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Suggestion: remove gamemode from Workstation #526

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opened 2026-09-08 13:21:54 +00:00 by hasshu · 6 comments
hasshu commented 2026-09-08 13:21:54 +00:00
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Preinstalling the gamemode package was suggested in #88; the situation may have been different 7 years ago, but I don't see much point in shipping this software in this day and age:

  1. Going by comments online, it's mostly useless nowadays. Those who may need it for some reason, can always install it manually. Speaking of which...

  2. Since it has no GUI out of the box, one needs to be aware of it, and tinker with it manually, so it's not exactly for the "average" user. If a <1MiB UX bonus is the goal here, I'd suggest preinstalling gnome-shell-extension-appindicator instead.

  3. The steam package from RPM Fusion already recommends gamemode, whereas Fedora's own Wine packages appear to be unmaintained anyway.

  4. At the end of the day, extra software means extra attack surface.

  5. For bonus points: some of its developers seem to have no idea what they're doing.

Preinstalling the `gamemode` package was suggested in #88; the situation may have been different 7 years ago, but I don't see much point in shipping this software in this day and age: 1. Going by comments online, it's mostly useless nowadays. Those who may need it for some reason, can always install it manually. Speaking of which... 2. Since it has no GUI out of the box, one needs to be aware of it, and tinker with it manually, so it's not exactly for the "average" user. If a <1MiB UX bonus is the goal here, I'd suggest preinstalling `gnome-shell-extension-appindicator` instead. 3. The `steam` package from RPM Fusion already recommends `gamemode`, whereas Fedora's own Wine packages appear to be unmaintained anyway. 4. At the end of the day, extra software means extra attack surface. 5. For bonus points: some of its developers seem to have [no idea what they're doing](https://github.com/FeralInteractive/gamemode/issues/214).
asciiwolf commented 2026-09-08 13:28:49 +00:00
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ad 1. Forcing end-users to install things used by GUI apps/games manually using a terminal is not right.

ad 2. It's afaik used by GUI apps such as Steam out-of-box.

ad 3. Don't forget Flatpak Steam and other apps that use gamemode.

ad 1. Forcing end-users to install things used by GUI apps/games manually using a terminal is not right. ad 2. It's afaik used by GUI apps such as Steam out-of-box. ad 3. Don't forget Flatpak Steam and other apps that use gamemode.
hasshu commented 2026-09-08 13:40:53 +00:00
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ad 1. Forcing end-users to install things used by GUI apps/games manually using a terminal is not right.

ad 2. It's afaik used by GUI apps such as Steam out-of-box.

@asciiwolf As I've already mentioned, the RPM Fusion steam package attempts to install gamemode by default. Also...

For games/launchers which integrate GameMode support, simply running the game will automatically activate GameMode.

For others, you must manually request GameMode when running the game. This can be done by launching the game through gamemoderun

Further reading: https://github.com/FeralInteractive/gamemode#requesting-gamemode

ad 3. Don't forget Flatpak Steam and other apps that use gamemode.

AFAIK, the Flatpak version of Steam can't use the RPM gamemode at all, and bundles its own.

> ad 1. Forcing end-users to install things used by GUI apps/games manually using a terminal is not right. > ad 2. It's afaik used by GUI apps such as Steam out-of-box. @asciiwolf As I've already mentioned, the RPM Fusion `steam` package attempts to install `gamemode` by default. Also... > For games/launchers which integrate GameMode support, simply running the game will automatically activate GameMode. > > For others, you must manually request GameMode when running the game. This can be done by launching the game through gamemoderun Further reading: https://github.com/FeralInteractive/gamemode#requesting-gamemode > ad 3. Don't forget Flatpak Steam and other apps that use gamemode. AFAIK, the Flatpak version of Steam can't use the RPM `gamemode` at all, and bundles its own.
asciiwolf commented 2026-09-08 13:52:29 +00:00
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AFAIK, the Flatpak version of Steam can't use the RPM gamemode at all, and bundles its own.

Are you sure? gamemode is not just a set of libraries, but also a system daemon.

> AFAIK, the Flatpak version of Steam can't use the RPM gamemode at all, and bundles its own. Are you sure? gamemode is not just a set of libraries, but also a system daemon.
hasshu commented 2026-09-08 14:11:56 +00:00
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Looks like they used to bundle it, but nowadays it's part of the runtime? I don't do code, so I can't make head or tail of that.

See also https://flatpak.github.io/xdg-desktop-portal/docs/doc-org.freedesktop.portal.GameMode.html

Looks like they [used to bundle it](https://github.com/flathub/com.valvesoftware.Steam/commit/15e34bdd7ef9c024a723e67b228e284ac82d3777), but nowadays it's [part of the runtime](https://freedesktop-sdk.gitlab.io/documentation/reference/api-reference/fdsdk/elements/components/gamemode-daemon.html)? I don't do code, so I can't make head or tail of that. See also https://flatpak.github.io/xdg-desktop-portal/docs/doc-org.freedesktop.portal.GameMode.html
asciiwolf commented 2026-09-08 14:30:37 +00:00
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Yes, the XDG portal afaik requires a system-wide gamemode daemon.

Yes, the XDG portal afaik requires a system-wide gamemode daemon.
aday commented 2026-09-16 08:17:39 +00:00
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The working group discussed this ticket yesterday. The conclusion was that, since we aren't aware of specific issues with gamemode, we're not inclined to remove it.

However, if someone were to provide data on gamemode not performing well, or there being issues with it, we'd be happy to reconsider. Likewise if someone were to propose replacing gamemode with functionality in tuned, that's something we'd be interested in.

I'll close this issue for now; we can always reopen if new evidence comes to light.

The working group discussed this ticket yesterday. The conclusion was that, since we aren't aware of specific issues with gamemode, we're not inclined to remove it. However, if someone were to provide data on gamemode not performing well, or there being issues with it, we'd be happy to reconsider. Likewise if someone were to propose replacing gamemode with functionality in tuned, that's something we'd be interested in. I'll close this issue for now; we can always reopen if new evidence comes to light.
aday 2026-09-16 08:17:39 +00:00
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