Wine has been reimplementing the Windows API as a compatibility layer since 1993, allowing Windows software to run on Linux without emulation overhead. Proton, Valve's gaming-focused stack built on Wine, added DXVK and VKD3D-Proton for Direct3D-to-Vulkan translation, Steam integration, and sensible defaults that made running Windows games on Linux nearly effortless. The piece traces the history from Wine's origins through commercial forks like Cedega and CrossOver, Valve's failed Steam Machines experiment, and the Steam Deck's success. It also covers recent technical advances including NTSYNC (now in Linux kernel 6.14), which implements Windows NT synchronization primitives at the kernel level, and syscall user dispatch, which handles games that bypass Wine's DLL layer entirely.
Table of contents
Wine isn't an emulatorProton is built on Wine, but it isn't WineWhat should you actually use?The long road from 1993 to todayCedega was the early 2000s attempt at ProtonFrom Steam Machines to ProtonThe synchronization problemNTSYNC and the kernel rewriteSyscall user dispatch and the direct syscall problemWine and Proton are equally importantSort: