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While I haven't seen it noted in any of the recent changelogs for the Steam Client Beta, it seems it has an updated Steam Runtime in need of some testing.

Sending word to us on Twitter, developer Timothee Besset said:

The beta branch of the steam client for GNU/Linux has received several updates to it's runtime for games. Make sure to test your favorite titles! CC @gamingonlinux @Plagman2

For those of you who want to ensure everyone has a good experience and to ensure games you love don't break with a new stable Steam Client release, it's time to get testing and reporting. It's probably a good idea to let Valve know of any issues on their Steam for Linux GitHub.

What is the Steam Runtime? From the GitHub:

A binary compatible runtime environment for Steam applications on Linux.

Essentially, it includes a set of libraries for game developers to link their games against. This is to give them a somewhat standard set of libs that should work across distributions for games shipped on Steam.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Beta, Steam, Valve
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23 comments
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FireBurn Oct 24, 2018
Any idea what they've changed? New packages? Updated packages?

I have to run this command so I use the native packages on my machine to prevent segfaults

find ~/.steam/root/ \( -name "libgcc_s.so*" -o -name "libstdc++.so*" -o -name "libxcb*.so*" -o -name "libvulkan.so*" \) -print -delete
Liam Dawe Oct 24, 2018
Any idea what they've changed? New packages? Updated packages?

I have to run this command so I use the native packages on my machine to prevent segfaults

find ~/.steam/root/ \( -name "libgcc_s.so*" -o -name "libstdc++.so*" -o -name "libxcb*.so*" -o -name "libvulkan.so*" \) -print -delete
I'm waiting to hear back about it, will update when I know.
Werner Oct 24, 2018
https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime/issues/101

maybe related to this, users reported issues with uplay to name one

https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton/issues/1789


Last edited by Werner on 24 October 2018 at 10:55 am UTC
mrdeathjr Oct 24, 2018
In this week episode

On native side

Life is Strange

![](https://i.imgur.com/OTX5Pc3.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJBOY4bxMFo

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

(around 50 to 80fps more fps compared pentium with same settings)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX4z86QpRjE


Bioshock Infinite

![](https://i.imgur.com/YJePMY1.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZW_4GToXTfs

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xTtCY5jCVs


Deadfall Adventures

![](https://i.imgur.com/SFFq0eU.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESmIg7BFkKg

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHSyoozBmTY


Bound by Flame

![](https://i.imgur.com/9QDzdwS.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cip2zUrSZc

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAKIx8xcOrY


On steamplay side


Shellshock 2

![](https://i.imgur.com/RixByo3.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcvLxe-e8C0

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

(around 100% more fps compared pentium with same settings)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifZIBQsKsuA


F.E.A.R

![](https://i.imgur.com/FXaZteo.png)

Last test with Pentium G3220 3.0ghz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2jcvnEhi54

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CuVnGq9zhY


Bioshock 1

![](https://i.imgur.com/OzXqnnu.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs4B3gvHXzA

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxQ08g8xiDI


Singularity

![](https://i.imgur.com/rU27EEO.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu1J-P6mISk

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzQEby2c0_Y


Unreal Tournament 3

![](https://i.imgur.com/my3zk2E.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro2GvssSsa4

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeML-6_H3S4


Rage

![](https://i.imgur.com/2SzdwTb.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikbIRRCmWms

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBAd-IJAJ5g


Dishonored

![](https://i.imgur.com/oyfElgy.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs6BMzMKobg

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hh3bTYx3ZsE


Clive Barker Jericho

![](https://i.imgur.com/ZarwgVa.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-RBWAbCnFE

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGZjcWYoiOg


Rogue Warrior

![](https://i.imgur.com/wg99f5w.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzLeObJAZtI

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lScgVTWH5vM


Anachronox

![](https://i.imgur.com/UxWjk0B.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gC7RAZWBToo

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9HWKBLPz9U


And other non steam apps


OpenRCT 2

![](https://i.imgur.com/i5u8Y95.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d08XohYgOjg

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kd5I903YE8U


Zsnes 1.51

![](https://i.imgur.com/VHXGaj2.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNJ_rSUvquQ

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P5W2aMPTNc


Epsxe 2.05

![](https://i.imgur.com/jLPM30Q.png)

![](https://i.imgur.com/46VoBTF.png)

Last test with Pentium G3258 @ 4.1ghz + Artic Cooling Alpine 11 Plus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcxdgOdqv_U

And now with Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJacTGXQUWo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2m6dxkoLIE


Yabause 0.9.15

![](https://i.imgur.com/3gC8IJk.png)

With Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnBWv5y3oWI


ReDream 1.31

![](https://i.imgur.com/UecJLDb.png)

![](https://i.imgur.com/46VcFoy.png)

![](https://i.imgur.com/f8fsvvr.png)

With Core i3 8350K Tri-Core @ 5.0ghz + CoolerMaster Hyper T4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJGBvS8rRmA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe9vHECMtM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvIXK6wbTpI


^_^


Last edited by mrdeathjr on 24 October 2018 at 4:05 pm UTC
WorMzy Oct 24, 2018
Any idea what they've changed? New packages? Updated packages?

I have to run this command so I use the native packages on my machine to prevent segfaults

find ~/.steam/root/ \( -name "libgcc_s.so*" -o -name "libstdc++.so*" -o -name "libxcb*.so*" -o -name "libvulkan.so*" \) -print -delete

You should probably use the native runtime. Not sure if Gentoo has such a thing, but Arch has a wrapper:

#!/bin/sh
export STEAM_RUNTIME=0
# Workaround for dbus fatal termination related coredumps (SIGABRT)
# https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-for-linux/issues/4464
export DBUS_FATAL_WARNINGS=0
# Override some libraries as these are what games linked against.
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH="/usr/lib/steam:/usr/lib32/steam${LD_LIBRARY_PATH:+:}$LD_LIBRARY_PATH"
exec /usr/lib/steam/steam "$@"

Adjust to your system.


It's good that they're finally moving away from the ancient Ubuntu 12.04 base, but I hope they don't just bump up to 14.04, which is EOL in five months..
x_wing Oct 24, 2018
Any idea what they've changed? New packages? Updated packages?

I have to run this command so I use the native packages on my machine to prevent segfaults

find ~/.steam/root/ \( -name "libgcc_s.so*" -o -name "libstdc++.so*" -o -name "libxcb*.so*" -o -name "libvulkan.so*" \) -print -delete

I remember a guy that run this command but replaced the steam directory with the root directory (and with sudo!)

As advice, remember to check every command you use with this: https://explainshell.com/

About steam runtime, I though that steam was using system libraries by default. Maybe the problems happens with games (or proton) preferring steam runtimes libs?
Leopard Oct 24, 2018
So far , everything looks like working.

Even Quake Champions still has error 103 :D
Eike Oct 24, 2018
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
As advice, remember to check every command you use with this: https://explainshell.com/

That's a nice one, thanks!
beniwtv Oct 24, 2018
https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime/issues/101

maybe related to this, users reported issues with uplay to name one

https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton/issues/1789

That's my assumption too. The version of GnuTLS used by the Steam runtime/Proton is becoming so old that going forward all TLS connections will cease to work, as the old protocols have security issues and are being deprecated.
Luke_Nukem Oct 24, 2018
It annoys me so much that the Steam Runtime was the necessary solution to a problem that shouldn't exist.
D34VA_ Oct 24, 2018
Sadly, this does not seem to have fixed Quake Champions' connection issue.


Last edited by D34VA_ on 24 October 2018 at 9:45 pm UTC
Werner Oct 25, 2018
i think they need to recompile proton also to make use of it, so test again when they release a new proton beta
Leopard Oct 25, 2018
Sadly, this does not seem to have fixed Quake Champions' connection issue.

They are working on it.
FireBurn Oct 25, 2018
Any idea what they've changed? New packages? Updated packages?

I have to run this command so I use the native packages on my machine to prevent segfaults

find ~/.steam/root/ \( -name "libgcc_s.so*" -o -name "libstdc++.so*" -o -name "libxcb*.so*" -o -name "libvulkan.so*" \) -print -delete

I remember a guy that run this command but replaced the steam directory with the root directory (and with sudo!)

As advice, remember to check every command you use with this: https://explainshell.com/

About steam runtime, I though that steam was using system libraries by default. Maybe the problems happens with games (or proton) preferring steam runtimes libs?
+ Click to view long quote

I have to run with STEAM_RUNTIME_PREFER_HOST_LIBRARIES=0 too as most of my libraries are too new for the games using them, delete the above and everything runs fine using the steam runtime
Vash63 Oct 25, 2018
View PC info
  • Supporter
I think they need to ship two runtimes - a historical one to honor their promise of old games working indefinitely and a new one for new games and Proton. New one should be based on 18.04.
F.Ultra Oct 25, 2018
View PC info
  • Supporter
It annoys me so much that the Steam Runtime was the necessary solution to a problem that shouldn't exist.

Other then forcing library writers to maintain a backwards compatible stable (aka new functions can be added) ABI there is just no other way to solve this. Or we could go the Windows way and have every game bundle every single library that they use so we will have 2 million instances of openssl with varying degrees of security holes in them on our drives.
F.Ultra Oct 25, 2018
View PC info
  • Supporter
I think they need to ship two runtimes - a historical one to honor their promise of old games working indefinitely and a new one for new games and Proton. New one should be based on 18.04.

I think they will considering that the current runtime lives in directories named "ubuntu12_32" and "ubuntu12_64", if they never planned to keep the historical ones they wouldn't have named them in this way.

edit: but then I read the post from @hateball so things might not be so clear after all. I guess that one major problem here is that Steam does not know which version of the runtime a specific game is built for (unless they have such meta-data).


Last edited by F.Ultra on 25 October 2018 at 8:51 pm UTC
Leopard Oct 26, 2018
Seems to have broken at least The Tiny Bang Story, game expects libGLEW1.6 and now there is only 1.10 present.
Not quite sure how to report that properly, but I made a post on the games forums... https://steamcommunity.com/app/96000/discussions/0/1733216893876281579/

https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime
beniwtv Oct 26, 2018
Quite frankly I'm at the point of blaming networks for turning off older TLS with no fallback.

The fallback is called "newer TLS version", and has been supported by OSes and applications for quite a while. Obviously old GnuTLS didn't support them. GnuTLS 2.6.6 was released on 2009-04-30, more than 9 years ago. We did not even know about the vulnerabilities back then.

Blaming networks for caring about your data's security and disabling these broken protocols seems a bit odd.

The issue here isn't GnuTLS or the networks, but the Steam runtime being so old and not being kept up to date (at least the security relevant parts of it should be updated).
Liam Dawe Oct 26, 2018
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