Important

AI-assisted development notice

The Steam Frame/Lepton work in this fork has been developed with substantial assistance from AI tools, including OpenAI Codex and ChatGPT. AI has been used for code generation and modification, architecture research, debugging, test development, CI configuration, and documentation.

AI-generated or AI-assisted contributions may contain mistakes, security weaknesses, or unverified assumptions. Passing automated tests or selected Steam Frame hardware checks does not constitute a complete security audit or guarantee functionality. Review the source, validate important behavior independently, and use experimental builds at your own risk.

This disclosure applies to work carried out in this fork; it does not imply that the original upstream CreamLinux project was AI-generated.

Experimental, unofficial fork. Not a complete CreamLinux port for Steam Frame.

This fork extends Novattz/CreamLinux with research and tooling for Valve's Steam Frame, SteamOS (Linux ARM64), and the Lepton Android compatibility environment. The Steam Frame-specific application currently operates as a read-only compatibility inspector. It does not install CreamAPI into Lepton games, enable DLC, replace a game's Steam API, or provide feature parity with the original Linux desktop installer.

Project status (9 October 2026): The Steam Frame test workflow has passed on GitHub Actions. A complete hosted AppImage release build is still being debugged; no public Frame release has been published. Previously built inspector artifacts and function-forwarding experiments have been tested on actual Steam Frame hardware, but those results must not be attributed to future builds without revalidation.

Navigate	Link
Current Steam Frame development source	`test/steam-frame-inspector-security-ci`
Open development review	Draft PR #1
Hosted inspector tests	Latest verified passing test run
AppImage build validation	Release-validation workflow
Original desktop project	Novattz/creamlinux-installer

Which branch contains what?

main (the default branch): original/inherited CreamLinux desktop source, this fork status README, and registration of the non-publishing Steam Frame CI workflows. It is not the complete Steam Frame implementation.
test/steam-frame-inspector-security-ci: the actual Steam Frame inspector, Lepton backend integration, compatibility scanner, ARM64 function-forwarding research, pinned build infrastructure, regression tests, and technical documentation. Use this branch to evaluate or contribute to the Frame work.
Draft PR #1: a development review, not an approved merge or a release. Workflow-registration differences have caused a merge conflict; the branch can still be tested by explicitly dispatching workflows.

What is implemented?

The statuses below describe the Steam Frame development branch, except where explicitly labelled inherited. “Validated” describes the stated test scope, not general compatibility with all games.

Component / capability	Status	Actual scope
Original Linux desktop CreamLinux GUI and Steam/Proton/Epic integrations	Inherited; not revalidated here	Upstream desktop code remains available. Original workflows and supported environments should be checked against upstream documentation.
Steam Frame / Lepton game and package discovery	Implemented and tested	Inspects installed metadata through the Lepton CLI and validates relevant context identity without starting stopped games.
Read-only Steam API compatibility inspector	Implemented and device-tested	Analyzes the installed `libsteam_api.so` and native consumers in base/split APKs. Distinguishes compatible, incompatible, and incomplete results.
Native Steam Frame inspector GUI	Implemented and device-tested	Inspector window, analysis, evidence selection, refresh and close interactions; historical packaged UI validation covered 15/15 checks.
Host-side ARM64 ELF analysis	Implemented and tested	Uses a privately bundled, pinned LLVM 20.1.8 reader on SteamOS; handles supported Android ELF metadata without modifying packages.
Six-game static compatibility evidence	Analyzed	Walkabout Mini Golf, Job Simulator, VRChat, VAIL, Into Black, and Dungeons of Eternity. These are scoped ELF/APK analyses, not evidence of running modified games.
Android ARM64 Steam API function forwarding	Experimental; hardware-validated in isolated tests	Target-specific generator and fail-closed loader. Job Simulator's synthetic/mock test surface covered 1,156/1,156 functions and 11,156 ABI assertions, with controlled zero-call resolution checks. This is not complete Steam API or CreamAPI equivalence.
Generated proxy data/object exports	Not implemented	In particular, Job Simulator's provider exposes 209 non-function symbols outside the current function-only approach.
Frozen ARM64 SDK, pinned toolchains, source/artifact provenance	Implemented	Locked SDK, LLVM/runtime and controller inputs, manifests, integrity checks and non-publishing release tooling.
GitHub-hosted Python, Rust and rendering tests	Passing	Verified test run. Test results do not prove completed release packaging or device behavior for a new artifact.
Full GitHub-hosted ARM64 AppImage assembly	In progress	Compilation/packaging infrastructure is being repaired and measured. Workflow runs show the current status.
Steam Frame installer, live game integration, CreamAPI port, DLC management	Not implemented for Lepton	No supported install/uninstall or activation flow; existing inspector actions remain read-only.
Production signing, public Frame releases and automatic updates	Not available	No production signing key or published Frame artifact. Legacy desktop release actions must not be used as Frame releases.

Important distinction: SteamOS host vs. Lepton Android

The inspector is a Linux ARM64 application on the Steam Frame's SteamOS host. It queries and reads information from games managed by Lepton, which provides an Android environment. It does not mean the Linux CreamLinux desktop application or CreamAPI has been ported to Android/Bionic.

The Android ARM64 proxy generator is a separate compatibility experiment. It forwards supported native functions to the original provider in controlled tests; it neither reproduces arbitrary ELF data-symbol semantics nor establishes reliable gameplay integration or Steam entitlement behavior.

A result such as “Compatible for observed static consumers” is limited to the inspected files and identified symbols. It is not a promise that a game will run with a proxy installed. In the documented captures, Walkabout meets that limited criterion for the fixed proxy; Job Simulator does not.

What is not included / not yet supported?

No full CreamLinux or CreamAPI functionality on Steam Frame. The upstream desktop capabilities must not be confused with Frame compatibility.
No installed-game patching, injection, or replacement of Steam API libraries. Real production Lepton game contexts and their files are not altered by the inspector workflow.
No complete ABI parity. Function forwarding alone does not preserve data-object identity, every linker-visible export, all dynamic lookup behavior, or arbitrary application runtime requirements.
No broad game compatibility guarantee. Six-game static analysis and isolated mock/forwarding validation do not replace live end-to-end game testing.
No consumer-ready Frame installation package or public download. Existing Frame build outputs are validation artifacts, not supported upstream releases.
No claim of a current clean security audit. See the dependency/security review for outstanding advisories and release gates.
No proprietary APKs, game binaries, entitlement material, production signing credentials or private game captures are distributed in this repository.

Roadmap / TODO

This is a working roadmap, not a promised release schedule. Tasks require separate evidence and review before they are marked complete.

A. Stabilize the inspector release

Implement read-only Lepton discovery, analyzer and inspector UI.
Validate the inspector and controlled forwarding experiments on real Steam Frame hardware.
Establish pinned LLVM 20.1.8 tooling and frozen ARM64 build/test inputs.
Obtain a successful hosted Python/Rust/rendering test run.
Finish a successful end-to-end hosted ARM64 AppImage build on the exact test branch revision.
Verify the produced artifact, AppDir inventory, hashes and source provenance.
Repeat the build and demonstrate reproducibility for that exact source/toolchain combination.
Perform an exact-artifact Steam Frame smoke test for the new hosted build.
Resolve the development PR's workflow-registration merge conflict before any considered merge.

B. Feature parity and ARM64 compatibility research

Create a complete upstream CreamLinux/CreamAPI/SmokeAPI/ScreamAPI feature inventory and mark each item implemented, partial, unsupported or unverified on Steam Frame.
Investigate the architectural requirements and feasibility of an ARM64/Bionic CreamAPI port, including compatibility with Lepton and the original Steamworks interfaces.
Resolve required non-function exports, data-symbol identity, versioning, symbol visibility, loading order and Android linker-namespace differences.
Extend target-specific function forwarding beyond isolated fixtures only after demonstrating the exact target ABI and loader behavior.
Build explicit per-game compatibility and evidence reports, including split APKs and runtime-generated consumers.
Define safe, explicit opt-in integration, verification, backup and rollback requirements; do not assume live game modification is supported.
Investigate whether and how upstream desktop features can be adapted to Steam Frame while respecting licensing and platform constraints.

C. User experience and hardware testing

Add a user-friendly launcher/game selector so users do not need to supply an AppID manually.
Improve inspector feedback for missing contexts, incomplete APK scans, incompatible providers and stale evidence.
Validate additional game versions, devices and SteamOS/Lepton updates.
Add regression coverage for any new integration behavior and collect exact-artifact device results.
Design and validate any future installation/rollback UI independently of the read-only inspector.

D. Security, distribution and maintenance

Reassess outstanding project/SDK dependency advisories before public distribution.
Finish non-publishing CI release verification and documented resource/runner requirements.
Audit the complete Frame-specific package contents, permissions and update behavior.
Establish a separately approved signing identity and distribution process if a public inspector release is planned.
Maintain upstream credit, license compliance, technical documentation and release notes.

Try the development branch (developers)

Clone the branch containing the Steam Frame code:

git clone --branch test/steam-frame-inspector-security-ci --single-branch \
  https://github.com/mitch030504/creamlinux-installer.git
cd creamlinux-installer

Do not run the old desktop installation instructions expecting a Lepton-capable CreamAPI installer. Follow the branch's Steam Frame release guide for exact pinned prerequisites and build procedures.

The purpose-built inspector AppImage, when built and deployed onto a compatible Steam Frame host, uses explicit read-only launch modes:

./Creamlinux_1.7.1_steam-frame-inspector_aarch64.AppImage --lepton-release-info
./Creamlinux_1.7.1_steam-frame-inspector_aarch64.AppImage --lepton-inspector 448280
./Creamlinux_1.7.1_steam-frame-inspector_aarch64.AppImage --lepton-compatibility 448280

The filename is an example of the documented local validation artifact, not a download link or a guarantee that this exact binary is published. AppIDs must correspond to games available to the inspector. Argumentless execution of the Frame-specific application deliberately rejects legacy startup.

Technical documentation

The following files live on the development branch:

Document	Subject
Steam Frame release workflow	Build controller, frozen ARM64 SDK, AppImage output, smoke validation and release limitations
CI and security architecture	Non-publishing workflows, pinned inputs, provenance and diagnostic boundaries
Security review	Dependency advisories, mitigations and outstanding release risks
Inspector integration	Native packaged inspector GUI/backend results and limitations
Proxy validation status	Target-specific function coverage, Bionic tests, six-game analysis and gaps
LLVM runtime	ARM64 private LLVM reader, dependencies, native measurements
Android forwarding research	Detailed standalone proxy design, ABI verification and experimental boundaries

Original CreamLinux desktop project

This fork preserves code originating from Novattz/creamlinux-installer. Upstream describes a Linux desktop GUI for managing Steam DLC-related configurations with CreamAPI, SmokeAPI (Proton) and ScreamAPI (Epic/Heroic/Legendary), alongside game discovery and a Tauri/React interface.

See the upstream README for the original desktop installation, Nix, builds, usage and troubleshooting instructions. Those instructions describe the original desktop software, not a finished Lepton/Steam Frame port. This fork does not guarantee that upstream behaviors have been independently tested or adapted to ARM64.

License, attribution and contributions

See LICENSE.md for the repository license and preserve the notices applicable to upstream and included third-party components. Original CreamLinux, the referenced API projects, Tauri and React remain credited to their respective authors.

For Frame-specific bugs or improvements, use this fork's issues and include the branch/commit, SteamOS and Lepton versions, exact CLI mode and a redacted diagnostic report. Never upload proprietary game files, private captures, or credentials.

Valve, Steam, SteamOS, Steam Frame, Lepton and the referenced games belong to their respective owners. This project is an unofficial experiment and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Valve.