SteamOS

calendar Dec 24, 2025 · 2 min read · SteamOS

Commands after first startup

  • passwd - Set sudo password
  • sudo steamos-readonly disable - Make root vol writeable
  • chsh -s $(which zsh) - Change default shell to zsh

Pacman

1sudo steamos-readonly disable
2echo "keyserver hkps://keyserver.ubuntu.com" | sudo tee -a /etc/pacman.d/gnupg/gpg.conf > /dev/null
3sudo pacman-key --init
4sudo pacman-key --populate
5sudo pacman-key --refresh-keys
6sudo pacman -S base-devel

Fix Arch keyring

Update fstab for extra file systems

1UUID=6227bdf7-d746-4b29-b3ef-408ef03dc2b8       /home/rslsync/Media      btrfs   defaults,nofail,x-systemd.growfs   0       2

Reload systemctl

1sudo systemctl daemon-reload

Always start in desktop mode

Edit /etc/sddm.conf.d/zz-steamos-autologin.conf and change Session=gamescope-wayland.desktop to Session=plasma.desktop

Sometimes persists between upgrades

Install packages

Arch

 1sudo pacman -S \
 2	qbittorrent \
 3	spotify-launcher \
 4	ghostty \
 5	code \
 6	base-devel \
 7	docker \
 8	docker-buildx \
 9	wl-clipboard
10	# freeoffice \
11	# amdgpu_top \
12	# proton-vpn-gtk-app \
13	# qpwgraph \
14	# hugo \
15	# ruff \
16	# python-virtualenv \
17	# npm \
18	# nodejs-lts-jod \
19

AUR

1sudo rm -rf '/opt/Signal Beta'
2paru -S \
3	rslsync \
4	freetube-bin \
5	signal-desktop-beta \
6	mailspring-bin \
7	gitlab-ci-local
8	# pipx
9	# obsidian-bin \

rslsync

Edit /etc/rslsync.conf to set storage_path to /home/rslsync/storage_path

1sudo chown -R rslsync:docker /home/rslsync/ ; sudo chmod -R g+w /home/rslsync/
2sudo systemctl enable rslsync
3sudo systemctl start rslsync

Flatpak (should persist between updates)

  • obsidian
  • discord
  • audacious
  • calculator
  • elisa
  • falkon
  • firefox
  • vlc

Add user to user groups

1sudo usermod -aG docker deck

Keep /var small

 1sudo mkdir -p /etc/systemd/journald.conf.d
 2sudo tee /etc/systemd/journald.conf.d/00-size-cap.conf > /dev/null <<'EOF'
 3[Journal]
 4Storage=persistent
 5SyncIntervalSec=1s
 6SystemMaxUse=50M
 7SystemKeepFree=50M
 8EOF
 9sudo mkdir -p /etc/docker
10sudo tee /etc/docker/daemon.json > /dev/null <<'EOF'
11{ "log-driver": "json-file", "log-opts": { "max-size": "10m", "max-file": "3" } }
12EOF

Clear The Finals Wine Prefix

1rm -rf ~/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata/2073850

References

— ML