Public roadmap
What Polaris and Nova are improving now, what comes next, and which ambitious goals remain evidence-gated research. Read the public roadmap →
Polaris Documentation
The Linux-first streaming host. Games launch in a private headless compositor, your desktop stays untouched, and any Nova or Moonlight client can connect.
Install
Section titled “Install”Fedora 44 and Arch Linux are the recommended package paths. SteamOS has its own versioned package, Bazzite and Ubuntu are tester paths, and anything else builds from source.
Fedora 44Recommended. Official RPM and the most validated release path.
Arch Linux / CachyOSRecommended. Official package for Arch and pacman-compatible derivatives.
SteamOSVersioned package for SteamOS 3.8. Desktop Mode install and startup are validated; Game Mode and Steam Deck gameplay are not yet certified.
BazziteTester path. Layer the matching Fedora 44 RPM with rpm-ostree; Desktop Mode is validated on NVIDIA and Game Mode needs more coverage.
UbuntuExperimental tester DEB for Ubuntu 24.04, more prone to breaking than the package paths above.
openSUSETumbleweed source build with a dedicated dependency guide. No published package asset yet.
Build from sourceCMake build, dependencies, and packaging for everything else.
Understand
Section titled “Understand”Runtime and streaming model
Why Headless Stream is the default, how capture and encode paths are chosen, and what the session lifecycle looks like. Read the runtime guide →
Configuration
Web-UI-first configuration, the config file for scripted setups, and recovery when the UI is unreachable. Read the configuration guide →
Linux stream paths
The stream-path registry: runtime, capture, and topology dimensions, and the contract for adding a new path. Read the stream-paths reference →
Troubleshooting
Log markers, the headless fallback matrix, and fixes for the common failure modes. Read the troubleshooting guide →
Clients
Section titled “Clients”Polaris streams to Nova, the handheld-first Android client built alongside it, and to any Moonlight-compatible client on macOS, Windows, iOS, or Linux. Pairing, client settings, and per-client stream policy are managed from the Polaris web console.
NovaWhat Nova is, what Polaris adds to it, launch modes, and controller shortcuts.
Nova quick startPick the right APK, add and pair a host, and take a first stream.
Nova compatibilityDevices, hosts, controllers, release assets, and the current limits.