Moonlight - Game streaming (Steam link)

VIM3
1

Moonlight is a game streaming client that we can use to stream games from a desktop PC. Right now moonlight only supports Nvidia GTX 600/700/900/1000 series cards.

Moonlight uses Amlogic H/W decoding so fluent 1080P 60 gaming is possible with Moonlight provided that the desktop PC is powerful enough

Building Moonlight for VIM3

sudo apt update
sudo apt-get install git libopus0 libexpat1 libasound2 libudev1 libavahi-client3 libcurl4 libevdev2 libenet7 libssl-dev libopus-dev libasound2-dev libudev-dev libavahi-client-dev libcurl4-openssl-dev libevdev-dev libexpat1-dev libpulse-dev uuid-dev libenet-dev cmake gcc g++ fakeroot debhelper libavcodec-dev ffmpeg
git clone https://github.com/irtimmer/moonlight-embedded.git
cd moonlight-embedded
git submodule update --init
mkdir build
cd build/
cmake ../
make
sudo make install
sudo ldconfig

After completion of build copy the files “moonlight.conf” and “gamecontrollerdb.txt” to build directory

Setup on PC/VIM

  1. Install latest “Geforce Experience” on the PC
  2. Install Steam client on the PC (if not already installed)
  3. Open “Geforce Experience” -> Go to settings -> Shield Tab -> Enable game streaming
  4. Add steam.exe to the application list
  5. SSH into VIM3, go to build folder execute ./moonlight pair xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the desktop PC IP address. Enter the key on your desktop to complete the pairing process.
  6. To start streaming execute './moonlight stream xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx`. It will take sometime and then steam link should show up in VIM3 display

Performance
I tested the performance at 1080P 60 FPS it was really smooth with some occasional stutters
I should also note that as of now VIM3 doesn’t support controllers we need recompile the kernel with drivers for controllers… so default firmware will support keyboard and mouse only

2

Thanks for sharing those detailed build instructions for Moonlight on the VIM3. Getting game streaming set up on alternative hardware is always a satisfying project once it’s running smoothly.

That’s a great point about testing performance with a well-optimized, lighter title. Once you get your controller support sorted, a classic like gunblood game is a perfect choice to test for input lag and visual fluidity on your new streaming setup. It’s straightforward and fast-paced, which really highlights how responsive the stream is.