Valve and Collabora build Arm64 Arch port for Steam Frame

Valve and Collabora are developing an Arm64 port of Arch Linux called Holo Core to underpin the Steam Frame VR gaming platform, with the longer-term goal of feeding that work back into upstream Arch. No commercial terms, launch date for an installable image, or full hardware specification were disclosed, but the effort is significant because official Arch Linux currently targets 64-bit x86 rather than Arm.

The work matters beyond one headset because SteamOS 3, Valve’s current Linux gaming operating system, is based on Arch. The Steam Deck and Valve’s forthcoming Steam Machine use AMD processors, while Steam Frame is set to use a 4 nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, according to Valve’s published specifications. That puts Valve’s next SteamOS hardware category on Arm, forcing package, build and compatibility work that the broader Arch ecosystem has not yet absorbed upstream.

Arch has several well-known derivatives, but the core project’s official packages are built for x86-64. Other projects fill some of the gaps. ArchLinux32 targets 32-bit x86 systems, Artix Linux removes systemd, and Arch Linux ARM, often shortened to ALARM, provides an independent Arm port. ALARM supports 61 Arm devices, including Raspberry Pi 2, 3, 4 and Zero 2, but it is a downstream project rather than an official Arch architecture.

The distinction is technical and operational. Arch packages are built from PKGBUILD scripts, and ALARM maintains its own modified versions to produce Arm builds. Valve and Collabora’s longer-term ambition is different: they want Arm64 support in the original PKGBUILD scripts so the same upstream package definitions can build for both x86-64 and Arm64. That would move Arm from a downstream adaptation toward first-class support inside Arch’s main packaging workflow.

Collabora has already published preview binaries, source packages and a development container. There is not yet an installable image. For developers on x86 machines, the most direct way to test the work is through the container with QEMU emulation, according to the material released by Collabora.

The engineering burden is not limited to recompiling a handful of packages. The port requires changes across the build system and continuous integration pipeline, along with rebuilding thousands of packages and dependencies. For Valve, that work is tied to Steam Frame’s role as a headset built for streaming games and media from other devices while also supporting local play.

Valve has also been funding development of FEX, an emulation engine intended to run x86 binaries on Arm. That effort is relevant for Steam Frame because the existing PC game catalog is overwhelmingly x86-oriented, and Arm hardware creates a compatibility problem that cannot be solved by recompiling the operating system alone.

The timing comes as Arch-based systems have become prominent among Linux gamers on Steam. In the June 2026 Steam Survey, Steam OS Holo 64-bit accounted for 22.83 percent of Linux usage, while CachyOS, another Arch variant, stood at 14.03 percent. Together with other Arch variants, Arch-based distributions represented 47.49 percent of Steam’s Linux usage.

Valve’s original SteamOS was based on Debian, but SteamOS 3 was rebuilt around Arch and carried the internal codename Holo. Holo Core extends that lineage into Arm64. If the work lands upstream, Arch would gain official support for a processor architecture it has so far left to independent ports.

This story draws on original reporting from The Register.