enricobuehler
f85d51b9f9
SteamOS is immutable read-only Arch, and the Deck is AMD (VAAPI) — so none of the checked-in packaging (arch/sysext is NVENC-first + client-oriented, deb/rpm are soname-mismatched) actually installs a working host on a Steam Deck. The proven path (distrobox-built native binary + systemd-run units) was 100% manual. Make it one command. - scripts/steamdeck/install.sh — idempotent installer: ensure the pf2 Debian-trixie distrobox + toolchain → build host (+web console) → write config (generated web login password) → raise UDP buffers to 32 MB + udev + input group (sudo, skipped gracefully if unavailable) → install + start punktfunk-host / punktfunk-web systemd USER services with linger. Flags: --open (accept unpaired clients), --no-web, --src=DIR. Builds on-device so a rebuild always matches the running SteamOS (no prebuilt-binary fragility across OS updates); VAAPI on the Deck's AMD GPU. - scripts/steamdeck/update.sh — rebuild from current source + restart (config/pairings persist). - scripts/steamdeck/README.md — deep reference (why on-device, what's installed, gotchas). - docs-site: new "Steam Deck (Host)" guide + sidebar entry; install.md splits Arch from the Steam Deck host path; packaging/arch/README points Deck-host users here and corrects the stale "NVENC-only" note (VAAPI host encode landed). Live-validated on the Deck: installer runs clean, both services come up, host listens (QUIC :9777 + mgmt :47990), web serves (302→login); on a client connect it takes over the Game-Mode gamescope session at the client's mode, captures via PipeWire, and VAAPI-encodes (hevc_vaapi) — full pipeline confirmed in the host journal. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
81 lines
4.7 KiB
Markdown
81 lines
4.7 KiB
Markdown
# punktfunk host on a Steam Deck
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Run a punktfunk **host** on a Steam Deck — stream its Game Mode (or KDE desktop) *to* other devices.
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(Streaming *to* a Deck is the client; use the Flatpak + [Decky plugin](../../clients/decky/) instead.)
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User-facing guide: **docs-site → "Steam Deck (Host)"** (`docs-site/content/docs/steam-deck-host.md`).
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This README is the deep reference for what the scripts do and how to operate them by hand.
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## Why build on-device (not a package or prebuilt binary)
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SteamOS 3 is an **immutable, read-only Arch** base:
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- No `pacman -S` for system libs; `/usr` is read-only and reset on A/B updates.
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- A **prebuilt binary is fragile** — it links the system FFmpeg/glibc, and a SteamOS update can bump
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those sonames out from under it (the same class of breakage as the NVIDIA-driver-after-update issue).
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- The host needs **unsandboxed** `/dev/uinput` + `/dev/uhid`, PipeWire, the compositor, and VAAPI — so
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Flatpak (the normal Deck app channel) doesn't fit. Flatpak/Decky are for the *client*.
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So the host is built **natively inside a Debian-trixie distrobox** (`pf2`), chosen because its
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FFmpeg/glibc ABI matches SteamOS's — the resulting binary runs **natively on SteamOS** (the container
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is only the build environment; `punktfunk-host` is launched directly, not via `distrobox enter`). A
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rebuild always matches the running OS. Encode is **VAAPI** on the Deck's AMD GPU (NVENC on NVIDIA),
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auto-selected by `PUNKTFUNK_ENCODER=auto`.
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The web console is the one part that stays in the container at runtime: it's a Nitro/Node server run
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by `bun`, so its service does `distrobox enter pf2 -- … bun run .output/server/index.mjs`.
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## Scripts
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| Script | What it does |
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|--------|--------------|
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| `install.sh` | Idempotent installer: ensure the `pf2` distrobox + toolchain → build host (+web) → write config → tune sysctl + `input` group (sudo) → install + start `punktfunk-host` / `punktfunk-web` systemd **user** services with linger. |
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| `update.sh` | Rebuild from the current source and restart the services (config + pairings persist). `--pull` does `git pull` first. |
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```sh
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git clone https://git.unom.io/unom/punktfunk ~/punktfunk
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bash ~/punktfunk/scripts/steamdeck/install.sh # PIN pairing required (secure default)
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bash ~/punktfunk/scripts/steamdeck/install.sh --open # trusted LAN: accept unpaired clients
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bash ~/punktfunk/scripts/steamdeck/install.sh --no-web # host only, no web console
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bash ~/punktfunk/scripts/steamdeck/update.sh # after pulling new source
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```
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Env overrides: `PUNKTFUNK_SRC` (source dir, default `~/punktfunk`), `PUNKTFUNK_BOX` (container name,
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default `pf2`), `PUNKTFUNK_MGMT_PORT` (47990), `PUNKTFUNK_WEB_PORT` (3000).
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## What gets installed
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- **Binary:** `~/punktfunk/target-steamos/release/punktfunk-host` (built in `pf2`, run natively).
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- **Config:** `~/.config/punktfunk/host.env` (encoder/compositor) and `web.env` (generated web login
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password + session secret). Trust material (`cert.pem`, `mgmt-token`, `punktfunk1-paired.json`) lives
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here too and persists across updates.
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- **Services:** `~/.config/systemd/user/punktfunk-host.service` (runs `serve --native --mgmt-bind
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0.0.0.0:47990`, `+ --open` if chosen) and `punktfunk-web.service`. Linger is enabled so they run
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without a login session.
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- **System tuning (sudo):** `/etc/sysctl.d/99-punktfunk-net.conf` (32 MB UDP buffers — the #1
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high-bitrate lever), `/etc/udev/rules.d/60-punktfunk.rules`, and `$USER` in the `input` group.
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## Operating
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```sh
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systemctl --user status punktfunk-host punktfunk-web
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journalctl --user -u punktfunk-host -f # watch sessions / pairing PIN
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systemctl --user restart punktfunk-host # after editing host.env
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```
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Pair from the web console (Devices → arm pairing) or directly from a client with the host's PIN. The
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host advertises over mDNS as `_punktfunk._udp`, so clients discover it automatically.
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## Gotchas
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- **distrobox required.** If missing: `curl -sfL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/89luca89/distrobox/main/install | sh -s -- --prefix ~/.local` (then ensure `~/.local/bin` is on PATH).
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- **First build is slow** (~10–15 min + ~1 GB toolchain/image). Incremental afterwards.
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- **No passwordless sudo** → the installer skips the sysctl/udev/input steps with a warning; high
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bitrates will drop packets until you apply `99-punktfunk-net.conf` and join `input` yourself.
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- **Game Mode auto-suspend** drops the host off the network on idle — disable it (Settings → Power)
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for a headless host.
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- **WiFi tx ceiling** ≈ 250 Mbps goodput (a Deck hardware/driver packet-rate limit, band-independent);
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fine for 1080p/1440p60. A wired dock lifts it.
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- **After a major SteamOS update**, if the host won't start, run `update.sh` to rebuild against the new
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base libraries.
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