How to install Windows on the Steam Deck in just ten steps

Pablinux

6 minutes

Steam Deck OLED playing Fortnite

In the middle of last week, Valve finally released the Windows drivers for the Steam Deck OLED, in the absence of improving the audio for a complete experience. Whether it is worth it or not is subjective, and here, in addition to explaining how to install it, we will also leave our opinion on why to do it, why not, and some example cases. But this is a great step to be able to play Fortnite on the Steam Deck without dying trying, among other things.

Before starting, we must insist on the issue of audio drivers. Although there are two, Valve tells us that They will only work on headphones and through Bluetooth. Also For Bluetooth to work well you must use SteamOS 3.6.9, currently in beta. That said, we are going to explain everything you need to know to be able to use Windows 10 or 11 on the Steam Deck, and the tutorial is valid for both the version with LCD screen and the OLED one, with its updated APU, WiFi and other small improvements.

Windows on the Steam Deck with official drivers

Method 1: Windows To Go

The first method that we are going to explain is to use a To Go option. It is the name given to the installation on an external drive, such as a pendrive, an SSD connected to USB-C or on an SD card. The best option of the three is an SSD with a USB-C connection, since it will be the fastest; At an intermediate point we have to use a pendrive, if it can be 3.x better; and in the worst case you can use an SD card, although here the performance will be less good.

The steps to follow to create a Windows To Go and use it on the Steam Deck would look like this:

  1. On a Windows computer or virtual machine, We're going to this link to download Windows 11, or to this other for Windows 10. Later we will talk about the tool to create Windows To Go, which is capable of doing this as well, so this step may be optional. I prefer to download it manually.
  2. We choose the edition and click on "Download".

Download Windows 11

  1. Next, it will ask us for a language. We select the one we want and click on "Confirm".
  2. Finally, we click on "64-bit Download" and the download will begin. If it doesn't work with Firefox, try Edge.

Use of Rufus

  1. Let rufus.ie/en, we download the program and start it.
    1. In the "Device" section, we choose the drive where we want to create Windows to Go.
    2. In "Boot Choice", we choose the ISO if the "SELECT" option is available or we download an image if we choose "DOWNLOAD". Since I have already downloaded it, I leave the option to select.
    3. We click on one of the buttons, in my case "SELECT", to search for the ISO.
    4. In “Image Options”, we choose “Windows to Go”.
    5. We leave the rest by default, click on "START" and wait for the process to finish. Before starting, a window will appear to choose the edition of Windows that we want to use, if the ISO offers several, and another in which we can eliminate the use of an online account, among others. We mark our preferences and continue.

Create Windows to Go with Rufus

Finishing the installation of Windows To Go on the Steam Deck

  1. We take out the unit, put it in the Steam Deck and finish the installation. At first it will be seen vertically, but that can be changed from the settings when we are already inside the operating system. To choose the boot unit you have to turn off the Deck and turn it on with the power + volume down buttons, holding the last one until you see the menu. The Windows drive should appear there.
  2. We download the drivers from this link. It is worth doing it with the page in English. We save them on a USB-C or on an SD. The issue here is that you will not be able to access the Internet from the Deck unless we have a dock or something like that with an Ethernet port, not until we install the driver for the WiFi.
  3. We wait for the installation of Windows 11 to finish. With Rufus we have created the installation media, but it has to finish. During the process we have to indicate certain options, as always when we install Windows. If it asks us to enter a Microsoft account, here we are going to need an Ethernet port.
  4. Once inside the operating system, we put the Deck vertically so as not to end up with a torticollis: we go to Settings/System/Screen and in "Screen Orientation" we set it to "Horizontal."
  5. We put the unit where the drivers are and install them as explained in the Valve support page.

Method 2: native installation

Yo I do not recommend this because I prefer to use SteamOS, but if someone wants to use Windows, they are free to do so. Still, you have to know that Valve does not offer support for this option. The drivers do, but if something fails, the repair must be done by the user.

Installing native Windows on the Steam Deck It is very similar to the To Go option, with slight differences: in Rufus, instead of choosing "Windows to Go" the option to create an installation drive is chosen. With the key combination described in the previous point, you choose to boot from this unit, and the last 5 points above would be almost the same. The only difference is that you don't have to wait for the installation to finish; First you have to tell it everything, which includes formatting the hard drive.

Best SteamOS on the Steam Deck and Windows Rescue

In my opinion and as advice, I would leave SteamOS and use Windows on an SSD. It's what I do, and only when I need something from Windows. Be that as it may, let each one choose.