Proton

Short description: Linux compatibility layer for Windows games

ProtonDeveloper(s)| Valve
CodeWeavers

|

Initial release| August 21, 2018; 5 years ago (2018-08-21)
Repository| github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton
Operating system| Linux
Available in| English
Type| Compatibility layer
License|

* General: 3-clause BSD
* Wine: LGPLv2.1+
* DXVK (and D9VK in older versions): zlib
* Steam API library: Proprietary

Proton is a compatibility layer for Windows games to run on Linux-based operating systems.[1] Proton is developed by Valve in cooperation with developers from CodeWeavers.[2] It is a collection of software and libraries combined with a patched version of Wine to improve performance and compatibility with Windows games. Proton is designed for integration into the Steam client as "Steam Play".[3] It is officially distributed through the client, although third party forks can be manually installed.

## Contents

* 1 Overview
* 2 Compatibility
* 2.1 ProtonDB
* 3 Release history
* 4 See also
* 5 References
* 6 External links

## Overview

Proton was initially released on 21 August 2018.[4] Upon release, Valve announced a list of 27 games that were tested and certified to perform like their native Windows counterparts without requiring end-user tweaking. These include Doom (2016), Quake, and Final Fantasy VI.[5][6][7][8]

Proton incorporates several libraries that improve 3D performance. These include Direct3D-to-Vulkan translation layers, namely DXVK for Direct3D 9, 10 and 11, and VKD3D-Proton for Direct3D 12. A separate library known as D9VK handled Direct3D 9 support until it was merged into DXVK in December 2019.[9]

## Compatibility

Being a fork of Wine, Proton maintains very similar compatibility with Windows applications as its upstream counterpart. In addition to the official list of compatible games, many other Windows games are compatible,[10] albeit unofficially, with Proton. The user can optionally force use of Proton for a specific title, even if a Linux version already exists.[11] This may be done when a game's official Linux support is lacking or possibly not stable.

### ProtonDB

ProtonDB is an unofficial community website that collects and displays crowdsourced data describing the compatibility of a given title with Proton, on a rating scale from "Borked" to "Platinum".[12][13][14] The site is inspired by the WineHQ AppDB, which also collects and displays crowdsourced compatibility reports and uses a similar rating system.

## Release history

Valve has released eight major versions of Proton. The versioning scheme refers to the upstream Wine version it's based on, with an appended patch number.[15]

Proton generally lags behind its upstream Wine base by several releases. Unofficial forks, such as Proton GE,[16] have been created to re-base Proton on recent Wine versions, which may improve compatibility with games over the official release, and sometimes hurt it.[17]

In December 2020, Valve released Proton Experimental, a perpetual beta branch of Proton that incorporates new features and bug fixes quicker than regular releases,[18] which are eventually included in a regular release.[19]

The Steam Deck uses Proton to increase software title compatibility.[20]

## See also

* SteamOS
* Steam Deck

## References

1. ↑ ValveSoftware/Proton, Valve Software, 2022-03-03, https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton, retrieved 2022-03-03
2. ↑ "CODEWEAVERS' PROTON SOFTWARE SAUCE POWERS STEAM DECK | CodeWeavers Press Releases" (in en). https://www.codeweavers.com/about/news/press/20220225.
3. ↑ "Steam :: Steam for Linux :: Introducing a new version of Steam Play" (in en). 2018-08-21. https://store.steampowered.com/news/group/4178173/view/.
4. ↑ Dawe, Liam. "Valve officially confirm a new version of 'Steam Play' which includes a modified version of Wine". https://www.gamingonlinux.com/articles/valve-officially-confirm-a-new-version-of-steam-play-which-includes-a-modified-version-of-wine.12400.
5. ↑ "Steam for Linux :: Introducing a new version of Steam Play" (in en). 2018-08-21. https://steamcommunity.com/games/221410/announcements/detail/1696055855739350561.
6. ↑ Evangelho, Jason. "Valve Changes Everything: Windows-Exclusive Games Now Run On Steam For Linux" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonevangelho/2018/08/22/valve-changes-everything-windows-exclusive-games-now-run-on-steam-for-linux/.
7. ↑ "Steam adds Proton, making Windows games playable on Linux (at least in theory)" (in en). 2018-08-21. https://www.pcworld.com/article/3299641/steam-adds-proton-making-windows-games-playable-on-linux.html.
8. ↑ "Valve officially confirm a new version of 'Steam Play' which includes a modified version of Wine". https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2018/08/valve-officially-confirm-a-new-version-of-steam-play-which-includes-a-modified-version-of-wine.
9. ↑ "doitsujin/dxvk" (in en). https://github.com/doitsujin/dxvk.
10. ↑ "A look over the ProtonDB reports for June 2019, over 5.5K games reported to work with Steam Play" (in en). https://www.gamingonlinux.com/articles/a-look-over-the-protondb-reports-for-june-2019-over-55k-games-reported-to-work-with-steam-play.14480.
11. ↑ "Steam Community :: Group :: Steam Client Beta" (in en). https://steamcommunity.com/groups/SteamClientBeta/announcements/detail/1703951108827819236.
12. ↑ Evangelho, Jason. "Linux Gaming Tip: Don't Buy That Game On Steam Without Using This Tool" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonevangelho/2019/03/26/linux-tip-windows-game-on-steam-proton/.
13. ↑ "Steam Proton has opened the gaming floodgates for Linux users" (in en-US). 2020-04-22. https://www.slashgear.com/steam-proton-has-opened-the-gaming-floodgates-for-linux-users-22617714/.
14. ↑ "A look at how Steam Play is doing, based on the ProtonDB reports from July" (in en). https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2019/08/a-look-at-how-steam-play-is-doing-based-on-the-protondb-reports-from-july.
15. ↑ "ValveSoftware/Proton" (in en). https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton.
16. ↑ "Want a more up to date Proton for Steam Play? Proton GE has a big new release out" (in en). https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2019/09/want-a-more-up-to-date-proton-for-steam-play-proton-ge-has-a-big-new-release-out.
17. ↑ "Releases · GloriousEggroll/proton-ge-custom" (in en). https://github.com/GloriousEggroll/proton-ge-custom/releases.
18. ↑ "Valve continues tweaking the new 'Proton Experimental' for Cyberpunk 2077" (in en). https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2020/12/valve-continues-tweaking-the-new-proton-experimental-for-cyberpunk-2077.
19. ↑ "Proton 5.13-5 is now up bringing in some of the experimental changes" (in en). https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2021/01/proton-513-5-is-now-up-bringing-in-some-of-the-experimental-changes.
20. ↑ Duckett, Chris (July 16, 2021). "Steam Deck is an AMD-powered handheld PC from Valve that runs KDE on Arch Linux". https://www.zdnet.com/article/steam-deck-is-an-amd-powered-handheld-pc-from-valve-that-runs-kde-on-arch-linux/.

## External links

* ProtonDB – community database for game compatibility data

* v
* t
* e

Unix–Windows interoperability

Unix-like subsystems|

* Cygwin
* Windows Services for UNIX (Interix, Microsoft POSIX subsystem)
* Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL 1)

Development environments and shells|

* MinGW
* DJGPP
* Hamilton C shell
* MKS Toolkit
* UWIN

Ports of Unix-like utilities for Windows|

* GnuWin32
* UnxUtils

Windows runtime environments for *nix|

* Cedega
* CrossOver
* Darwine
* Valve Proton
* Wine

Platform virtualization software|

* andLinux
* Cooperative Linux
* Merge
* TopologiLinux
* Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL 2)

Related|

* Captive NTFS
* NDISwrapper
* Windows Interface Source Environment

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