enricobuehler
3c096835c2
Field triage on Nobara, 2026-08-09. Every connect degraded to ATTACH — which on that box mirrors a
game-mode session the host never configured, and looked like a black screen on every connect. The
host said:
the packaged pf-dm-helper polkit action is missing or was denied (reinstall the punktfunk
package, or install the display-manager polkit rule from the docs)
Every clause of that was wrong. The action was installed, `allow_any`, and its exec.path annotation
matched the installed helper; pkexec authorized it and RAN the helper. The helper refused, and said
exactly why:
pf-dm-helper: user 'nobara-user' is not in the 'punktfunk' group — refusing.
Grant it with: sudo usermod -aG punktfunk nobara-user (then re-login)
That text never reached the log, because `dm_helper` ran the helper with `.status()` — which
discards stderr and collapses the exit code to a bool. The one thing that would have ended the
investigation in seconds was thrown away at the call site, and the caller then guessed. Neither
suggested remedy adds anyone to a group, so a reader who followed both stayed broken and learned the
docs were useless. It fails soft, with no error and no failed unit, so nobody finds it on purpose.
Now: `.output()`, and four failure modes that stay distinguishable because they need different
fixes — helper not installed, pkexec could not run it, polkit denied it (pkexec's own 126/127), and
the helper ran and refused, whose stderr rides through VERBATIM rather than being re-described. Null
stdin too, so a pkexec that decides to prompt gets EOF instead of parking a stream thread on a tty
read.
The same gate gates the `linger` verb, so on a sessionless host an unjoined user fails there first —
carrying the reason there as well, or the misdiagnosis just moves one message earlier.
A new startup preflight says it before a stream is being built rather than during one, gated so it
cannot nag a box that would never attempt a takeover: not root, a display-manager alias exists, a
managed session launcher exists, a packaged helper exists, and the user is not in the group. It reads
membership from the user database rather than this process's groups, deliberately: that is what the
helper reads (it runs as root and resolves the caller from the database), so `usermod -aG` satisfies
the DM gate immediately and the warning stops. Using `getgroups()` would keep warning on a box where
the takeover already works.
Packaging said the group was for "the virtual Steam Deck pad (usbip)" — so anyone without a Deck pad
correctly skipped it and landed here by following instructions properly. All three scriptlets now
lead with Game Mode, name both grants, and record that creating the group is necessary and NOT
sufficient. Docs get the same treatment: the group is an admonition above the DM-flavor list in
gamescope.md, a black-screen entry in troubleshooting.md that tells the reader to read the quoted
reason FIRST, and the per-distro install pages no longer frame it as pad-only.
240 lines
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Markdown
240 lines
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Markdown
---
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title: Fedora
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description: Install the Punktfunk host on Fedora from the RPM registry.
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---
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Install a Punktfunk host on **Fedora** from the self-hosted RPM registry. The host installs as an
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RPM-managed systemd **`--user`** service and updates with `dnf upgrade` like the rest of your
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system — no building required. It works with either **KDE Plasma** or **GNOME**; the
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desktop-specific setup (which compositor captures, headless sessions, quirks) lives on the
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[desktop configure pages](#5-configure-your-desktop). Host encode is **NVENC on NVIDIA**; on
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**AMD/Intel** HEVC and AV1 go through **Vulkan Video**, with **VAAPI** for H.264 and as the fallback
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(`PUNKTFUNK_ENCODER=auto` picks per GPU).
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> New here? Read [Security & Safe Use](/docs/security) first — a streaming host is remote control of
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> the machine, so keep it on a trusted LAN or VPN and require pairing.
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Install is two parts: **GPU driver** → **host RPM**. Then open the firewall and point the host at
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your desktop from the [desktop configure pages](#5-configure-your-desktop).
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## 1. NVIDIA driver (RPM Fusion akmod)
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Enable RPM Fusion (free + nonfree), then install the akmod driver + CUDA. RPM Fusion's nonfree
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NVIDIA repo is sometimes pre-enabled on some spins; the full free/nonfree repos below are still
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needed (they carry the NVENC ffmpeg in the next step).
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```sh
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sudo dnf install \
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https://mirrors.rpmfusion.org/free/fedora/rpmfusion-free-release-$(rpm -E %fedora).noarch.rpm \
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https://mirrors.rpmfusion.org/nonfree/fedora/rpmfusion-nonfree-release-$(rpm -E %fedora).noarch.rpm
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sudo dnf install akmod-nvidia xorg-x11-drv-nvidia-cuda
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```
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**NVENC ffmpeg.** Fedora ships `ffmpeg-free`, which is built **without** NVENC — the host can't
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encode with it. Swap to RPM Fusion's ffmpeg:
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```sh
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sudo dnf install --allowerasing ffmpeg ffmpeg-libs
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ffmpeg -hide_banner -encoders | grep nvenc # expect hevc_nvenc / av1_nvenc / h264_nvenc
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```
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**Secure Boot.** If `mokutil --sb-state` says *enabled*, the akmod module is signed with a
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locally-generated key that must be enrolled once:
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```sh
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sudo akmods --force # build + sign the module
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sudo mokutil --import /etc/pki/akmods/certs/public_key.der # set a one-time password
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sudo reboot
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```
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On the next boot a blue **MOK Manager** screen appears **on the machine's console** (not over
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SSH): *Enroll MOK → Continue → Yes → (the password) → Reboot*. Then verify:
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```sh
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nvidia-smi # driver loads
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ffmpeg -hide_banner -encoders | grep nvenc
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```
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(Or disable Secure Boot in firmware to skip the MOK step — fine for a dedicated test box.)
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**AMD / Intel.** No akmod needed — the Mesa stack carries both encode paths. HEVC and AV1 go through
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**Vulkan Video** by default (the Mesa Vulkan driver, present on any normal Fedora desktop), and
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**VAAPI** is the H.264 path and the fallback. Install the freeworld VAAPI drivers for full codec
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support (`mesa-va-drivers-freeworld` for AMD from RPM Fusion, `intel-media-driver` for Intel); on a
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desktop these are usually already present.
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## 2. Install the host (RPM)
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The host is published to the self-hosted Gitea RPM registry, in a per-release group (an RPM is
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soname-coupled to its base, so each Fedora release gets its own group). Pick the one matching your
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release — `rpm -E %fedora` prints the number you're on:
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- **Fedora 44** → `fedora-44`
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- **Fedora 43** → `bazzite` — that group is a plain Fedora 43 build of the same `punktfunk` package,
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so it's the right one for a regular Fedora 43 box too
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Put your group in the `baseurl` below, then add the repo and install:
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```sh
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sudo tee /etc/yum.repos.d/punktfunk.repo >/dev/null <<'REPO'
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[punktfunk]
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name=punktfunk
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# The group for your release: fedora-44 on Fedora 44, bazzite on Fedora 43.
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baseurl=https://git.unom.io/api/packages/unom/rpm/fedora-44
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enabled=1
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# Packages are GPG-signed (gpgcheck=1) AND the repo metadata is Gitea-signed (repo_gpgcheck=1).
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gpgcheck=1
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repo_gpgcheck=1
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gpgkey=https://git.unom.io/api/packages/unom/rpm/repository.key
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https://git.unom.io/api/packages/unom/generic/punktfunk-keys/1/RPM-GPG-KEY-punktfunk
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REPO
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sudo dnf install punktfunk
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sudo usermod -aG input "$USER" # /dev/uinput access for virtual gamepads (re-login to apply)
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```
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Also join `punktfunk` if **either** applies — you want the **virtual Steam Deck controller**
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(paddles, trackpads, gyro — it reaches games as a real USB pad, which is why Steam Input adopts
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it), or this box autologins into Steam **Gaming Mode** (Nobara and friends) and you want the host
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to take that session over at the client's resolution:
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```sh
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sudo usermod -aG punktfunk "$USER" # usbip/vhci + display-manager takeover (re-login to apply)
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```
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That is a second group on purpose: it grants write access to the usbip `attach` file, which
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materialises an arbitrary emulated USB device, so it stays off the `input` group everyone is
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routinely told to join. Join it only on a machine you trust. Skip it on a plain desktop host and
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the pad simply arrives as an ordinary Xbox 360 controller; skip it on a Gaming Mode box and the
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takeover silently degrades to mirroring the box's own screen — see
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[gamescope](/docs/gamescope#nobara-and-other-autologin-display-managers).
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Updates later are just `sudo dnf upgrade punktfunk`, followed by
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`systemctl --user restart punktfunk-host` so the running host picks up the new binary. The package
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ships the systemd user units, the udev rule, the UDP socket-buffer sysctl tuning, and example
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configs.
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The group you picked above is the **stable** channel. For the latest `main` build, point `baseurl` at
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`fedora-44-canary` (or `bazzite-canary`) instead — see [Release Channels](/docs/channels). Updating
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in general, including the opt-in one-click button in the web console, is covered in
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[Updating the Host](/docs/updating).
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> `fedora-44` and `bazzite` are the only stable groups published, so on Fedora 42 or older — or on a
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> release newer than 44 — there's nothing matching yet. Build one with the same toolchain CI uses —
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> `docker build --build-arg FEDORA_VERSION=NN -f ci/fedora-rpm.Dockerfile -t pf-rpm ci` then run
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> `packaging/rpm/build-rpm.sh` inside it — or build from source (appendix below).
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## 3. Check it installed
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Before moving on, confirm the binary is there and nothing else is competing for the same job:
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```sh
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punktfunk-host --version # the binary is on PATH
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punktfunk-host detect-conflicts # exits 1 if Sunshine/Apollo is also installed
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```
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If `detect-conflicts` reports another streaming host, remove it before going further — two hosts on
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one machine is the most common reason a clean install never streams. See
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[Troubleshooting → another streaming host is installed](/docs/troubleshooting#another-streaming-host-sunshine-apollo--is-installed).
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Once you've enabled the service on your desktop page below, these are how you watch it:
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```sh
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systemctl --user status punktfunk-host # active
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journalctl --user -u punktfunk-host -f # watch a client connect
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```
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## 4. Open the firewall
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Fedora runs **firewalld** by default and the package never edits your firewall, so the host stays
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unreachable until you allow it. The RPM installs the service definitions — enable them once.
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The packaged unit runs `serve --gamestream` — the RPM installs it as it ships and only rewrites the
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binary path — so a host you enabled with `systemctl --user enable --now punktfunk-host` serves
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**both** the native `punktfunk/1` plane and stock [Moonlight](/docs/moonlight) clients, and needs
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**both** services:
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```sh
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sudo firewall-cmd --reload # load the installed definitions
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sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=punktfunk-native
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sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=punktfunk-gamestream
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sudo firewall-cmd --reload
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```
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`punktfunk-native` opens UDP 9777 (QUIC control), UDP 5353 (mDNS discovery) and TCP 47990 (the
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mgmt/library API — HTTPS + mTLS, read-only off loopback). `punktfunk-gamestream` opens the fixed
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Moonlight ports — TCP 47984, 47989 and 48010, UDP 47998–48000 — plus the same mDNS. The media
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**data plane** uses an ephemeral UDP port the client opens with a hole-punch, so there is nothing
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fixed to open for video.
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Switched the host to **native-only** — dropped `--gamestream` with a
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`systemctl --user edit punktfunk-host` drop-in, or you run `punktfunk-host serve` by hand? Then add
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`punktfunk-native` alone and leave `punktfunk-gamestream` out. `systemctl --user cat punktfunk-host`
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shows which one yours is.
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And if you want the web console reachable from another device, open **TCP 47992**:
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```sh
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sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=punktfunk-web && sudo firewall-cmd --reload
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```
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## 5. Configure your desktop
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How the host creates its virtual display and injects input depends on your desktop, not your distro.
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Continue on the page for the desktop you run — it covers your `host.env`, any compositor quirks, and
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starting the host:
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- [KDE Plasma (KWin)](/docs/kde)
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- [GNOME (Mutter)](/docs/gnome)
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- [Steam / gamescope](/docs/gamescope)
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- [Hyprland](/docs/hyprland)
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- [Sway / wlroots](/docs/sway)
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Enable the browser management console (status, paired devices, arm pairing) — see
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[Web Console](/docs/web-console).
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For a headless KWin appliance that streams at boot with no graphical login, see
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[KDE → Headless session](/docs/kde#headless-session).
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Full config reference: [Configuration](/docs/configuration). Service model:
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[Running as a Service](/docs/running-as-a-service).
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## 6. Connect a client
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From any [client](/docs/clients), `--discover` finds the host on the LAN. On first connect, complete
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the **PIN pairing** — arm it from the host's [web console](/docs/web-console#arm-pairing), which
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displays a 4-digit PIN to type into the client. See [Clients](/docs/clients) and
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[Pairing](/docs/pairing).
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## Next steps
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- **Keep it current** — [Updating the Host](/docs/updating).
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- **Remove it again** — [Uninstalling](/docs/uninstall).
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- **Something not working?** — [Troubleshooting](/docs/troubleshooting).
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## Appendix — build from source
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If there's no RPM for your Fedora release and you don't want to build one, compile the host directly
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(no clean updates / no packaged units — you wire those up by hand):
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```sh
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sudo dnf install gcc gcc-c++ make cmake clang clang-devel nasm git pkgconf-pkg-config \
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pipewire-devel wayland-devel wayland-protocols-devel libxkbcommon-devel opus-devel \
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libdrm-devel mesa-libgbm-devel mesa-libGL-devel mesa-libEGL-devel mesa-libGLES-devel libva-devel \
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ffmpeg-devel libei-devel
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curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh
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git clone https://git.unom.io/unom/punktfunk.git && cd punktfunk
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cargo build --release --locked \
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--features punktfunk-host/nvenc,punktfunk-host/vulkan-encode \
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-p punktfunk-host
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```
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`mesa-libGL-devel` isn't optional — the zero-copy GPU path links `libGL`, and without it the build
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fails at the link step with `cannot find -lGL`. The two `--features` are what the packaged builds
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use: leave them off and the host has no direct NVENC (NVIDIA) and no Vulkan Video encode
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(AMD/Intel), and quietly falls back to the slower libav backends.
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Then write `~/.config/punktfunk/host.env` (as in `/usr/share/punktfunk/host.env.kde`, but the host
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binary is `target/release/punktfunk-host`) and run it inside your desktop session — for a headless
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KWin appliance see [KDE → Headless session](/docs/kde#headless-session).
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