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Super-Shift-G-Nobara-Deck-Mode/README.md
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Super Shift G - Nobara Deck Mode

Install video

Version 13.00-fedora-kde

Turn any Nobara (Fedora) KDE Plasma desktop into a Steam Deck-like gaming console with a single keybind. Press Super+Alt+G to enter Gaming Mode (Steam Big Picture in Gamescope), and use Steam's "Exit to Desktop" to return to KDE Plasma.

Built for Nobara Linux — a Fedora-based distribution running KDE Plasma and plasmalogin.

What It Does

This installer transforms your desktop into a dual-mode system:

  • Desktop Mode - Your normal KDE Plasma session
  • Gaming Mode - Full-screen Steam Big Picture running inside Gamescope (the same compositor used by the Steam Deck), with automatic performance tuning, controller support, and external drive mounting

Switching between modes is seamless — plasmalogin handles session transitions, and all your network, audio, and peripherals carry over automatically.

Requirements

  • OS: Nobara Linux (Fedora-based)
  • Desktop: KDE Plasma (Wayland)
  • Display Manager: plasmalogin
  • GPU: AMD (discrete or APU) or NVIDIA (discrete)
    • Intel-only systems are not supported
    • Intel iGPU + AMD/NVIDIA dGPU configurations work fine

Note

: This script is designed specifically for Nobara and its stack (KDE Plasma, plasmalogin, PipeWire). It uses dnf for package management and builds Gamescope from source as it is not available in Fedora repos. It is not intended for Arch-based distributions — see Super-Shift-S-Omarchy-Deck-Mode for Omarchy/Arch.

Quick Start

git clone https://git.no-signal.uk/nosignal/Super-Shift-G-Nobara-Deck-Mode.git
cd Super-Shift-G-Nobara-Deck-Mode
chmod +x super_shift_g_nobara.sh
./super_shift_g_nobara.sh

The installer is fully interactive and will walk you through each step.

Usage

Action Keybind
Enter Gaming Mode Super + Alt + G
Return to Desktop Steam > Power > Exit to Desktop

Command-Line Options

./super_shift_g_nobara.sh              # Full installation
./super_shift_g_nobara.sh --verify     # Verify installation only
./super_shift_g_nobara.sh --version    # Show version
./super_shift_g_nobara.sh --help       # Show help

What Gets Installed

Packages (via dnf)

The installer checks for and offers to install:

Core Steam Dependencies

  • steam, gamescope (built from source), mangohud, gamemode
  • Vulkan loaders and Mesa libraries (32-bit and 64-bit)
  • Audio libraries (alsa-plugins-pulseaudio.i686, pipewire-pulseaudio)
  • Fonts (liberation-fonts)

GPU-Specific Drivers

  • NVIDIA: akmod-nvidia, xorg-x11-drv-nvidia-cuda, nvidia-vaapi-driver
  • AMD: vulkan-loader, mesa-vulkan-drivers, mesa-vdpau-drivers

Build Dependencies (for Gamescope from source)

  • Meson, ninja, CMake, wayland-devel, libdrm-devel, and others

ChimeraOS Session Scripts

  • Cloned from GitHub — provides the gamescope-session framework

Files Created

Session Scripts

Path Purpose
/usr/local/bin/switch-to-gaming Switches from KDE Plasma to Gaming Mode
/usr/local/bin/switch-to-desktop Switches from Gaming Mode back to KDE Plasma
/usr/local/bin/gamescope-session-nm-wrapper Main session wrapper (performance mode, NM, drive mounting)
/usr/local/bin/gaming-session-switch Helper to toggle plasmalogin session config between modes
/usr/local/bin/gaming-keybind-monitor Python daemon monitoring keyboard in Gaming Mode
/usr/lib/os-session-select Handler for Steam's "Exit to Desktop" button
/usr/local/lib/gamescope-nvidia/gamescope NVIDIA wrapper adding --force-composition flag

NetworkManager Integration

Path Purpose
/usr/local/bin/gamescope-nm-start Starts NetworkManager on gaming session entry
/usr/local/bin/gamescope-nm-stop Stops NetworkManager and restores networking on session exit

External Drive Support

Path Purpose
/usr/local/bin/steam-library-mount Auto-detects and mounts drives with Steam libraries

Session & Display Manager

Path Purpose
/usr/share/wayland-sessions/gamescope-session-steam-nm.desktop plasmalogin session entry for Gaming Mode

Permissions & Security

Path Purpose
/etc/sudoers.d/gaming-session-switch Passwordless sudo for session switching, NM, bluetooth
/etc/sudoers.d/gaming-mode-sysctl Passwordless sudo for performance sysctl tuning
/etc/polkit-1/rules.d/50-gamescope-networkmanager.rules Polkit rules for NM D-Bus access
/etc/polkit-1/rules.d/50-udisks-gaming.rules Polkit rules for external drive mounting
/etc/udev/rules.d/99-gaming-performance.rules Udev rules for CPU/GPU performance control
/etc/security/limits.d/99-gaming-memlock.conf Memory lock limits (2GB) for gaming

Performance & Environment

Path Purpose
/etc/environment.d/99-shader-cache.conf Shader cache optimisation (12GB Mesa/DXVK cache)
/etc/environment.d/90-nvidia-gamescope.conf NVIDIA Gamescope environment variables
/etc/pipewire/pipewire.conf.d/10-gaming-latency.conf PipeWire low-latency audio config

User Config

Path Purpose
~/.config/environment.d/gamescope-session-plus.conf Gamescope session config (resolution, refresh rate, GPU)

How It Works

Session Switching Flow

Desktop Mode (KDE Plasma)
    |
    +- Super+Alt+G pressed
    |   +- switch-to-gaming runs:
    |       +- Masks suspend targets (prevents sleep during switch)
    |       +- Updates plasmalogin config to gaming session
    |       +- Restarts plasmalogin -> boots into Gaming Mode
    |
Gaming Mode (Gamescope + Steam Big Picture)
    |
    +- On session start (gamescope-session-nm-wrapper):
    |   +- Enables performance mode (CPU governor, GPU tuning)
    |   +- Starts NetworkManager (for Steam network access)
    |   +- Launches steam-library-mount (external drive detection)
    |   +- Starts gaming-keybind-monitor
    |   +- Launches gamescope-session-plus with Steam
    |
    +- Steam > Power > Exit to Desktop
    |   +- switch-to-desktop runs:
    |       +- Unmasks suspend targets
    |       +- Restores Bluetooth
    |       +- Shuts down Steam gracefully
    |       +- Kills gamescope
    |       +- Updates plasmalogin config to KDE Plasma session
    |       +- Restarts plasmalogin -> boots into Desktop Mode
    |
    +- On session cleanup (trap handler):
        +- Kills steam-library-mount and keybind-monitor
        +- Stops NetworkManager, restores networking
        +- Restores balanced power mode

Performance Mode

When Gaming Mode starts, the session wrapper automatically:

  • Sets CPU governor to performance on all cores
  • NVIDIA: Enables persistence mode, sets power limit to maximum, disables runtime suspend
  • AMD: Sets GPU to high performance via power_dpm_force_performance_level
  • Applies kernel sysctl tuning (scheduler, VM, inotify, network buffers)
  • Sets power profile to performance (if power-profiles-daemon is available)

On exit, everything is restored to balanced/powersave defaults.

GPU Detection

The installer automatically detects your GPU configuration:

  • AMD dGPU: Detected via PCI device names (Navi, RDNA, Vega discrete cards)
  • AMD APU: Detected via integrated GPU codenames (Phoenix, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, etc.)
  • NVIDIA: Detected via lspci, configures nvidia-drm.modeset=1 if missing
  • Multi-GPU: Correctly identifies discrete vs integrated, selects dGPU for gaming

Monitor Detection

The installer scans DRM connectors on your gaming GPU to find connected displays. If multiple monitors are connected to the dGPU, you can choose which one to use for Gaming Mode. Resolution and refresh rate are auto-detected from EDID data.

External Drive Auto-Mount

The steam-library-mount daemon runs during Gaming Mode and:

  1. Scans all connected drives for Steam library folders
  2. Mounts drives containing steamapps/ directories via udisks2
  3. Monitors udev for hot-plugged drives
  4. Unmounts non-Steam drives to avoid clutter

Supports ext4, NTFS, btrfs, xfs, exfat, f2fs, and vfat filesystems.

Configuration

Config File

The installer reads from /etc/gaming-mode.conf (or ~/.gaming-mode.conf if it exists):

PERFORMANCE_MODE=enabled   # Set to "disabled" to skip performance tuning

Gamescope Session Config

After installation, you can edit ~/.config/environment.d/gamescope-session-plus.conf:

SCREEN_WIDTH=2560
SCREEN_HEIGHT=1440
CUSTOM_REFRESH_RATES=165
OUTPUT_CONNECTOR=DP-1
ADAPTIVE_SYNC=1            # AMD only
ENABLE_GAMESCOPE_HDR=1     # AMD only

NVIDIA note: Resolution is capped at 2560x1440 due to Gamescope limitations with NVIDIA GPUs.

Shader Cache

The installer configures a 12GB shader cache by default in /etc/environment.d/99-shader-cache.conf. This reduces stutter in games by caching compiled shaders. Values can be adjusted:

MESA_SHADER_CACHE_MAX_SIZE=12G
__GL_SHADER_DISK_CACHE_SIZE=12884901888
DXVK_STATE_CACHE=1

Key Differences from Omarchy Version

Omarchy (Arch) Nobara (Fedora)
Package manager pacman / yay dnf
Desktop Hyprland KDE Plasma
Display manager SDDM plasmalogin
Networking iwd NetworkManager
Gamescope pacman package Built from source
ChimeraOS session AUR packages Cloned from GitHub
Gaming keybind Super+Shift+S Super+Alt+G
Return keybind Super+Shift+R Steam > Exit to Desktop

NVIDIA-Specific Notes

  • Kernel parameter: nvidia-drm.modeset=1 is required. The installer can configure this for GRUB.
  • Resolution cap: Gamescope on NVIDIA is limited to 2560x1440 maximum.
  • Force composition: The NVIDIA wrapper automatically adds --force-composition if supported by your Gamescope version.
  • Environment: GBM_BACKEND=nvidia-drm and related vars are set automatically.
  • Persistence mode: Enabled during gaming to keep the GPU initialised, disabled on exit.

Troubleshooting

Verify Installation

Run the built-in verification to check all files, permissions, packages, and services:

./super_shift_g_nobara.sh --verify

Common Issues

Gaming Mode doesn't start / black screen

  • Check NVIDIA kernel params: cat /proc/cmdline | grep nvidia
  • Verify gamescope works: gamescope -- steam
  • Check session logs: journalctl --user -u gamescope-session -n 50

No network in Gaming Mode

  • Test NM manually: sudo systemctl start NetworkManager && nmcli general
  • Check polkit rules: ls -la /etc/polkit-1/rules.d/50-gamescope-*

Super+Alt+G doesn't work

  • Log out and back in after installation
  • Check KDE System Settings > Shortcuts for "Switch to Gaming Mode"
  • Verify the desktop file exists: ls /usr/share/applications/switch-to-gaming.desktop

External drives not mounting

  • Ensure udisks2 is installed: rpm -q udisks2
  • Check polkit rules exist: ls /etc/polkit-1/rules.d/50-udisks-gaming.rules
  • Check mount logs: journalctl -t steam-library-mount -n 20

Audio stuttering in Gaming Mode

  • Check PipeWire config exists: cat /etc/pipewire/pipewire.conf.d/10-gaming-latency.conf
  • Try lower quantum: edit the config and set default.clock.min-quantum = 128

"NO DICE - INTEL ONLY DETECTED"

  • This system has only Intel graphics. Gaming Mode requires AMD or NVIDIA.
  • If you have a discrete GPU, check that its driver is loaded: lspci -k | grep -A2 VGA

Log Locations

Component Command
Gaming session journalctl --user -u gamescope-session
NetworkManager journalctl -t gamescope-nm
Drive mounting journalctl -t steam-library-mount
Keybind monitor journalctl -t gaming-keybind-monitor
Session wrapper journalctl -t gamescope-wrapper
Installation journalctl -t gaming-mode

Credits

  • Nobara Project - The Fedora-based distribution this was adapted for
  • Omarchy - Original script built for Omarchy (Arch Linux)
  • ChimeraOS - gamescope-session packages
  • Valve - Steam, Gamescope, and the Steam Deck inspiration

License

This project is provided as-is for the Nobara and Fedora gaming community.