streaming solution. After experimenting with several options, I arrived at a setup that works incredibly well for me and I wanted it to share with you guys. I hope this guide helps you saving some time and get the full In- and Out of- home streaming experience. 

Tools Used

Moonlight and Sunshine

• Moonlight: The client for streaming games from your PC.
• Sunshine: The host for streaming, an open-source replacement for NVIDIA Game Stream which was formerly used with Moonlight (no longer supported).
• Works on multiple devices like Steam Deck, MacBook, TV, and iPhone.

Tailscale

• A free VPN service to connect your devices into one network.
• Allows streaming from outside your home. There are alternatives like NordVPN Meshnet, Hamachi, etc. but Tailscale worked best for me on SteamDeck

Playnite

• A unified game launcher that integrates all your gaming libraries (Steam, Epic, Amazon, GOG, EA, Xbox, etc.).
• Offers a gamepad-optimized interface, making navigation seamless on the Steam Deck.

Virtual Adapter

• Adds a virtual monitor capable of HDR and high resolutions, bypassing your physical monitor's limitations.

Hardware

SteamDeck

Gaming PC

WLAN Router capable of 5 Ghz

Smartphone

Setup Instructions

1. Installing Moonlight on Your Steam Deck

• Switch to Desktop Mode: Power > Switch to Desktop.
• (Optional but highly recommended) Connect a monitor, mouse, and keyboard for easier navigation. If not available: You can turn on your virtual Keyboard on the SteamDeck by pressing "SteamButton + X"
• Open the Discover Software Center (blue shopping bag icon) and search for 'Moonlight.'
• Install Moonlight.
• After installation, go to the Application Launcher (Steam Symbol > All Applications > Moonlight).
• Right-click Moonlight and select Add to Steam.

2. Installing Tailscale

This infos mostly come from this video. You can skip to 3:24 to see the Tailscale section or just follow my instructions below. Please leave a like to support the creator. 

On Your PC:

• Download Tailscale from here
• Follow the installation instructions and log in using your Google, Apple, or GitHub account.

On Your Smartphone:

• Download the Tailscale app from your Appstore
• Connect to your account from the above step

On Your Steam Deck:

• Open the Discover Software Center and install 'GitHub Desktop.'
• Clone the Tailscale repository using this URL: tailscale-dev/deck-tailscale.
• Open the cloned folder, rightclick anywhere, select “Open terminal here”  and execute the following commands in the terminal (if not happened before type „passwd“ and choose a password. This is needed for the sudo commands):

  sudo bash tailscale.sh

  source /etc/profile.d/tailscale.sh

  sudo tailscale up --qr --operator=deck --ssh

• Scan the generated QR code with your smartphone to link your devices.

3. Installing Sunshine on Your PC

• Download Sunshine from here
• under “Assets” look for “sunshine-windows-installer.exe”
• Install and launch Sunshine.
• Create a username and password when prompted and log in to configure the server.

4. Installing Playnite on Your PC

• Download and install Playnite from here
• Log in to your gaming libraries and customize your settings for optimal use.

5. Installing Virtual Adapter on Your PC

• Download and install the virtual adapter here
• you can find the installation guide in the readme section
• after installation, go to your display settings in Windows
• look for the virtual monitor and configure your display settings to match your Steam Deck’s resolution, the default setting is 1280x800 the Full HD upscaled equivalent for a little sharper picture would be 1920x1200
• (Optional) Turn on HDR on your virtual monitor

Configuration

1. Sunshine and Moonlight Pairing

• Open Moonlight on your Steam Deck and go to settings (you should find it in library under “non Steam games”).
• Adjust the resolution (e.g., 1920x1200 or 1280x800) and FPS (e.g., 60 FPS, SteamDeck has a 90Hz Display so would recommend 90FPS as max).
• (Optional) V-Sync, Frame pacing, Enable HDR
• Click on the monitor symbol next to the cog and enter your Tailscale IP address into Moonlight. You can find it by clicking on the Tailscale symbol in your taskbar on your Windows PC
• Input the pairing PIN from Moonlight into Sunshine under “PIN” in the Sunshine Admin Page.

2. Configuring Virtual Adapter

Infos mostly come from this video. You can follow my description or watch it. But please give the creator a like for support.

• Locate your Sunshine installation folder (default: C:\Program Files (x86)\Sunshine\tools).
• Right-click in the folder and open a terminal
• drag the “dxgi-info” file into the console and press enter.
• Identify the virtual monitor output name (e.g., .\DISPLAY5).
• Set this output name in Sunshine under Configuration > Audio/Video > Output Name.
• also, add the screen resolutions for your SteamDeck under “Advertised Resolutions” (like before 1280x800 and 1920x1200)
• click save and apply

3. Adding Playnite to Sunshine

• Switch to “Application” in Sunhine
• click “Add new” and fill Application Name with Playnite
• under “Command” add

“C:\Program Files\Playnite\Playnite.FullscreenApp.exe” --hidesplashscreen

(including parenthesis, replace the path with your actual installation path if necessary) 

4. Optimizing Network Settings

• PC: Use a LAN connection for stability.
• Steam Deck: Use a 5GHz Wi-Fi network for optimal performance.

5. Start Streaming over Moonlight

• Start Moonlight from your SteamDeck, click the name of your PC (it takes a couple of seconds until the host is ready) and choose Playnite
• Playnite should then boot up and you should be able to navigate through your gaming library with your SteamDeck Controls
• To test the streaming over the internet, connect your SteamDeck to your Smartphone HotSpot. Of course this will affect performance, but if it works, you can be sure that this works in a foreign WiFi network too.

Thanks for reading and if you have questions feel free to ask. Happy New Year :)