New SteamOS To Have non-UEFI, Dual-Boot Support And Other Features

The first SteamOS product that Valve announced was definitely a beta project. It was not properly tested, there were a lot of issues installing it, and limited configuration also made it impossible for a variety of devices to support it. On top of that, it was not dual-boot compatible.

People who wanted to test the operating system had only two complex installation methods, one with the help of CloneZilla, and the other with a Debian Installer. However, both processes erased all data on the drive, which was not a good thing if it was your everyday PC or laptop. Also, a UEFI compatible motherboard was needed to operate properly, something only two or three years old, and also excludes AMD and Intel GPU support. And all of that on top of a 4 GB or more RAM requirement, with over 500 GB hard drive and a x64 Intel and AMD compatible CPU. A lot of work just to try something out, don’t you think?

However, Valve has reportedly released a newer version which highlights some changes to make it easier for people who want to try it out. The key highlighted features consist of adding support for non-UEFI motherboards, DVD install, custom partitions in Expert mode (however NTFS partitions cannot be resized), and a dual-boot option in Expert mode. Still, people who want to try it out should not go heads on and install it without making a backup first. There is still the possibility of the operating system install process to erase all data, and that’s why they also state “…at your own risk” between the lines.

Nonetheless, those of you who have an older laptop or PC and want to try it out, you can head over to the Steam Universe thread and download the latest copy of the SteamOS.

Thank you PC Perspective for providing us with this information