How to make Steam Deck into a light-weight yet powerfull laptop: Add printer support


In addition to being the 2022 king of handheld and emulator consoles. Steam Deck also can be used as a desktop computer at home because of its high-performance hardware, flexibility, and Linux-based operating system. It can also be a lightweight yet powerful netbook on desktop mode. Audience who need to use it as a netbook is strongly recommended to upgrade the storage.

After using Steam Deck as a netbook for a while, I have found Valve decided to reduce the storage space used as much as possible. The Steam OS has removed the printer support et al.

In this article, I will explain how to reinstall the supporting software of the printer.

Warning: SteamOS, built into SteamDeck, is a highly customized Arch Linux for games. After each upgrade, the original Chinese language and installed software may be rotten, and you need to re-run the steps.

Before we start, please prepare the following tools. That will make your life so much easier. 

  • Docking Station
  • Keyboard
  • Mouse
  • A bigger screen?

▲In fact, most of the tools and materials are not absolutely necessary, but it is challenging to operate.

The first thing to do when entering "Desktop Mode" is to set the password. To enter the Desktop Mode, the command is "Steam" - "Power" - "Switch to Desktop". Then you need to set the user account (deck) password. Otherwise, the following work cannot be performed. Please click "System Settings" (the second Icon in the lower left corner) -> Users -> Change Password.

If you haven’t installed the browser yet, after clicking the "Install Firefox" button on the taskbar for the first time in desktop mode, you will jump to the application installation screen; if you don't have another preference, please enter “chrome” in the search bar on the upper left to install the Chrome browser. Linux has its flexibilities, you search browser, and it will immediately jump out a bunch of browsers to choose from, including Firefox, a clean version of Chrome (a version that removes Google services), Chromium (a pure open source version without Google services), and so on. 


▲Next, please follow the steps. First, click "System Settings" in the lower left corner -> Users -> "steam Deck User" -> "Change Password" -> enter the user's password twice "Password" -> "Confirm password "-> "Set Password."

The author's printer script contains Chinese.

After installing the Internet browser, find my Chinese Automatic Script. (Thanks to  david082321 ), then right-click "Raw" in the upper right corner, select "Save link as..." to download "tw.sh". The default directory should be Download.

Next, click the fourth application in the lower left corner to open the "Dolphin" file manager, right-click on "tw.sh", and select "Open Terminal Here".

Then, enter the following command in "Konsole": 

bash tw.sh

Next, the system will ask you to enter the user password we just set; press "Enter" directly after entering, and the system will not display anything. Next, the script will ask again whether to install only the Chinese localization, add printer support, install all, or leave. 

This script, modified by me, can automatically install the Chinese language support and automatically install the printer support that Steam Deck lacks. 

Chinese language support only: enter "c" -> "Enter". 

Printer support only: "p" -> "Enter"

Install both: "Enter" or "Y" -> "Enter"

I assume that readers who come here directly do not need the Chinese language. Please directly enter "p" -> "Enter" to start the installation of printer-related software. It should only take a few minutes to complete. Next, configure the printer. 



 ▲Readers who install the printer only need to input "p" -> "Enter", and others can directly enter "Enter" to start installing the printer-related software. 



 ▲When you see this screen means completion. Only readers who set up the printer do not need to restart the machine; only those who have installed Chinese need it.


Setting up the printer Method 1: Through the KDE console


After installing the printer-related program, it is time to set it up. The following uses the HP LaserJet Pro MFP M28w network laser printer as an example. If your printer settings are not working correctly, search for "cups + your printer name" or "arch linux + your printer name" to learn how to set it up.

While printer support software installation, the system-config-printer software package has also been installed. We can set the printer directly in the KDE setting console, and the setting is very intuitive. Below we use the HP LaserJet Pro MFP M28w, a network B&W laser printer, as an example of setting. The general steps are:

Open the second button in the lower left corner, "Console" -> "Printer" -> "Add Printer" Select the connection method of the printer. If it is a network printer, it should have been found now. Select the printer driver; because the "Driverless" driver does not work correctly, I changed it to the second or third "hplip" driver.

It is recommended to do a printer test after the printer is installed. If the printing fails or the printing is not normal, it may be a connection problem or a driver problem. However, on Linux systems, not all printers have 100% support. Because HP invests heavily in open-source compatibility, HP printers were the easiest to set up.  Others have to try their luck, whether someone has set it. 



 ▲「Printers」 ->「Click here to add a printer」 



▲Select the printer "HP LaserJet MFP M28w" found by the system and press "Next" to continue 



▲Because the Driverless driver does not work correctly, I switched to the 2nd or 3rd hplip driver. 



▲Click "Finish" after the setting is complete. Executing the "Print Test Page" in the "Maintenance" function of the printer is recommended. 


Setting up the printer Method 2: Through the web interface


The second method is used by many people: to set up the printer through the CUPS web interface. There will also be more available options.

First, open the browser and connect to the website http://localhost:631/admin to start the configuration.

Select the connection method: Wired / Automatically found wireless printer / User-defined wireless printer. Select the driver (In the case of sharing by multiple people). Do you want to print the front/back cover? (Optional) Run a test print 


▲ After clicking "Add Printer", 

▲The "Location" here is optional input, just click "Continue" if you don't want to write 

▲ Here you can set whether to print the front and back front and back covers when multiple people use it. 

▲The setting is complete. You can click the printer name to maintain it. 

▲Click the "Maintenance" function to perform "Print Test Page" to print the test page

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