Skip to main content

How to Use the Settings on the Shadow PC Launcher

Updated

Introduction

Shadow PC is designed to work seamlessly out of the box, but adjusting the settings can help you customize your experience and improve performance. The Shadow PC launcher offers various options to optimize video quality, reduce latency, enhance audio, and manage connected devices. This guide walks you through each setting, helping you fine-tune Shadow PC to your needs.

Launcher Settings Overview

General

Settings that impact the Shadow PC launcher and Quick Menu.

Turn off my Shadow when closing the stream

Have Shadow PC and Windows shut down whenever you close the application window.

If this setting is turned off, Windows will automatically shut down after an extended period of time.

Language

This setting changes the Shadow PC launcher language.

Advanced Settings

  • Enable Quick Menu: When enabled, this setting allows you to access the Quick Menu when Shadow PC is started. This setting should be disabled on low-end configurations.
  • Reset settings: Clicking the "Reset" button restores all of the settings in the Shadow PC launcher back to the standard configuration.

Video & Display

Change how Shadow PC starts the stream and control the streaming quality. For help configuring the resolution, use the automatic resolution in the Quick Menu or set a custom resolution.

Streaming window mode at start

Choose whether Shadow should stream in full screen or windowed mode after you click Start.

Advanced Settings

High Efficiency Video Coding (H.265)

A video compression standard designed to deliver higher-quality videos with a reduced file size. Learn more about High Efficiency Video Coding (H.265).

Color Enhancement (4:4:4)

Have Shadow stream more colors using 4:4:4 technology.

Limited frame rate

Allows you to lower the maximum frame rate allowed to stream.

This setting can be helpful on low-end configurations, but it may not solve issues caused by slow or unstable internet connections. You can choose from unlimited, 60, or 50 frames per second.

Audio

The audio quality set to "Regular" by default, but you can change this setting to "High" for lossless sound quality. Learn more about the audio quality setting.

Controllers & USB

Connect your game controllers and USB devices to Shadow PC.

Controllers

Lists the controllers Shadow PC has detected. Also includes an option to enable "Gamepad as mouse". Learn more about connecting a controller.

Use my USB devices on my Shadow

Install or uninstall drivers to use USB devices on Shadow PC as if they were physically connected. Installing drivers helps Shadow PC support more functions with USB forwarding.

Uninstall and reinstall the drivers if your USB devices are malfunctioning or missing on Shadow PC.

đź“ť USB forwarding is possible only after the drivers have been installed.

Network

Adjust network settings. These settings can directly affect latency.

Bitrate

Your bit rate is the maximum amount of data that can be transferred using your internet connection. Learn how the bit rate impacts latency.

Advanced Settings

  • Streaming preferences: Switch between UDP and TCP streaming protocols.
  • Launch Shadow on IPv4 connection​:  Force Shadow PC use IPv4. (If your home internet uses an IPv4 address, use this setting.)
    • This feature is turned off each time you launch Shadow PC.

Related articles