The Tool Desk
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For the best first setup, connect the PC to your router with Ethernet, use the Deck on a strong Wi-Fi connection, pair the devices on your home network, and begin with a 1280×800, 60-fps SDR stream.
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What Moonlight and Sunshine do
Moonlight is the client installed on the Steam Deck. Sunshine is the self-hosted streaming server installed on the Windows, Linux, or macOS PC. Sunshine captures the game or desktop, encodes the video, and receives controller, keyboard, and mouse input. Moonlight decodes the stream on the Deck.
Steam is optional. Sunshine normally provides Steam and Remote Desktop entries, so you can launch a Steam game, control the desktop, or add other applications through Sunshine’s configuration page.
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What you need
- A Steam Deck LCD or OLED with Moonlight installed.
- A gaming PC capable of running the game, with a supported hardware video encoder and current graphics drivers.
- Sunshine installed and running on the PC.
- A stable network. Ethernet for the PC is preferable; a strong, uncongested 5 GHz or Wi-Fi 6 connection can work for the Deck.
- A controller-compatible game. The Deck’s controls are passed through as a virtual controller, but individual games may interpret it differently.
You do not need a paid subscription or port forwarding for ordinary in-home streaming. HDR is conditional: it depends on the Deck model and display, host GPU, codec, renderer, operating system, and software versions.
Install Sunshine on the gaming PC
Windows
- Open Sunshine’s official Getting Started documentation.
- Download the current Windows installer and run it.
- Choose the required driver, firewall, and gamepad components when prompted. Do not enable every optional component without checking what it does.
- Launch Sunshine.
- Open
https://localhost:47990/in a browser on the PC. - Create the Sunshine web-interface username and password, then leave Sunshine running.
The installer is the recommended Windows route for most users. Windows may request firewall permission; blocking Sunshine can prevent Moonlight from discovering or connecting to the host.
Linux and macOS
Sunshine also provides Linux packages and AppImage or Flatpak options, but Linux setups can require additional GPU-encoding, capture, permission, or desktop-environment configuration. Sunshine describes macOS support as experimental and currently lists gamepad support as unavailable. Consult the platform-specific installation and troubleshooting documentation if the host does not capture correctly.
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- Press the Steam button.
- Choose Power > Switch to Desktop.
- Open Discover.
- Search for Moonlight.
- Install the package published by the Moonlight Game Streaming Team.
- Launch Moonlight once in Desktop Mode.
The official Flathub package is free and uses the application ID com.moonlight_stream.Moonlight. If Discover does not show it, open Konsole and run:
flatpak install flathub com.moonlight_stream.MoonlightMoonlight supports hardware-accelerated decoding and H.264, HEVC, and AV1. The Deck’s x86_64 hardware is supported by the Flathub package.
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Add Moonlight to Game Mode
- Remain in Desktop Mode and open Steam.
- Choose Games > Add a Non-Steam Game to My Library.
- Select Moonlight and add it.
- Return to Game Mode.
- Open the non-Steam section of your library and launch Moonlight.
Steam’s exact menu wording can change between SteamOS versions. You can also add separate shortcuts for Steam, Remote Desktop, or individual Sunshine applications after the initial connection works.
Pair Moonlight with Sunshine
- Connect the PC and Deck to the same home network.
- Confirm that Sunshine is running on the PC.
- Open Moonlight on the Deck.
- Wait for the PC to appear, then select it. If it does not appear, add the PC manually by its local IP address.
- Moonlight displays a four-digit PIN.
- Open Sunshine’s web interface on the PC and enter the PIN in its pairing prompt.
- Return to Moonlight and select the PC again.
- Choose Steam, Remote Desktop, or another available application.
The Moonlight setup guide recommends completing this local pairing before attempting an Internet connection.
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Which host entry should you launch?
- Steam: The simplest choice for a normal Steam library. Navigate the host PC’s Steam interface with the Deck.
- Remote Desktop: Useful for Game Pass titles, non-Steam games, emulators, launchers, mods, and applications.
- Individual game entries: Preferable when available because they can use application-specific settings.
- Custom Sunshine applications: Use these for games or launchers Sunshine does not detect automatically. Configure them through Sunshine’s application settings.
Best first settings for Steam Deck
| Setting | Starting point | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Resolution | 1280×800 | Matches the standard Deck’s 16:10 display and avoids unnecessary scaling. |
| Frame rate | 60 fps | Good default for a stable home network; use 30 fps if the connection or game struggles. |
| Codec | H.264 | Maximum compatibility for the first test. Try HEVC or AV1 later if both devices support them. |
| Bitrate | 10–20 Mbps | A practical starting range for 1280×800 at 60 fps, not a guaranteed requirement. |
| HDR | Off initially | Get SDR video, audio, and controls working before adding HDR variables. |
Moonlight’s resolution is separate from the game’s internal resolution. A game can render internally at a higher or lower resolution while Moonlight sends a 1280×800 stream. A 16:9 host image may show black bars or be cropped on the Deck. Moonlight’s FAQ and issue reports document configuration-specific scaling problems when high-resolution host output is forced onto the Deck display.
Current Moonlight releases document HDR support on Steam Deck and other HDR-capable Linux systems through the Vulkan renderer, but HDR is not automatic on every Deck. It requires a compatible host, codec, display path, renderer, and software configuration.
Test controls, audio, and input
- Launch a game with native controller support.
- Test both analog sticks, triggers, bumpers, face buttons, and the D-pad.
- Check which controller type the game detects.
- Test the trackpads, on-screen keyboard, and mouse input if you use Remote Desktop.
- Confirm audio through the Deck speakers or connected headphones.
The Deck’s Steam and Quick Access buttons may remain local Deck controls rather than being sent to the host. If a game does not detect the virtual controller, check Steam’s controller-support settings on the host, disconnect unnecessary physical controllers, and restart the game after changing the configuration. Sunshine’s troubleshooting guide covers these controller conflicts.
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Fix common Moonlight problems
| Symptom | Try these steps first |
|---|---|
| PC does not appear | Confirm both devices are on the same LAN, avoid guest-network isolation, check that Sunshine is running, allow it through the firewall, restart both applications, or add the PC manually by local IP. |
| Pairing PIN fails | Open the Sunshine web interface, enter the PIN there, remove the host from Moonlight, and pair again. |
| Black screen or no video | Test H.264, disable HDR, update host GPU drivers, confirm hardware encoding, and check whether the PC is locked, asleep, or being accessed through a conflicting Remote Desktop session. |
| Stutter or high latency | Lower bitrate or frame rate, connect the PC by Ethernet, move the Deck closer to the access point, reduce Wi-Fi congestion, and test another codec. |
| Controller missing in the game | Check host Steam controller settings, disconnect other controllers, enable the controller type the game expects, and restart the game. |
| Wrong resolution or monitor | Use 1280×800, check the game’s display mode, and configure the Sunshine application. Borderless or windowed mode can be more reliable than exclusive fullscreen. |
| No audio | Check the host’s active output device, Sunshine audio permissions, and conflicting Bluetooth or HDMI devices. Test Steam or Remote Desktop before troubleshooting one game. |
| Game Mode launch fails | Test Moonlight in Desktop Mode, update SteamOS and Moonlight, then remove and re-add the non-Steam shortcut. |
Bandwidth alone does not determine streaming quality. Jitter, packet loss, Wi-Fi interference, host encoding, and Deck decoding can each cause stutter. Sunshine documents an iperf3 test for diagnosing the network:
iperf3 -s
iperf3 -c {HostIpAddress} -t 60 -u -R -b 50MSunshine lists packet loss below 5% and jitter below 1 ms as troubleshooting targets, not universal guarantees. Run network tests only when you understand which device is acting as the server and client.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Game Mode-specific failures
A stream that works in Desktop Mode may fail from Game Mode because the Flatpak is being launched through SteamOS’s game compositor. A recent Moonlight issue report describes failures on some SteamOS 3.8+ and Moonlight combinations.
After confirming the affected versions, a reported fallback is:
flatpak run --env=ENABLE_GAMESCOPE_WSI=0 com.moonlight_stream.MoonlightDo not treat this as a standard setup step. Reports associate the workaround with possible HDR, frame-pacing, or latency changes. Steam shortcut launch options may require different syntax, so check the current issue discussion before applying it.
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- The Steam Deck is outfitted with a 7-inch touchscreen, and two trackpads under the control sticks that allow gamers to operate games never designed outside of mouse and keyboard capabilities.
Streaming outside your home
Remote streaming is a separate networking problem. First prove that local streaming works. Outside the home, you need a routable connection, VPN, relay, or hosting-tool configuration. Upload speed, carrier-grade NAT, firewall rules, and a changing public IP can all affect the result.
A VPN such as Tailscale can provide private connectivity without directly exposing Sunshine to the public Internet, but it adds another service and may affect latency. Avoid exposing Sunshine’s web interface directly to the Internet. Moonlight’s older documentation cites 5 Mbps upload as a rough legacy minimum for Internet streaming; that does not guarantee good quality or low latency.
Moonlight/Sunshine versus Steam Remote Play
Steam Remote Play is usually easier for a Steam-only library because it is integrated into Steam. Moonlight and Sunshine offer more control over codecs, applications, host configuration, and non-Steam games, and Sunshine works across NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel hosts rather than depending on NVIDIA’s discontinued GameStream path.
Neither option removes the need for a stable network. Moonlight also requires installing and maintaining Sunshine on the PC, while Steam Remote Play may be the more convenient choice for a reader who never needs non-Steam applications.
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End a stream correctly
Save the game before disconnecting. If you want the host application to close, use Moonlight’s Quit App control. Simply closing the client can leave the game or desktop application running on the PC, as noted in Moonlight’s FAQ.
Do you need extra hardware?
No. Start with the free Sunshine-and-Moonlight setup. A dock or USB-C Ethernet adapter is useful for wired networking, charging, or a living-room display, but unnecessary when Wi-Fi is reliable. Consider a Wi-Fi 6/6E access point only if coverage or congestion is the actual problem. Dummy plugs and virtual displays are advanced options for headless PCs and can introduce additional resolution and HDR complications.
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