Install

Install

Requirements

• Windows 10 or 11
• Steam installed
• A controller (Xbox-class works out of the box; others can be taught)

Running from source additionally needs AutoHotkey v2.0.19 or newer, 64-bit. The released .exe is already compiled and needs none of that.

Which product do I want?

There are three answers, not two. SteamShell itself runs in either of two modes, and they are the same executable and the same settings file.

	Shell mode	Alongside mode	SteamShell XFE
Replaces the Windows shell	Yes	No	No
Boots to Steam Big Picture	Yes	Yes	No — you use Xbox FSE
Controller pointer + Quick Menu	Yes	Yes	Yes
Window management, focus assist	Full	Off, by design	Lightweight assist
Taskbar hiding, desktop backdrop	Yes	No — Explorer owns them	No
Display / HDR / audio / RTSS	Yes	Yes	Yes
Launcher Cleanup	Yes	Yes	Lightweight
If it goes wrong	You may need to restore the shell	Close it	Close it

Not sure? Start in Alongside mode. Nothing is written to the shell registry, Explorer keeps the desktop and the taskbar, and you still get the Quick Menu, the controller pointer, RTSS control and Launcher Cleanup. If your machine runs Xbox FSE rather than Steam Big Picture, install XFE instead.

You can convert either way later, from Settings, without reinstalling.

Why the window engine is off in Alongside mode

Because that mode assumes a keyboard and mouse are within reach. A program rearranging and refocusing windows on an ordinary desktop is an annoyance rather than a help — the focus engine earns its place when Big Picture is the only thing you can see, not when you have a taskbar.

Installing

1. Download SteamShell.exe from the latest release. One executable installs both products.
2. Put it somewhere sensible and run it.
3. The Setup Assistant opens on first run.

Setup Assistant

It walks through:

• Which product — standalone shell, or the XFE companion.
• Install mode — Standard (a managed copy in a fixed location), Custom (you pick the folder), or Portable (runs where it sits, nothing registered).
• Applications — Steam is required and is detected automatically. RTSS is optional.
• Shell registration — whether SteamShell becomes the Windows shell. This is the step with consequences, and it is the one that chooses your mode:
  • Ticked → Shell mode. Winlogon starts SteamShell instead of Explorer.
  • Cleared → Alongside mode. Nothing is written to the shell registry, and the installed copy is told so, which is why it comes up behaving like an ordinary program rather than one that thinks it owns a desktop it was never given.
• Auto-login — optional, so a console-style box boots straight in.

Everything it does is reversible from Settings → Advanced, and it records what it installed so a later run can tell a moved installation from a fresh one.

Trying it without committing

Install in Alongside mode — clear the shell-registration box in Setup. SteamShell launches Big Picture and gives you the Quick Menu, the controller pointer, RTSS control and Launcher Cleanup, while Explorer keeps the desktop and the taskbar. Nothing is written to the shell registry. Close it and you are back to normal.

Alongside is not a crippled trial mode; it is a supported way to run the program, and the one to choose if you want the controller experience on a PC you also use normally.

If you run Xbox FSE rather than Steam Big Picture, install XFE instead.

Switching between Shell and Alongside

Settings → Advanced & Logging → "Switch to Shell Mode…", or "Switch to Alongside Mode…" depending which you are in — the button names its destination.

It writes the setting and the shell registry together, because either alone leaves a half-converted machine: the setting without the registry gives you a session that stands down its shell features while Winlogon still starts it as the shell, and the registry without the setting gives the reverse.

A restart is required and the converter says so rather than doing it for you. Which mode you are in is read once at startup, and flipping presentation ownership underneath a live session would mean starting or stopping the taskbar guard and desktop backdrop against a desktop already drawn the other way.

Making it the shell

If you do register it as the shell, before you reboot:

• Know the escape key. Ctrl+Alt+Shift+E registers Explorer as the shell and exits.
• Have a keyboard attached. Worth it for a kiosk build, at least the first time.
• Have a second account that still uses Explorer, or a way to reach Safe Mode.

SteamShell.exe /safe starts in Safe Mode: it stays non-elevated, keeps Explorer available, and does not start the elevated helper.

Verifying the download

The released binary is committed in the repository at releases/2.0.0/current/SteamShell.exe, and its SHA-256 is listed in releases/2.0.0/RELEASE.md alongside the exact source that built it.

Get-FileHash .\SteamShell.exe -Algorithm SHA256

Uninstalling

Settings → Advanced → Permanently Restore Explorer puts the shell back, then remove the folder. If SteamShell can't determine what it installed, it asks rather than guessing.