Steamify CachyOS

The Steamify app's menu. On a Steam Machine (or any PC with an AMD or Intel graphics card) it offers the full SteamOS conversion, on the left. On a PC with an NVIDIA graphics card gamescope's gaming mode shows a corrupted picture, so the menu offers Gaming on NVIDIA instead (Steam on the desktop, started at login, optionally in Big Picture), on the right.

On a Steam Machine	On a PC with an NVIDIA graphics card

Turn a CachyOS desktop PC into a SteamOS-style console: it boots straight into Steam's Big Picture (gamescope), and you can switch to the KDE Plasma desktop and back whenever you like - just like on a Steam Deck or Valve's Steam Machine.

• One command, then a simple checklist: pick what you want.
• Everything is undoable: untick something and it's put back the way it was.
• Made for the Steam Machine, and works on any CachyOS KDE desktop PC.

What you get

1. SteamOS conversion - boots straight into gaming mode. Switch to Desktop in Steam works, and so does going back (the Return to Gaming Mode icon on the desktop). Steam's on-screen keyboard (Steam + X) works on the desktop too.
   • Boot into: gamescope / desktop - where the PC starts. Gaming mode is the default.
   • Steam's System settings show the SteamOS release Steamify follows as OS Version (e.g. steamos-3.9), steam-machine as OS Codename and Steamify's version as OS Variant. The OS name stays CachyOS (details).
   • NVIDIA graphics cards: gamescope's gaming mode shows a corrupted picture there (an open NVIDIA driver bug), so the conversion isn't offered. Gaming on NVIDIA takes its place: Steam on the desktop, installed if it's missing and started at login, in Big Picture or its normal window as you choose (details).
2. SteamOS theme - the Vapor look of SteamOS for the desktop, with Add to Steam in right-click menus (details).
3. Steam Deck/Machine icons - Steam Deck button icons in gaming mode.
4. Single user mode - like SteamOS: never a login or lock screen, and no KDE wallet password prompts (e.g. from Brave). Typing a password with a controller is no fun (details).
5. Steamify shortcut - "Steamify CachyOS" on the desktop and in the launcher opens the newest Steamify app, so you don't need the install command again. "Steamify Terminal" in the launcher opens the terminal menu. With Add as non-Steam game (on by default) it's in your Steam library too: started from Steam it gets your controller (a Steam Controller only talks to Steam), in gaming mode as well. Steam closes for a moment while it's added, so that's done from the desktop. Not offered on PCs with an NVIDIA graphics card, which have no gaming mode.
6. Update notifications - on by default: a notification and a tray icon when there's a new Steamify, with Open Steamify and Skip this version. It never updates anything by itself (details).
7. VRAM booster - on by default: the game you're playing keeps its video memory and background apps make room, like SteamOS 3.9. Shown for GPUs whose driver supports it (AMD, Intel, NVIDIA with its open kernel modules from driver 615) on kernel 7.2 or newer. With NVIDIA's closed driver it's greyed out and says what to do: switch to the open driver when your card supports it (RTX 20 series and newer; Steamify shows the command, it doesn't switch drivers itself) (details).
8. HDMI-CEC (experimental; off by default, on by default on a Steam Machine) - use Steam with your TV's remote, and the TV turns on and off with the PC. Needs a PC with CEC (like the Steam Machine) or a USB CEC adapter; most graphics cards, NVIDIA included, don't have it. See CEC.md for which PCs do, and how to add it to your own build (details).
9. Extended controller support (off by default) - the Xbox wireless dongle (xone) and Xbox controllers over Bluetooth with rumble, the right button mapping and the battery level (xpadneo). Both are installed from the CachyOS repo and built for every installed kernel (details).

Steam Machine

What Steamify can do on a Valve Steam Machine:

• HDMI-CEC - ticked by default here, as on SteamOS: use Steam with your TV's remote, and the TV turns on and off with the Steam Machine (details).
• Steam Machine support - the front LED bar works, Steam's hardware settings (fan, performance) work, and the power button puts it to sleep like a console. Steam's System settings show the serial number, and Steam's Wi-Fi backend setting works.
  • Power-off fix - on by default: shutting down really turns the Steam Machine off, also with the newest CachyOS kernel (details).
  • Update BIOS - installs Valve's newest Steam Machine BIOS. Never ticked by default, at your own risk, and only after two warnings (details).

Requirements

• CachyOS with the KDE Plasma desktop (the default CachyOS Desktop edition)

KDE Plasma only. Steamify works with KDE Plasma and its login managers (plasma-login-manager or SDDM). Other desktops (GNOME, Hyprland, Cosmic, ...) and other display managers are not supported: the switching between gaming mode and the desktop, the theme and the shortcuts are all built for Plasma.

• Your normal user account, with permission to use sudo

Installation

Open Konsole on your Plasma desktop and run:

curl -fsSL https://github.com/theupriser/steamify-cachyos/releases/latest/download/steamify.sh | bash

Installing CachyOS on a Steam Machine? The Steamify CachyOS ISO has Steamify built into the installer: pick the options there, and the first boot is already set up.

Prefer to look at the script first? Clone the repository and run ./steamify.sh (keep the whole folder: it needs lib/).

You'll see a checklist:

   [x] SteamOS conversion: boot into gaming mode, Steam on the desktop  (now: off)
         └ Boot into: [gamescope]  desktop
 > [x] Install SteamOS theme: Vapor look (cachyos-vapor)  (now: off)
   [x] Install Steam Deck/Machine icons: Deck button icons in gaming mode  (now: off)
   [x] Single user mode: no password, lock screen or log out (SDDM)  (now: off)
   [x] Steamify shortcut: desktop icon to run this again  (now: off)

  Up/Down move   Space select   Left/Right choose   Enter run
  a run + re-apply what's on   q quit

Tick with Space, run with Enter. It shows what it will change, asks your password once, and offers to restart at the end. Below the list you see every installed kernel, so after an update it's easy to check that everything is in place.

Run it again whenever you like: to change your choices, or after a CachyOS update (press a to re-apply what's on).

Using it

• To the desktop: in gaming mode, open the Steam menu and choose Power > Switch to Desktop.
• Back to gaming mode: double-click Return to Gaming Mode on the desktop.
• Remove it all: run the wizard and untick everything. You get the normal CachyOS login screen back; Steam stays installed.

Prefer to start where you left off last time?

steamos-session-select persistent  # start where you left off last time
steamos-session-select oneshot     # always start in gaming mode (default)

Where the PC starts after a restart can also be set from a script, once the SteamOS conversion is on (only that changes; sudo may ask for your password):

steamify.sh --boot desktop     # start in the desktop from the next boot on
steamify.sh --boot gamescope   # start in gaming mode again (default)

Something wrong?

Stuck on a black screen in gaming mode: press Ctrl+Alt+F3, log in, and run

sudo /usr/lib/steamos/steam-set-session plasma.desktop && sudo systemctl restart display-manager

More in TROUBLESHOOTING.md. How it all works: TECHNICAL.md. Changes per version: CHANGELOG.md. Contributing (or an AI agent)? Read AGENTS.md.

License

MIT - do whatever you want with it. See LICENSE.md.

Disclaimer

Steamify CachyOS is an unofficial community project. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Valve Corporation or the CachyOS project. Steam, SteamOS and the Steam logo are trademarks of Valve Corporation. CachyOS is the name of its respective project. They are used here only to describe what this script works with.