Is a 128 Gb SSD enough for Steam OS*? And which CPU should I get?

[Poop King]

*With a secondary 1 Tb one.

I already have said 128 Gb drive as my main PCs boot drive and it always struggles with little room left so I'm going to clone it to a new 256 Gb.

I have a spare 1 Tb sat in a drawer that was originally going to be the replacement for the OS drive. Assuming that Sata SSDs will be fine for this as I already have them, and this way I just need a replacement 256 Gb boot drive for the main PC.

Also for a 4K lounge media and steam link / remote play build, would either the new I3 12100 suffice, or should I get the I5 12600 non K?

Its either one of those as IMO the ones in between aren't worth the extra or less in comparison.

I still need to wait for the H670 motherboards to launch, as well as a 4K TV.

On that note which would be the ideal 55" gaming too? Spec me the whole lot.

It wont have a GPU until I manage to get a decent priced RTX card and move my 1080 Ti to it, hence I will use remote play to get around that.

[TinMan1325]

I have no idea which CPU will be best,
but I'm pretty sure the Steam Deck, which will be SteamOS 3.0, is going to use AMD

[PoorPocketsMcNewHold]

Better wait a bit for Steam Deck, Steam 3.0 instead of using SteamOS. It is fairly outdated.

[Poop King]

Originally posted by PoorPocketsMcNewHold:

Better wait a bit for Steam Deck, Steam 3.0 instead of using SteamOS. It is fairly outdated.

What, how would that work for a lounge PC?

Well I already ordered the I5 12600.

I want an actual lounge PC regardless as it needs to connect to my main one for shared media and streaming, and then setting it up however works best for couch gaming.

And nvm, I've checked a bunch of guides and you can just use Windows and have Steam auto launch in big picture mode.

[Sandersbeek]

You should always prefer i5/i7 to i/3, i3 is not as good.

It depends on what exactly you have in mind, just for SteamOS (without any other software) 128GB is enough without problems, even for a Windows system that would easily be enough.

As already mentioned here, it's better to wait for SteamOS 3.0, even if it won't be freely available for the time being.

SteamOS is currently based on Debian 8, which is no longer supported and Valva doesn't do anything there either.

SteamOS 3.0 will be based on Arch.

[retrogunner]

Another consideration, if you cannot wait for Steam OS 3.x (arch), you could always install linux as the Boot OS on the 1TB, install "qemu, kvm, virt-manager" and install the Steam OS 2.x to a VM to evaluate it's layout. (you might want to just skip a down to my thoughts on your 128GB/1TB storage combo). Here's why.

Steam OS is designed to be an appliance OS. It's partition layout is basically : OS (current), OS (previous), /home (where /home/steam/ and games are installed). When there's a Steam OS update, they flip-flop boot order but /home remains untouched. This ensures you can still boot up, try updating again, and play games.

I don't recall how large the OS partitions are (hence my VM eval suggestion above). I have read Valve reduced Steam 3.x OS footprint from 25GB to 10GB. That's a huge saving considering the OS is stored *TWICE* (current & previous) - which is kind of important for the 64GB eMMC Steam Decks.

For a 128GB, it should be enough for boot drive and a couple of games having storage performance demands - regardless of Steam OS 2.x or 3.x.

Steam also allows you to have multiple drives / game storage locations. Really, you should use both 128GB SSD *and* the 1TB. You could also use the 1TB to backup games in case of SSD corruption so you don't have to re-download all your games.

You'll also want to use the 128GB/1TB combo for Steam OS 3.x.

Here's another benefit. You can use the game "Properties" and move installed between multiple drives. So yes, waiting for Steam OS 3.x would be nice, but if you want to get your feet wet now or have some spare cycles - pull the trigger now on Steam OS 2.x.

* You install Steam OS 2.x to the 128GB (using the 1TB for additional game storage).
* When Steam OS 3.x comes out, move (or backup) all your games on the 128GB's /home/steam/.steam/steamapps/common over to the 1TB steamapps location.
* Unplug the 1TB for safety.
* Install Steam OS 3.x to the 128GB erasing it completely
* Plug your 1TB back in.
* then "Game on" :-)

Hope this helps. Cheers. Retro.

[Poop King]

I already got an I5 12600, and am waiting for the budget ITX boards to release.

I think I will just use Windows 11 instead and have Steam auto launch in big picture mode.