mirror of
https://github.com/kuhyx/steam-backlog-enforcer.git
synced 2026-11-11 12:07:32 +01:00
Krzysztof kuhy Rudnicki
d54df3a1ad
A total gaming block on 2026-07-04 purged the Steam client (packages and
all data dirs, per total_block_purge_log.json) and it was never
reinstalled. The enforcer kept trying to drive it anyway: every start
called ensure_steam_debug_port() -> _launch_steam_with_debug(), waited
45s for a CDP port no process would ever open, raised, and exited 1 into
Restart=always. That ran to 1050+ restarts.
Each attempt also left a zombie behind: _run_as_user() launches
fire-and-forget via Popen and never reaps, so a launch that dies on exec
lingers as a dead process still named "steam". The focus-mode daemon
scans /proc for process names and read that zombie as a live Steam,
entering GAMING mode and killing the user's browsers every few seconds.
- steam_is_installed(): probe the real /usr/bin/steam. Deliberately not
shutil.which("steam") - a launcher wrapper on $PATH keeps `which`
truthy long after the package is gone, which is precisely how a
deleted Steam went on looking installed.
- SteamUnavailableError (a RuntimeError, so existing handlers still
catch it) raised on both "not installed" and CDP timeout, and caught
at the _enforce_hide_games boundary: no library to hide is not fatal,
the store block and install guard still work.
- Guard _enforce_loop_iteration and game_install._ensure_steam_running,
whose 15s sleep was the source of the observed flapping interval.
- do_enforce falls through to the idle loop rather than returning:
returning exits the process, which under Restart=always is the same
crash loop by another name.
- _reap_spawned() retires exited launches so no zombie named "steam"
outlives them.
Verified live: NRestarts 1050 -> 0, service active/running for 60s+ with
zero errors and zero steam zombies, logging "Steam is not installed -
nothing to enforce."
Also removed the orphaned /usr/local/bin/steam wrapper, a leftover of
the purge that pointed at the deleted binary. Its body was:
#!/bin/sh
exec /usr/bin/steam -cef-disable-gpu -cef-disable-gpu-compositing "$@"
Restore those flags if a Steam reinstall brings back GPU trouble.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_013rN2usTS3pYLJqeVg2ZpgR
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||
|---|---|---|
| .github/workflows | ||
| scripts | ||
| steam_backlog_enforcer | ||
| web | ||
| .gitignore | ||
| .mcp.json | ||
| .pre-commit-config.yaml | ||
| CLAUDE.md | ||
| install.sh | ||
| pyproject.toml | ||
| README.md | ||
| requirements.txt | ||
| run.sh | ||
| steam-backlog-enforcer.service | ||
Steam Backlog Enforcer
Forces you to 100% complete one Steam game at a time before moving on.
Features
- Achievement tracking: Picks the next game by shortest HLTB completionist time
- Store blocking: Blocks
store.steampowered.comvia/etc/hosts - Game uninstalling: Removes all installed games except the assigned one
- Process enforcement: Kills unauthorized game processes
- Tampering detection: Detects achievement unlocks on non-assigned games
- HLTB integration: Estimates completion time with persistent cache
Setup
python -m python_pkg.steam_backlog_enforcer.main setup
Commands
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
scan |
Scan library, fetch HLTB data, assign game |
check |
Check if assigned game is complete |
status |
Show current assignment and blocking |
list |
List incomplete games from snapshot |
skip |
Skip the currently assigned game |
enforce |
Run enforcer (block, uninstall, kill) |
unblock |
Remove store blocking |
reset |
Reset all state |
installed |
List currently installed Steam games |
uninstall |
Interactively uninstall non-assigned games |
setup |
First-time configuration |
Enforce mode
sudo python -m python_pkg.steam_backlog_enforcer.main enforce
This will:
- Block Steam store in
/etc/hosts - Uninstall all games except the assigned one
- Continuously kill any unauthorized game processes
Game Uninstall
Directly removes appmanifest files and game directories from ~/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/.
Preserves Proton versions and Steam Linux Runtime.
python -m python_pkg.steam_backlog_enforcer.main uninstall
MCP server (Claude Code integration)
The enforcer exposes an MCP server (steam_backlog_enforcer._mcp) so Claude Code
and its subagents can query the backlog and drive it through typed tools.
- Read tools:
get_dataset,get_status,get_stats,list_backlog. - Gated write tools:
pick_manual,block_gaming— each defaults to a dry-run preview; passconfirm=trueto actually apply. These write tools must never be added to a permission allowlist (a subagent could otherwise bypass the human confirmation).
The mcp SDK is an optional dependency (pip install -e '.[mcp]'), kept out of
the CLI/systemd system-python path. One-time setup of the dedicated venv that
Claude Code spawns:
./scripts/setup_mcp.sh
Registration lives in the checked-in .mcp.json (project scope).
Restart Claude Code in this repo and approve the project MCP-server prompt for it
to load. Verify with claude mcp list.