Games have grown in size in recent years, consuming a sizable portion of your hard drive. As a result, Steam has decided to give its users the option of moving certain games to another drive. This eliminates the need to re-download a large number of gigabytes just to move a few game files. However, many players may be unfamiliar with this feature. That’s why we’ve created a simple guide that will show you how to transfer your Steam games to another drive.
Because Steam supports multiple library folders, you can choose where your games are installed after downloading them. Furthermore, once the download is complete, the company now allows its users to move those games. Until recently, this process was extremely complicated, but the story has changed dramatically.
How to Transfer a Steam Game to a Different Drive/Partition Making Use of Steam
Moving a steam game to another internal or external drive is a simple process, but the amount of time it takes depends on the drive’s speed and the size of the game. This operation creates a new folder in the partition or storage drive you specify.
When using an external drive on multiple computers, the operating system should be the same on each device because each OS requires different Steam coding, plugins, and data to function. When you plug the drive into Ubuntu, it will overwrite Windows files in order for it to function in Linux. The same is true in the opposite direction.
Here’s how to transfer Steam games to a different driver.
- To begin, create a library folder for the game on your secondary drive or partition. To do so, go to the Steam tab and select Settings.
- Select Downloads, then STEAM LIBRARY FOLDERS.
- Click the icon at the top, next to the other drives listed.
- Select something from the dropdown menu. Select a drive to which to add a library (the root) or Let me choose another location to specify a drive and folder.
- Now, click Add to bring up the traditional Steam Library location popup window.
- Choose the desired drive and folder (if necessary), then click the New Folder option.
- Give the folder whatever name you want and click OK.
- Click the Select button to select the newly created folder, which should be highlighted. Close the window now that the folder has appeared in Steam’s list of library folders.
- In the library, right-click your game and select Properties.
- Choose LOCAL FILES on the left, then Move install folder… on the right.
- Select the library in which you want the game to be saved (your new drive/partition folder) and then click MOVE FOLDER.
- The game is now located in its new location. Simply repeat the process to transfer other games. In addition, when installing future games, Steam will allow you to specify where you want them to be installed.
How to Transfer Multiple Steam Games to a Different Drive at the Same Time
Use the following steps to move all of your Steam games or a subset of them to a different drive:
- Select Settings from the Steam tab.
- Select Downloads, then STEAM LIBRARY FOLDERS.
- Click the icon at the top, next to the other drives listed.
- Select something from the dropdown menu. Select a drive to which you want to add a library. Allow me to select a different location to specify a drive and folder.
- Now, click Add to bring up the traditional Steam Library location popup window.
- Choose the desired drive and folder (if necessary), then click the New Folder option.
- Give the folder whatever name you want and click OK.
- Click the Select button to select the newly created folder, which should be highlighted. Close the window now that the folder has appeared in Steam’s list of library folders.
- Return to the Steam Storage Manager window and check the boxes next to the games you want to move. To view all available games, click on each drive at the top.
- To move the selected games, click Move at the bottom, then select your drive from the list.
- Your chosen collection of games should now be visible in the new drive location.
How to Use Windows File Explorer to Transfer All Steam Games
- If your Steam app is open, close it. Closing does not exit Steam, so from the top navigational menu, select Steam -> Exit.
- Check the Windows System Tray to ensure the app is completely closed.
- Using File Explorer, navigate to the Steam folder.
- Navigate to Steam -> steamapps to find the game installation folder.
- Copy and paste the steamapps folder into your new drive. You can put it in any folder you want.
- Start Steam and navigate to Steam -> Settings.
- Choose Downloads, then STEAM LIBRARY FOLDERS.
- Click the icon at the top, next to the other drives listed.
- To specify your new drive and folder, select Let me choose another location from the dropdown list.
- Now, click Add to bring up the traditional Steam Library location popup window.
- Click Select after selecting the desired drive and folder (steamapps).
- Close the window now that the folder has appeared in Steam’s list of library folders.
- Verify that the games appear in the new location by going to LIBRARY.
How to Change the Location of Your Steam Library
You can also relocate your Steam library here:
- Launch Steam and navigate to Steam -> Settings.
- On the left, select Downloads.
- On the right, select STEAM LIBRARY FOLDERS.
- Click the icon at the top, next to the other drives listed.
- To add a new game location, select a drive from the dropdown list.
- You can now save your games in a variety of locations.
- To make a drive the default library location for your games, go back to Storage Manager, select a drive at the top, right-click on the horizontal ellipsis (three horizontal dots), and select Make Default.
FAQs about Steam Game Locations
Why Do You Transfer Steam Games to a Different Drive?
Users typically choose to relocate their Steam games to a different drive for two reasons. The first reason is that there is no more free space on the drive that contains the installed Steam games.
Your steam games will be installed into the C drive by default, but your programs and games can quickly consume all of its space. Your partition bar will eventually turn red, or the drive will be completely full. Steam users can avoid this scenario by moving their Steam games to a partition with more free space.
Another reason is that gamers want to move their games to a solid-state drive (SSD) in order to reduce load times. This is due to the fact that SSDs have much faster transfer speeds than hard disk drives (HDDs). As a result, games that have been moved to an SSD will load much faster.
How Do I Transfer My Current Steam Installation?
This is how you can transfer your existing Steam installation to a new hard drive:
• Close the app and log out of your Steam account.
• Navigate to the folder containing your Steam installation. It should be in the Program Files folder on your C drive.
• Delete all of the folders and files except the Steam.exe File and SteamApps Userdata folders.
• Copy the Steam folder and paste it somewhere else. You could, for example, save it somewhere on your D drive. Future games you download will be saved in your new folder.
• Launch Steam, enter your login credentials, and wait for the program to finish updating. Following that, you must ensure the integrity of your files.
• To do so, restart your computer and launch Steam.
• Select Manage, then Properties.
• Select Local Files and then click OK. Check the integrity of the game files…
How Do You Transfer Steam Save Files?
It’s a good idea to transfer the saved files when moving a game to a new location.
• Locate the game’s folder in Steam’s library by right-clicking on the title.
• Select Properties and then Local Files.
• Select Browse Local Files to navigate to the game’s files. Open it up.
• Copy the files from the storage folder and paste them to another drive.
• Delete everything in your previous storage folder.
• Run the game from the new drive, and your current progress should be loaded from the saved files.
How Do I Move My Entire Steam Folder to a Different Drive?
Moving your entire Steam folder works in the same way that moving your Steam installation does:
• Log out of your account and close the app.
• Navigate to Steam’s current installation folder in Program Files.
• Remove all files and folders except the Userdata and SteamApps folders, as well as the Steam.exe file.
• Copy the Steam folder and move it to the new location.
• Launch the client and enter your account information. Wait for the updates to complete before checking the integrity of your files.
Enhance Your Gaming Experience
Steam games can be moved to a different drive in a few simple steps. The majority of them boil down to creating an additional library and relocating your games. So, whether you need to free up some space or play games at higher settings, you now know how to do both.
Have you tried transferring a Steam game to a different drive? Did you run into any problems along the way? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.