How to move your Steam game install folder to a new HDD

[KT 💣 KλBoƠM]

How to move your Steam game install folder to a new HDD

https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=7418-YUBN-8129

See Sceenshots attached for up to date steps.

If you need to update it will not work until you update.

[Sandman[SA]]

I don't have that feature. 

[KT 💣 KλBoƠM]

I don't have that feature.

I actually found one of my games doesn't have the option to even look at that option

[Sandman[SA]]

I've been trying to tell you that steams file management system is bugged.  Has been for some time.  And is something they won't even look into.  Let alone, fix.  I've reported this bug maybe 7 times over the years.

[One Eyed Wonderweasle]

 don't know if you noticed the reference to external game in the path that means it is not natively a steam game installation. either it was a non steam game or a game you installed from a no steam source. not really a surprise that backing it up thru steam might not work.

[KT 💣 KλBoƠM]

don't know if you noticed the reference to external game in the path that means it is not natively a steam game installation. either it was a non steam game or a game you installed from a no steam source. not really a surprise that backing it up thru steam might not work.

AH yes! True dat!  But still, I don't understand Sandman's L4D 2 as it is a Steam game.

[Sandman[SA]]

Fact is, I've never installed steam games to my C:/ drive.  This happened a while back during a major steam update when a few games got switched over to the main drive.  I've never been able to move them back.  Even after re-installing steam twice.

[KT 💣 KλBoƠM]

Fact is, I've never installed steam games to my C:/ drive.  This happened a while back during a major steam update when a few games got switched over to the main drive.  I've never been able to move them back.  Even after re-installing steam twice.

It seems to be specific games. I have games I cannot move to my new 4Tb HDD (D) but can move to H. Odd... Also I found 2 games that I have (APB Reloaded & Elder Scrolls Online) with the same issue as you have and that one I just installed (on C , the SSD) last month. I cannot move it to any other drive. The option is not there. Same situation as you have! See? Yet L4D2 I can move.

[Sandman[SA]]

As I've been trying to tell you all along.  Steam file system is broken and they refuse to fix it.

[One Eyed Wonderweasle]

 I used this tutorial when I got a 2 tb external SSD (Samsung T5) it worked for me, moved over 600gb of games.

[Rabid Zucchini]

Guess I did it wrong when I just copy-pasted the steam folder, lol. I did re-install Steam in the new folder so that Steam would see the new drive as home.
It has worked fine so far though!

[Sandman[SA]]

I know I have been doing it wrong.  But I have only installed steam on my system just once.  Every time I have done a major update on my systems, I've just copied over the entire steam directory.  Create a new desktop shortcut to steam.exe and launch the steam launcher like that.  The whole thing rebuilds the database in just a few minutes.  But It's also created an issue where a couple of games are hard locked to another drive letter and I'm not able to change it.

[KT 💣 KλBoƠM]

Guess I did it wrong when I just copy-pasted the steam folder, lol. I did re-install Steam in the new folder so that Steam would see the new drive as home.
It has worked fine so far though!

Haha ya don't just copy paste the steam folder lol

[Sandman[SA]]

Haha ya don't just copy paste the steam folder lol

Well, some of us has a fair number of modded game installs and don't want to have to download all that stuff again.

[One Eyed Wonderweasle]

 I followed the guy's instructions and it went off without a hitch I think. with switching my steam installed games all to my eternal SSD from an partition on one of my internal drives.