How to easily run Windows 11 on Steam Deck

The Steam Deck is likely one of the greatest moveable gaming units round, regardless of one main shortcoming: It doesn’t run Home windows. Not like the Asus ROG Ally, the Lenovo Legion Go, and a fleet of different units that include Home windows preinstalled, the Steam Deck makes use of Linux.

To Valve’s credit score, its handheld alone has modified the notion of gaming on Linux. It might run most Steam video games fairly nicely, however you’ll want Home windows if you wish to play PC Recreation Move titles, or reap the benefits of Epic Video games Retailer’s fixed stream of free video games. You’ll additionally want Home windows if you happen to play multiplayer video games that use anti-cheat software program that isn’t appropriate with Linux. That features Future 2, Fortnite, Apex Legends, and extra.

The best technique to get Home windows 11 in your Steam Deck with out altering (and probably screwing up) its inner file system is to make a transportable model of the OS, conveniently saved on a USB-C SSD that you could simply plug into the Deck whenever you need it, and unplug it whenever you don’t. I’m going to stroll you thru the numerous steps required to get this accomplished. It is a lengthy information, however strive to not really feel daunted; though the method is lengthy, every of the steps remains to be pretty easy.

Purchase a brand new USB-C SSD, or assemble your personal

(If you have already got the SSD helpful that you simply need to use, skip to the subsequent step.)

I recommend shopping for the smallest (when it comes to type issue, not storage) moveable SSD you’ll be able to afford. As for inner storage, 2 TB ought to final you some time, however 1 TB or much less could also be adequate in your wants. Essential’s X6 2 TB SSD is an efficient, comparatively small, and reasonably priced possibility that connects through USB-C. It’s not that small, although.

For one thing even smaller, put together to pay extra. Genki’s $49.99 SavePoint SSD enclosure is the higher route by a large margin. It’s tiny, becoming a compact M.2 2230-size SSD (not included), and it’s the one enclosure I’ve used that was considerate sufficient to incorporate a second USB-C port in its design, permitting for passthrough charging. Usually, you hand over the choice to cost your Steam Deck whenever you join an SSD — not with this one. It additionally features a magnet, letting you safe it to your Steam Deck so it doesn’t dangle. When you get your M.2 SSD, merely open the enclosure and insert it.

Alternatively, you would purchase an M.2 2280 SSD on a deal, plus this $29.99 SSD enclosure that’ll allow you to simply join it to your Deck. It’ll be a bit greater in measurement than the aforementioned Essential and Genki SSDs, nevertheless it’ll work simply the identical.

In case you didn’t know, it’s free, authorized, and straightforward to obtain, set up, and use Home windows 11 (unregistered copies lack personalization choices and have a persistent watermark on the bottom-right nook of your display). Microsoft hosts downloads of its newest OS, and grabbing a replica is a essential a part of this course of.

Head to this web page and scroll all the way down to the part referred to as “Obtain Home windows 11 Disk Picture (ISO) for x64 units.”

Choose “Home windows 11 (multi-edition OS for x64 units),” then hit the blue “Obtain Now” button. A web page will load, then show an alternative choice that asks you to pick out your required language. When you do this, choose “Verify,” then lastly click on “64-bit obtain” to provoke the obtain.

Create a bootable model of Home windows 11 in your SSD

Together with your SSD linked to the PC the place you downloaded the Home windows 11 file, it’s time to show it right into a bootable drive that your Steam Deck can acknowledge whenever you boot it up.

Begin by downloading a replica of Rufus, a free, simple-to-use software that focuses on turning USB units into bootable drives. Scroll all the way down to the “Newest Releases” part and obtain the most recent normal model for 64-bit programs.

In your downloads folder, discover Rufus and open it. The primary two steps embody hitting the “SELECT” button on the app’s proper facet, then discovering the Home windows 11 OS file in your downloads. (The model of the file on the time of publishing is named “Win11_24H2_English_x64.”) Double-click it to mount it inside Rufus. A message saying “Scanning picture” will seem in its standing bar, so maintain tight because it verifies the file.

Subsequent, be sure to test the field subsequent to “Checklist USB Onerous Drives.” When you do this, your SSD drive ought to present up. Choose it below the “Gadget” drop-down menu on the high of this system.

As soon as your drive is mounted, click on the drop-down window below “Picture possibility,” then choose “Home windows To Go.” Choosing this feature as a substitute of “Commonplace Home windows Set up” is what lets Home windows run off of your SSD with out having to put in the entire OS in your Steam Deck, which is what we would like on this case.

Underneath “Quantity label” within the “Format Choices” part, be happy to call the drive no matter you need.

Hit the “Begin” button on the backside and the method will start to put in Home windows onto your SSD. Earlier than it begins, a pop-up window will seem, asking which model of Home windows you’d like to put in. Simply choose “Home windows 11 Dwelling.” A second pop-up window will seem with extra choices to specify. You possibly can choose the primary two, in addition to the ultimate possibility. You’re set with Home windows in your SSD as soon as this course of finishes, however we’re not accomplished but.

Obtain Home windows drivers in your Steam Deck

To ensure that your Steam Deck’s Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPU, and different parts to work correctly in Home windows, you’ll must seize Valve’s official drivers for the hand-held. Open this web page, then scroll to the part about whichever Steam Deck you may have (the OLED or the LCD). Obtain every of the drivers listed below the Deck you’ll be working Home windows on, and preserve the web page open, because it’ll function a helpful information in a while. (Notice: As Valve’s web page signifies, the Steam Deck OLED must be working beta system software program to ensure that its Bluetooth driver to work correctly in Home windows. To put in the beta, head to settings, click on into system, then within the “Beta participation” part, change “Secure” to “Beta” launch, then restart your Deck.)

Every driver will obtain as a .zip file, and you’ll unzip and extract the contents of every of the six downloads. Make a brand new folder referred to as “Steam Deck drivers” or one thing comparable, then transfer all the extracted folders into it. Then, transfer this folder stuffed with drivers into the basis listing of the SSD you may have that now has Home windows put in onto it.

Boot into Home windows for the primary time

Until you may have the Genki SavePoint SSD enclosure, which permits for passthrough charging whereas in use, make certain to totally cost your Steam Deck earlier than booting into Home windows for the primary time.

Faucet the “Steam” button in your Steam Deck, navigate all the way down to “Energy,” and choose “Shut down.”

As soon as the system has turned off, join your SSD that comprises Home windows and your Steam Deck drivers. Then, maintain the amount down button and click on the Deck’s energy button, with out letting go of quantity down till you hear the system chime. This could boot into the Steam Deck’s drive selector display. Use the proper touchpad to hover over your drive, then pull the proper set off as you hover over it.

A prolonged loading course of will happen as Home windows initializes. Reply the questions it shows, however choose “I don’t have web” if it asks for Wi-Fi. Then, you’ll finally get to the Home windows dwelling display. You’ll discover one thing odd — that it’s displaying sideways. Worry not. Within the subsequent part, I’ll stroll via how you can repair this seemingly unavoidable quirk.

Make Home windows show appropriately

On an open part of the house display, pull the left set off to “proper click on,” which shows a bunch of choices. Choose “Show Settings.”

Scroll down (both along with your finger or the left touchpad) till you discover “Show orientation” below the “Scale & format” part. Change it from “Portrait” to “Panorama.” That solves that.

Set up your Steam Deck drivers

It may be tempting to click on round in Home windows to initialize apps and set up some video games, however let’s proceed on with the Steam Deck driver set up first. Open the folder the place you opted to retailer them, and with Valve’s driver web page open in your telephone or PC, set up them on the Deck in accordance with its directions. Use the left set off to open up every file’s choices, letting you simply choose the right possibility to put in them.

In case the Steam Deck hasn’t displayed a “your system should restart for adjustments to take impact” pop-up by the point you’ve completed putting in the six drivers, go forward and restart Home windows 11 to ensure that the {hardware} adjustments to be mirrored. The gadget ought to routinely reboot again into Home windows with out you having to carry down your Deck’s quantity down button. But when not, a minimum of you understand how to get again to the Home windows OS.

From right here on out, it’s all about customizing your expertise to the way in which you need it to be. The Xbox app is preinstalled with Home windows, so signing in there’ll allow you to stream or obtain PC Recreation Move video games to the identical SSD that Home windows is put in on. Similar goes for every other PC sport retailer you could obtain.

Now that you’ve got your very personal absolutely operational Home windows set up prepared in your Steam Deck, you received’t miss out on any massive PC video games.