Moonshine: Linux-only game streaming host that runs each session headless and isolated

Moonshine is an open-source, Linux-only host for streaming PC games to any device running the Moonlight client, sending keyboard, mouse, and controller input back to the host so remote play feels local. Its distinguishing design choice is isolation: each game runs in its own Wayland compositor separate from your desktop, so the host machine stays usable while you stream and no active desktop session is needed. It also works fully headless — no monitor or HDMI dummy plug — which makes it viable on servers. It leans on systemd for process management and requires a GPU with Vulkan video encoding (NVIDIA RTX, AMD RDNA2+, or Intel Arc).

On the media side it supports GPU-accelerated H.264, H.265, and AV1 encoding, 10-bit HDR, low-latency Opus audio up to 7.1 surround, and full input including gamepad motion, touchpad, and haptics. AV1 is flagged as experimental with a known NVIDIA driver bug that inflates frame sizes over time, so H.264/H.265 are recommended for now. Configuration is a TOML file where each application is defined with launch commands plus optional pre/post hooks, and scanners can auto-detect installed Steam games and desktop apps rather than requiring manual entry.

Compared to Sunshine, the more established cross-platform host, Moonshine trades breadth for that per-session isolation and headless operation. The project is candid about security: the underlying GameStream protocol isn’t fully encrypted at the application layer, so it explicitly warns against exposing ports to the internet and recommends tunneling over a VPN such as Tailscale, WireGuard, or ZeroTier. It builds on prior work from Moonlight, Sunshine, Inputtino, and magic-mirror.