Valve has always planned for Steam Deck users to be able to install Windows instead of the Linux-based Steam OS that comes pre-installed. The corporation has now gone a step further in its Windows support by removing a critical roadblock to Windows 11 installation.

The additional support for firmware Trusted Platform Module (fTPM), which allows users to install Windows 11 on the device, is likely the most notable item in the patch notes for the current Steam Deck OS beta. When Windows 11 was initially released, the BIOS function was a popular answer to a contentious necessity.

TPM 2.0 is required for a machine to officially support Windows 11, which surprised many users because it limited the operating system’s compatibility with modern CPUs. Dedicated hardware or software-based fTPM can be used to meet this requirement.

Windows 11 can now be Installed on Valves Steam Deck

Early in March, Valve released the first Windows drivers for the Steam Deck, but due to the device’s lack of fTPM compatibility, it could only run Windows 10 until now. Because AMD’s audio drivers aren’t finalised yet, any sound from Steam Decks running Windows will have to come via USB-C or Bluetooth. Furthermore, Valve is still working on a dual-boot installer, so customers will have to choose between Windows and Steam OS for the time being.

In the newest beta, there’s also a setting in the Quick Access menu > Performance for running games at uncapped framerates. Valve has also increased the Steam Deck’s battery life while it is idle or not in use.