SteamOS Shell for Windows

A tiny installer that flips your Windows shell to Steam Big Picture for a console-like experience — and flips you back to the desktop when you choose. Built with Inno Setup.

Perfect for living-room PCs or a dedicated “Steam console” feel on Windows.

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✨ Features

• Steam as the Windows shell — boots straight into Steam Big Picture.
• Clean session exit — when Steam closes, the user session logs out automatically (≈10 seconds) instead of restoring Explorer.
• Start Menu integration — a Start Menu folder is created automatically (no checkbox).
• Ready page shows your Steam folder — the installer’s Ready to Install page displays the Steam path you chose.
• Uninstallable from Settings — appears in Settings → Apps → Installed apps and in the Start Menu folder.

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🧰 Requirements

• Windows 10/11 (64-bit tested)
• Steam installed
• Administrator rights during install (required to set the shell and write program files)

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🚀 Install

1. Run the installer.
2. Choose your Steam folder (the path is shown on the “Ready to Install” page).
3. Click Install.
4. Sign out/in if prompted, or reboot to start directly in Steam Big Picture.

The Start Menu folder is created automatically. You don’t need to tick any option.

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Important

🖥️ Windows Terminal vs Console Host

On Windows 11, Microsoft made Windows Terminal the default host for console apps. If you notice a blank Terminal window sticking around when Steam launches, it means your shell is being run under Windows Terminal instead of the classic Console Host.

You can fix this by switching the default:

Stable / normal Windows 11

1. Open Settings → Privacy & security → For developers
2. Scroll to Terminal
3. Change Default terminal application from Windows Terminal → Windows Console Host
4. Sign out and back in

Insider / Dev builds (where the setting moved)

1. Open Settings → System → Advanced
2. Look for the Terminal section
3. Change Default terminal application from Windows Terminal → Windows Console Host
4. Sign out and back in

After this change, SteamOS Shell will run silently with no extra window.

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🧭 How it works

• The installer sets the Windows shell to launch Steam Big Picture instead of explorer.exe.
• Helper scripts are installed to %AppData%\SteamOSShell\:
  • gamemode.ps1 – powers the shell switching logic.
  • gamemode-launcher.vbs – launches Steam Big Picture cleanly.
  • go-gamemode-admin.ps1 – admin variant for shell tasks.
  • go-gamemode-user.ps1 – user variant for shell tasks.
  • steam_path.txt – stores your selected Steam installation path.
  • steamdeck-gaming-return.ico – icon used in shortcuts.
• When Steam exits, a small supervisor logs out the user after ~10 seconds. This keeps the “console mode” clean and avoids returning to Explorer.

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↩️ Going back to Desktop (temporarily)

If you need a normal desktop session:

• Use the provided helper scripts in %AppData%\SteamOSShell (if exposed in your Start Menu folder), or
• Press Ctrl+Alt+Del → Sign out, then sign back in to a desktop account where Explorer is still the default shell, or
• Manually run explorer.exe from Task Manager → Run new task (temporary; next login will still boot to Steam unless you uninstall or reset the shell).

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🗑️ Uninstall

• Settings → Apps → Installed apps → SteamOS Shell → Uninstall
  (Also available from the Start Menu → SteamOS Shell folder.)

Uninstall restores the default Explorer shell on next sign-in.

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🛠️ Build from source

1. Install Inno Setup 6.x.
2. Open SteamOS-Shell.iss and compile.
3. The script includes:
   • A CurPageChanged(wpReady) handler that appends the chosen Steam folder to the Ready page memo.
   • Automatic Start Menu folder creation (no user checkbox).
   • Logout-on-exit flow (fixed delay ~10s).

If you customize the delay or behavior, search for the logout/supervisor section and adjust the constant value accordingly.

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🧩 Troubleshooting

Installer says it “failed to write” files under AppData
Make sure you’re installing as the intended user and have permission for %AppData%\SteamOSShell. Close Steam before installing.

Steam closes and I’m stuck / no desktop appears
This is by design: the session logs out after ~10s. If you need to keep the desktop, restore Explorer as the shell (uninstall) or adjust the delay in the script.

Ready page doesn’t show my Steam folder
Use the latest script — it adds the Steam folder line during wpReady. If you forked, ensure the CurPageChanged handler isn’t duplicated.

PrivilegesRequired warning during compile
The script uses per-user locations but requires admin for shell changes; this is expected. Keep admin install mode enabled.

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📦 Project layout (installed)

%AppData%\SteamOSShell\
 ├─ gamemode.ps1
 ├─ gamemode-launcher.vbs
 ├─ go-gamemode-admin.ps1
 ├─ go-gamemode-user.ps1
 ├─ steam_path.txt
 ├─ steamdeck-gaming-return.ico
 ├─ unins000.dat
 └─ unins000.exe

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🤝 Contributing

Issues and PRs welcome! Please describe your Windows version, Steam build, and attach logs/screens when reporting bugs.

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📜 License

MIT License — feel free to use, modify, and share.