Steam Deck

Usage Tips

set a password for the default deck user

This is very important as you will need to know this password for troubleshooting problems that might arise in the future.

By default, there is no password for the "deck" user which means that sudo (root) is not available.

command shell from game menu

Control+Alt+5 while in big picture mode will give you a command shell.

username: deck
password: (?)

firmware boot menu

Hold [...] button (the one with three dots on the front of the deck) and while holding it, press and hold POWER button, wait for the sound, release ONLY the POWER button until the menu appears and release [...] to boot into

bios boot menu

Hold - (the volume down button) and press and hold POWER. The procedure follows the same as the firmware menu procedure.

boot option menu

Hold + (the volume up button) and press and hold POWER. The procedure follows the same as the firmware menu procedure.

install ssh server

It should be installed by default. If not you can install it:

sudo pacman -S openssh

Tell the steamdeck to enable the ssh server when it boots.

sudo systemctl enable sshd

You can manually start the ssh server with the following:

sudo systemctl start sshd

This is Debian Linux basics; applies to the Steam Deck. Linux.

OS Package Management

The command line package management tool for the Steam Deck is "pacman".

To see what packages are installed type:

sudo pacman -Q

Steam Deck BIOS

TPM aka Trust Platform Module

TPM has been added to Steam Deck BIOS. It is in the bios under:

Advanced -> Peripheral Configuration

Mentioned on Steam: Enable Secure Boot for games with kernel level Cheats on Windows like Fifa or Valorant

This feature is only needed if you want to try to put Windows 11 on your Steam Deck which is neither supported nor advisable. Leave the feature disabled.

IOMMU

The I/O memory management unit (IOMMU) is a type of memory management unit (MMU) that connects a Direct Memory Access (DMA) capable expansion bus to the main memory. IOMMU is a generic name for technologies such as VT-d by Intel, AMD-Vi by AMD, TCE by IBM and SMMU by ARM. To take advantage of it IOMMU has to be initiated by UEFI/BIOS and information about it has to be passed to the kernel.

To check on the Steam Deck go to the CLI and type

sudo dmesg | grep -i -e DMAR -e IOMMU

This is mostly useful for virtualization such as virtual machines, using software like virtualbox. You can disable it on your Steam Deck.

Troubleshooting

Steam Deck Black Screen After switching to desktop

aka: Steam deck blackscreen switching to desktop

USB Keyboard required. or try "Steam" button + X to bring up the virtual keyboard

1. Go to the command shell (instructions on this page) and login.
2. rm -rf ~/.local/share/kscreen/*
3. CTL-ALT-F1 to go back to Big Picture Mode and then try to switch to desktop.

steam deck not recognizing external monitor

THIS IS AN OPEN ISSUE / UNRESOLVED PROBLEM

One potential culprit might be related to HDMI-CEC on the Steam Deck.

On an installation which HDMI to a Steam Deck dock, the TV would not display, and Display Configuration on the Steam Deck would not show 2 monitors until the monitor MODE was toggled though all the inputs and back to HDMI.

Connecting a D-PORT monitor to the dock with an HDMI to D-PORT cable - Monitor not detected.

reset the graphics APU/driver

With the deck off (not sleep) press and hold the Volume down button (Vol-) & quick access button [...] then press power. When you hear it chirp let go of only the power button and wait till you see the Steam logo, then let go of the other two buttons. It will take some duration to boot so be patient. You will see the Steam logo for several minutes. This will reset the graphics APU/driver.

The application 'kded5' has requested to open the wallet

A dialog box appears:

The KDE Wallet System
The application 'kded5' has requested to create a new wallet named 'kdewallet'.  This is used 
to store sensitive data in a secure fashion.  Please choose the new wallet's type below or 
click cancel to deny the application requet.
[ ] classic blowfish encrypted file
[*] Use GPG encryption, for better protection

Followed by:

Seems that your system has no keys suitable for encryption.  Please set-up at least one encryption key, then try again.

It would be nice to remove annoyances like this however KDE Wallet is a core part of KDE, it's in the package kdebase-runtime.

Disable KDE Wallet System:

Drop to command shell (howto mentioned elsewhere on this page) and type the following:

sudo nano ~/.config/kwalletrc

Then enter the following

[Wallet]
Enabled=false

Control-o to save the file (write out)

Control-x to exit

Then restart the system.