RacePulse can show its widgets, such as Relative, Standings, inputs, and fuel, inside your VR headset while you race in iRacing, Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, or Le Mans Ultimate. VR widgets are experimental, free, and off by default, so nothing VR loads until you turn them on. They need RacePulse 0.4.1 or later.

We recommend running your sim through SteamVR. RacePulse adds its own tab to the SteamVR dashboard, so you can show, move, resize, and set up widgets with your controller without taking the headset off. It works with any headset SteamVR supports.

What you need

RacePulse 0.4.1 or later
SteamVR, installed through Steam
A headset SteamVR supports. A Meta Quest connects through Quest Link (cable), Air Link, or Steam Link.
A sim with a VR mode: iRacing, Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, or Le Mans Ultimate

Recommended SteamVR settings

Where	Setting	Recommended	Why
RacePulse › VR widgets › Overview	Show widgets in VR	On	Turns VR widgets on.
RacePulse › VR widgets › Headset	SteamVR overlays	On	How your widgets reach the headset through SteamVR.
RacePulse › VR widgets › Headset	Native OpenXR games	Off	Only needed for games that run outside SteamVR. With it off, RacePulse loads nothing into your games.
SteamVR › Settings › OpenXR	Current OpenXR runtime	SteamVR	Games that use OpenXR then run through SteamVR too, so RacePulse’s dashboard tab works in them.
Your sim	VR mode	SteamVR / OpenVR, or OpenXR with SteamVR as the runtime	Keeps the game in SteamVR.
Each VR widget › Customize	Frame Rate	30 FPS for timing widgets, 60 FPS for Inputs Telemetry	Relative, Standings, Fuel, and Lap Log don’t need more than 30, and a lower rate leaves more of your PC for the game.

Set up VR widgets

In RacePulse, open VR widgets in the side menu and turn on Show widgets in VR.
The Get set up guide on the Overview takes you through three steps. For the first, choose Use my desktop widgets to bring the widgets you use on your monitor, each with a copy of its settings, or Choose widgets to pick others.
On the Headset tab, check that SteamVR overlays is on, and turn Native OpenXR games off.
In SteamVR’s Settings, open OpenXR, and if SteamVR isn’t the current runtime, choose Set SteamVR as OpenXR Runtime. If you don’t see OpenXR, turn on Advanced Settings first.
Put on your headset, connect it, and start SteamVR. The Overview’s second step shows Connected through SteamVR with your headset’s name. Your desktop widgets hide while you’re in VR, and come back when you leave.
Start your sim in its SteamVR mode and get on track. Your widgets show live data in the headset.

Place widgets from inside the headset

Open the SteamVR dashboard and choose the RacePulse tab. Every widget gets a frame while the tab is open, and the selected one is amber. Use the tabs on the left with your controller’s laser:

Widgets: show, hide, or remove a widget, open its settings, or add one.
Layouts: switch to another VR layout, duplicate one, or start a new one.
Place: move the selected widget, change its distance, size, turn, and tilt. Click a button for one small step, or hold it to keep moving. Small/Big steps changes the step size, and Recenter on my view brings every widget in front of you.
Settings: the selected widget’s own settings.
Headset: the connection, the frames, Recenter, and Reset to the seated origin.

You can also use the keyboard, which works outside the dashboard too:

Keys	What they do
Ctrl+Alt+Home	Start or end editing
Ctrl+Alt+End	Recenter the widgets on your view
Ctrl+Alt+Page Down	Switch to the next VR layout
Tab (while editing)	Select the next widget
Arrow keys (while editing)	Move it; Page Up / Page Down change its distance
= and - (while editing)	Make it bigger or smaller
Ctrl+arrow keys (while editing)	Turn and tilt it
Shift (while editing)	Makes every step five times larger
Enter or Escape	Finish editing

Recentering moves only your RacePulse widgets, never the game’s view.

VR layouts and settings

VR has its own layouts, kept apart from your desktop layouts. Manage them on the Layouts tab of the VR widgets page, or in the headset.
VR starts with the layout you selected last.
Each VR widget has its own settings. Changing a VR widget’s settings on the Widgets tab, or in the headset, leaves the desktop widget as it is.
Everything on the VR widgets page works with VR off, so you can set things up before you put the headset on.

Without SteamVR (OpenXR games)

RacePulse can also draw its widgets inside Direct3D 11 games running on another OpenXR runtime, such as Meta’s own runtime with Quest Link. Turn Native OpenXR games on, and set the game’s VR mode to OpenXR. This route has no dashboard tab, so you place widgets with the keyboard shortcuts, and a bar under your view shows the selected widget while you edit. We recommend SteamVR whenever your game supports it.

Games in the old Oculus mode aren’t supported. Switch them to OpenXR or SteamVR in the game’s VR settings.

Troubleshooting

No widgets in the headset: check the Overview. The status should say you’re in VR, and the second step should show Connected through SteamVR. Widgets follow Only show with telemetry: they stay hidden until your sim sends telemetry, unless you’re editing them or that setting is off.
My desktop widgets disappeared: that’s expected while you’re in VR. They come back about 10 seconds after you leave.
A shortcut doesn’t work: another app may be using it. The VR widgets page names any shortcut that’s taken, and RacePulse picks it up as soon as that app lets it go.
Widgets are in the wrong place: press Ctrl+Alt+End to recenter them on your view, or use Reset to the seated origin on the Headset tab.

Turning VR off

Turn off Show widgets in VR on the VR widgets page. That also removes RacePulse’s VR layer from your games. Your VR layouts stay saved for next time.

Removing RacePulse? Turn off Show widgets in VR first, then follow the Uninstall page.

If something looks wrong in your headset, please open an issue on GitHub with your headset, the sim, and what you saw.