Elgato Stream Deck on Linux
Everything you need to get a Stream Deck running on any Linux distribution, whichever desktop you use.
Checked against StreamController 1.5.0-beta.16 on 24 October 2026.
Why you need a separate app
A Stream Deck is a USB device with small screens under each key. Plug it into Linux and nothing happens: the keys stay dark because there's no software telling them what to show. Elgato's own app only runs on Windows and macOS.
StreamController is the app that does that job on Linux. It's written in Python with a GTK 4 interface, it's licensed GPL-3.0, and it's maintained by Core447 with a group of contributors. It's officially in beta, which in practice means it's usable every day but moves quickly.
Installing on any distribution
Download stream-deck.zip (4.0 MB), then in a terminal:
$ unzip stream-deck.zip
$ cd stream-deck
$ ./install.shThe script detects apt, dnf or pacman, installs what StreamController needs, sets up device access and adds it to your app menu.
Specific notes: Ubuntu & Mint, Fedora & Bazzite, Arch & Manjaro.
What it can do: StreamController features and its plugins. On Windows instead? Use OpenDeck.
udev rules and device access
Linux decides which users can talk to a USB device through udev rules. install.sh adds the right rule for you. If you set things up by hand, run this from the stream-deck folder and reboot:
$ sudo install -m 644 udev.rules /etc/udev/rules.d/60-streamdeck.rules
$ sudo rebootThe rule file grants access to Elgato's USB vendor ID (0fd9) for each Stream Deck product.
Your desktop matters for page switching
| Desktop | Automatic page switching |
|---|---|
| GNOME | Yes, with the StreamController GNOME Shell extension. The app offers to install it. |
| KDE Plasma | Yes, once kdotool is installed. |
| Hyprland | Yes. |
| Sway | Yes. |
| Any X11 session | Yes (Cinnamon, XFCE, MATE and others on X11). |
| Other Wayland compositors | Not yet. Change pages with keys instead. |
Keep it running in the background
The deck only works while StreamController runs. Close the window and it keeps going in the background; use the menu's quit option to stop it fully. If your desktop limits background apps (Ubuntu's does), allow it, or the keys freeze when the window closes.
Questions
Is there official Elgato Stream Deck software for Linux?
No. Elgato's Stream Deck app is Windows and macOS only. StreamController is the most complete Linux replacement and is free and open source.
What are the alternatives to StreamController?
Boatswain is a simpler GNOME app. OpenDeck aims to run plugins written for Elgato's software. streamdeck-ui and its fork streamdeck-linux-gui are older Python options. StreamController has the largest plugin store and the most device support of the group.
Does StreamController work on Wayland?
Yes. The app itself runs on Wayland. Automatic page switching needs a way to see the active window, which on Wayland depends on the compositor: GNOME (with the extension), KDE (with kdotool), Hyprland and Sway are supported.
Do I need root or sudo?
Once, when you run ./install.sh: it installs system packages and the Stream Deck udev rule. After that StreamController runs as your normal user.
Plug it in and start mapping keys.
StreamController is free. Download the zip, run one script, and plug your deck in.