v6.1.0-vrr14: Adaptive playout protection and presentation feedback (Beta)

VRR14 updates pacing to preserve the game's frame spacing while adapting delivery-jitter protection using frame readiness and confirmed native presentation hitches. It also fixes synchronized Windows presentation, adds Wayland and Gamescope presentation feedback, and separates incoming host timing from client readiness in the statistics overlay.

What's New

• Game-frame spacing preservation. Production pacing follows relative host frame timestamps without the previous cadence smoother. Adaptive padding absorbs delivery jitter, with a 16 ms padding cap; this is not a cap on total end-to-end latency.
• Evidence-based buffer adaptation. Buffer growth requires matched native presentation errors greater than 3 ms. Buffer release requires readiness headroom and recent smooth native feedback, and learned render-preparation lead is preserved as padding changes.
• Persistent calibration. Timing calibration is saved for matching session and display configurations to carry useful learning across sessions.
• Correct Windows synchronized presentation. Latched presentation requests now reach DXGI with a synchronization interval of one, matching the controller's request and diagnostic fields.
• Wayland and Gamescope presentation feedback. The Linux Vulkan path can use compositor presentation feedback when available, with frame matching and clock conversion. The Flatpak includes Wayland support and the Gamescope WSI workaround; the AppImage retains its X11-oriented packaging.
• Clearer timing statistics. Incoming smoothness (host) measures variation across the latest 30 source-frame intervals. It distinguishes uneven host timing from the separate client-readiness and presentation diagnostics. Stable source frame rates receive the same score, regardless of the requested stream FPS.
• Packaged diagnostics. The Windows portable ZIP includes vrrreplay.exe and decode-vrr-trace.py. GitHub Actions builds the release packages and runs the Windows deterministic VRR tests before packaging them.

VRR14 cannot create frames the host or game did not produce. A genuine game stall, large host capture gap, decode miss, or network interruption remains visible. Native timing feedback and deterministic tests do not establish optical tear-free presentation. If VRR cannot be used safely, Moonlight falls back to normal fixed V-Sync.

Existing users: After updating, open Settings and confirm that V-Sync and Enable VRR are enabled. VRR remains opt-in in this beta. Moonlight automatically uses borderless fullscreen while VRR is active.

Downloads

Steam Deck Installation

1. Switch to Desktop Mode.

2. Download Moonlight-VRR-6.1.0-vrr14-linux-x86_64.flatpak from the assets below.

3. Open Konsole and change to the download folder:

   cd ~/Downloads

4. For a first installation, run:

   flatpak install --user ./Moonlight-VRR-6.1.0-vrr14-linux-x86_64.flatpak

   To update or replace an earlier VRR beta, run:

   flatpak install --user --reinstall ./Moonlight-VRR-6.1.0-vrr14-linux-x86_64.flatpak

5. Open Steam in Desktop Mode and add Moonlight as a non-Steam game. If an older Moonlight shortcut already exists, remove it and add Moonlight again so Steam selects the user-installed VRR14 Flatpak.

6. Return to Gaming Mode and launch Moonlight.

No sudo, Mesa downgrade, Flatpak mask, or compatibility installer script is required.

Other Linux Distributions

Install Flatpak through your distribution if it is not already available, download the .flatpak asset, then run from the directory containing the download:

flatpak install --user ./Moonlight-VRR-6.1.0-vrr14-linux-x86_64.flatpak

To replace an existing Moonlight VRR build:

flatpak install --user --reinstall ./Moonlight-VRR-6.1.0-vrr14-linux-x86_64.flatpak

Launch it from the desktop application menu or with:

flatpak run com.moonlight_stream.Moonlight

This bundle targets 64-bit x86 Linux and uses the same Flatpak application ID as standard Moonlight. If both a system-wide and user installation exist, your desktop shortcut may need to be recreated so it opens the user installation.

Windows Installation

Installer

1. Close Moonlight completely before installing the update.
2. Download MoonlightSetup-x64-6.1.0-vrr14.msi from the assets below.
3. Open the downloaded MSI and follow the installer prompts.
4. If Windows warns that the build is from an unknown publisher, confirm that you downloaded it from this release before continuing. This beta build is intentionally unsigned.
5. Launch Moonlight from the Start menu when installation finishes.

The installer can replace an earlier Moonlight VRR beta; uninstalling the previous beta first is not required.

Portable ZIP

1. Close any running copy of Moonlight.
2. Download MoonlightPortable-x64-6.1.0-vrr14.zip from the assets below.
3. Extract the entire ZIP to a new writable folder. Do not run Moonlight directly from inside the ZIP.
4. Run Moonlight.exe from the extracted folder.

Keep all extracted files together. If replacing an older portable beta, use a fresh folder or replace the complete extracted directory while Moonlight is closed.

AppImage Installation

Download Moonlight-6.1.0-vrr14-x86_64.AppImage, make it executable, and run it:

chmod +x Moonlight-6.1.0-vrr14-x86_64.AppImage
./Moonlight-6.1.0-vrr14-x86_64.AppImage

How to Use VRR

1. Enable V-Sync in Moonlight.
2. Enable Enable VRR.
3. Make sure FreeSync, G-Sync, or Adaptive-Sync is enabled for the display.
4. In Moonlight's frame-rate setting, choose one of the entries marked VRR.
5. For the best result, select a stream frame rate the host can sustain consistently and that remains inside the display's VRR range.

SHA-256 Checksums

d578b1f6d949ee19f8c6576efa28c97c77189665fae8a9b6e4745c06fd1eec25  Moonlight-6.1.0-vrr14-x86_64.AppImage
88ee7ca21f8b5c169f9bae5dea19654395fee905b6308eef04bd4cee4b9463d0  Moonlight-VRR-6.1.0-vrr14-linux-x86_64.flatpak
2828158d5425edc23f46cedf6293714ab32f3e8f50e02078d2d1919ca0cab0ea  MoonlightSetup-x64-6.1.0-vrr14.msi
b19b61fc5cbf1f468ea2bc8227a1a8070d956dd5f776bd43b6fb7c22274a33c5  MoonlightPortable-x64-6.1.0-vrr14.zip

Beta Notice

This remains an experimental beta. When reporting a regression, include:

• the Moonlight session log;
• operating system and GPU;
• display model and refresh rate;
• selected stream resolution and FPS;
• whether VRR, HDR, and hardware decoding were enabled; and
• for Steam Deck, whether the issue occurred in Desktop Mode or Gaming Mode.