Steam’s game files are located in /Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/ by default. This is the folder we’ll want to move to our new drive. Note, you can get to the Library folder by clicking on the Go menu while holding the “Option” key. Also, do not move the entire Steam folder–just move the SteamApps folder. Small tool to add additional library folders to Steam. The primary use of this tool is to easily add library folders on drives that already have library folders on them. Steam restricts this for some reason. Dependencies: Python 3.9.5; Pyinstaller 4.3; To release: $ py -3.9 release.py. External code used: vdf 3.4. 🔽Follow me on Twitch: (I stream 9am-1pm Eastern Standard Time) So, make a new empty folder on your other drive. Create the new library folder and then, in the top left corner of the Steam client, click 'Steam' 'Settings' 'Downloads' tab 'Steam Library Folders' button. Add any and all Steam libraries across all your hard drives (i.e. C: Program Files Steam, D: Steam ). If you move games across you may be prompted to re-verify the files next time.
Suppose you have a lot of Steam games, but not a lot of local disk space. Maybeyou're using a laptop for some light gaming and don't want to sacrifice severalhundred gigabytes of your local storage. Maybe you have a couple computers anddon't want to reinstall several games on each if you'll be playing at home.
At the same time, you have a home NAS (network attached storage) device of somekind, with plenty of space. Can you use your NAS to store Steam games? Yes!
You can choose network location for Steam downloads if it's been mapped as anetwork drive. With a couple more steps, everything will work.
- Map your NAS as a network drive
- Add the mapped drive as a download location in Steam
- Install your games normally
- Map your NAS as a network drive again as administrator
- Play your games
Steam Library Folders Searching
You need the network location to have a local disk label (C:, D:, Y:, Z:). Youcan do this from the File Explorer -> This PC -> Computer ->Map network drive.
Follow the prompts, and select 'Reconnect on sign in'.
Steam Library Folder Missing
From the main menu, select Steam -> Settings -> Downloads.
From here, select Steam Library Folders.
From this menu, select Add Library Folder. The top drop down will let youselect other drive labels. Flc file type. Add the label that you mapped your NAS to, and makeit the default download location by right clicking it in the folders list.
The easy part! If you don't have a game installed, select Install from theLibrary view in Steam. If the game is already installed on the local disk andyou'd like to move it to the NAS, right click on the game in the list in theLibrary view. From here, Local Files -> Move Install Folder.
Steam will move the game content to the new location and reverify theinstallation.
If you've tried to start a newly installed game on your NAS before this point,it may have failed. Some games requires Administrator priviledges to installadditional game components like DirectX. Internally, network drives are mappedon a per user basis. This means that when you elevate Steam to administrator toinstall something else on the system, it can no longer see the game files.
This typically looks like the game failing to start, without any errors. To fixthis, we need to also map the network drive as administrator. We can do thiswith an Administrator Powershell. Hit the Windows key, type Powershell,right click Run as Administrator. You'll only have to do this for the firsttime a game runs, and when it requires additional components.
The command to run has this structure:
Where the drive label you choose is the same as what you chose earlier in thefile explorer.
For example:
If this succeeds, you should be able to access the drive label you used fromthis Administrator Powershell session.
With that, you're ready to play your games!
Additionally, if you have other computers with access to the NAS with Steaminstalled, you can add the same location as a library there, and all the gameswill show up as installed too - no download required.
Steam Library Folders
We're seeing even more leaks out of a recent Steam Beta update from Valve that not only hinted at the SteamPal console, and the new Downloads page but also a big overhaul to the Library manager.
If you only have one storage drive, you've probably never used it or even looked at it. In the Steam Client, you can set where you want Steam to install downloads into, with it being pretty darn archaic right now and not so useful. I give you Exhibit A:
Thanks once again to Pavel Djundik of SteamDB for pointing out the new leak on Twitter, we know that Valve are testing a complete overhaul to bring it in line with their modern styling. Note: you need to opt into the Steam Beta.
It's currently a little on the broken side but you can easily see where they're going with this:
To enable it you need to open then Steam console by going to 'steam://open/console', and then enter 'bEnableNewContentManagement 1' to enable the feature (and 0 to turn it back off). To find the Download folders you go into Steam Settings -> Downloads -> Steam Library Folders.
Once the styling on it is cleaned up, it looks to be far more useful giving you more data about each storage folder at a glance and yup - even a bit more console like I would say. Would fit in more on a SteamPal don't you think? Desktop too of course, it actually seems quite useful to get a proper breakdown like that.
What do you think?