Better way to stream non-steam game from steam deck to PC

[Benecor]

I like to be able to switch from playing a game on a deck to playing it on my PC when I get home. Currently, I have to find a save point, save the game, and exit the game. Then I look on my pc and, even though it had a pop up saying it was ready to stream, the game won't be on my library. I have to exit steam completely then start it up again to find the game on my Steam Deck. Then launch the game.

I wish there was just a button on my pc to start seamlessly streaming the game that I'm playing on my steam deck. For now, is there a way to make it any less tedious?

[_I_]

go the other way around
stream from pc to deck

[Benecor]

Originally posted by _I_:

go the other way around
stream from pc to deck

When I'm playing on the deck, it's because the wife is using the PC. I'd love to be able to stream games from my PC but it makes the computer unusable so not a viable option. I don't understand why it has to mirror the game on the source computer when streaming.

[Illusion of Progress]

Originally posted by Benecor:

I don't understand why it has to mirror the game on the source computer when streaming.

That's what streaming is though. A client is getting a stream of information from something else serving as the host. In the case of streaming games, something ultimately has to be computing that instance of the game, and that something would be the host PC.

[Benecor]

I think you misunderstand me. I understand that the host PC has to run the game in order to stream it. It would be nice if it could run minimized or in the background or something so I could continue to use the host PC. I read that there's a way to do this but it requires dual booting windows or something like that.

Like streaming videos from my host pc on Plex. I know this is much simpler but it's the same idea. I can still game on the host PC while someone else streams a movie from it to another TV. It doesn't have to mirror on my PC to stream it.

[A&A]

There is an unortidox variant. You can use two monitors (or simulate), the first one must run the game with the steam client and the other one a virtual machine with a connected keyboard and mouse.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

Originally posted by Benecor:

I think you misunderstand me. I understand that the host PC has to run the game in order to stream it. It would be nice if it could run minimized or in the background or something so I could continue to use the host PC. I read that there's a way to do this but it requires dual booting windows or something like that.

Like streaming videos from my host pc on Plex. I know this is much simpler but it's the same idea. I can still game on the host PC while someone else streams a movie from it to another TV. It doesn't have to mirror on my PC to stream it.

Because streaming a video is simply another device loading up that file from external storage; thats how that works. It's not live-streaming the content when you are streaming a video file over a network connection from say your Phone or Deck from your PC's drive(s).

But when streaming a game, the host PC must run that game on its end and do all the work required to run it; that is the difference here. The game can't run in the background or minimized, it has to run front and center as if you were actually playing the game; as that is exectly what you are doing. The only thing the Deck is doing is receiving network information to display the game, and then data is sent from Deck to PC when you use your inputs; such as the Controller for example. In turn the Host PC does those inputs in the game and the visual results are sent back to the Deck; etc. etc. rinse and repeat.

What it is not is the same idea.
Streaming Video over LAN is just a file being loaded onto the other device.
Streaming a game is not a matter of the Deck running the game files; the Host PC has to run those files and thus run the whole game itself.
Big difference; nothing alike.

[lsdninja]

What OP is looking for is something that works a little like the X Windows System, which separates where the applications (or X clients) run, from what displays the graphics (the X server). Trouble is, there's a huge performance hit in doing things this way, especially in games, which led to it being effectively bypassed for 3D stuff in modern implementations.

[A&A]

Originally posted by lsdninja:

What OP is looking for is something that works a little like the X Windows System, which separates where the applications (or X clients) run, from what displays the graphics (the X server). Trouble is, there's a huge performance hit in doing things this way, especially in games, which led to it being effectively bypassed for 3D stuff in modern implementations.

It depends
You have to run a host OS and a guest OS, which means you'll be using a minimum of 5GB of RAM, and if you have a hexa-core processor (maybe an iGPU too) then there shouldn't be a huge performance hit.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

I'll say it again. Wife needs her own devices. End of story.
There is no sharing your primary work/gaming PC. You need it when you need it; period.

[Illusion of Progress]

Originally posted by Benecor:

It would be nice if it could run minimized or in the background or something so I could continue to use the host PC. I read that there's a way to do this but it requires dual booting windows or something like that.

Not as far as I'm aware. The game needs what it needs to run. I don't think there's any magic to change that, not without limiting the performance of the game to free up those resources for other stuff. Which you could do that, but it's probably only going to go so far.

If the PC becomes slow to other tasks while gaming then that means the game is using most of what's available (even if it's only of one thing, like CPU or RAM).

Originally posted by Benecor:

Like streaming videos from my host pc on Plex.

Entirely different things. Serving a video stream is much less computationally demanding than games can be. The video already exists as a file and it merely needs to be sent over a network. There's nothing to "compute". You have way, way, way more than enough hardware for do that and still have a lot of reserves. Games need to be computed, and also send it over the network like with streaming. For game streaming, think of it just using the device you're streaming to as a network attached monitor and input. That's all it is. The host PC still has to entirely run the game. And you (seemingly, from the way you describe it) don't have more than enough hardware for doing that and having reserves for uninterrupted general use alongside it.

[xSOSxHawkens]

Originally posted by Benecor:

I like to be able to switch from playing a game on a deck to playing it on my PC when I get home. Currently, I have to find a save point, save the game, and exit the game. Then I look on my pc and, even though it had a pop up saying it was ready to stream, the game won't be on my library. I have to exit steam completely then start it up again to find the game on my Steam Deck. Then launch the game.

I wish there was just a button on my pc to start seamlessly streaming the game that I'm playing on my steam deck. For now, is there a way to make it any less tedious?

you can already do this (start a mid-use stream of an already running game using a second computer).

1) Have two computers on same steam account on same LAN.
2) Start game on computer 1.
3) Go and bring up steam on computer 2, game should be listed as running.
4a) If game is not installed locally to computer 2 there will simply be a green connect button on the game, and the game should stream when you connect.
4b) if the game is installed locally, tap the arrow on the right of the play button and select the remote machine of choice, play button will change to connect.

[xSOSxHawkens]

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3042630704

[Benecor]

Thank you, xSoSxHawkens for bringing this back to topic. I tested this on a steam game and it works just as you described which would be very cool if that was my problem. However, as I stated in the original post, I'm trying to do this with a non-steam game. When I do the same thing with a non- steam game, I have to relaunch steam on my PC before it will find the game from my host PC (steam deck).

[Benecor]

Originally posted by Bad 💀 Motha:

[quote=Benecor;3874841497808687273
What it is not is the same idea.
Streaming Video over LAN is just a file being loaded onto the other device.
Streaming a game is not a matter of the Deck running the game files; the Host PC has to run those files and thus run the whole game itself.
Big difference; nothing alike.

I did state that I recognized that streaming video was simpler (and thus not the same thing)... I do understand the basics of how streaming works for plex and for games. I do them both. I was just using the comparison to describe what I meant when I discussed it running in the background so that I can still use my computer for other tasks. Maybe I should have forgone trying to use an example. I also know that it can't currently be done without running 2 operating systems. I was only ever suggesting that it would be nice if steam had such capability.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

I'm also just trying to understand why anyone would want to stream any game from Deck to PC. The Deck is the weaker system so it all makes ZERO sense to do at all. Just put the game on the PC and launch it from the PC