Common STEAM ISSUES
Basic Steam Troubleshooting.
Last updated
Basic Steam Troubleshooting.
Last updated
Disk Write Errors, Corrupted Files, Reinstalling Steam and other fixes for Steam.
If you experience the Steam disk write error, try these fixes:
Restart Steam. The easiest way to rule out a temporary issue is to close the Steam client, reopen it, and then download or play it again.
Restart the computer. If closing and reopening Steam doesn't resolve the issue, rebooting the PC could fix it by closing ongoing processes that might interfere with Steam.
Remove write protection from the drive. Write protection prevents a computer from altering or adding files to a folder or an entire drive. If you believe this to be the source of the problem, verify which drive your Steam games are stored on, and then remove write protection from that drive.
Turn off the read-only setting for the Steam folder. If the Steam directory is set to read-only, then the whole directory is write-protected. Go to the Steam folder properties and make sure the read-only setting isn't selected.
Run Steam as an administrator. Running software as an administrator gives it extra permissions and can fix several odd problems.
Delete corrupted files. When something goes wrong while Steam is downloading a game, it may create a corrupted file that causes the Steam disk write error. To fix this problem, go to the main Steam folder and open the steamapps/common directory. If you see a file with the same name as the game you're trying to play that is 0 KB in size, delete it and attempt to download or launch the game again.
Verify the integrity of the game files. In your Steam library, right-click the game and select Properties. Then, go to the Local Files tab and select Verify Integrity of Game Files. If Steam finds any corrupt files, it automatically replaces those files.
Do not complete this step if your game uses a launcher that downloads additional updates. Doing so will replace your updated game with the base launcher, and you will then need to re-download the updates through the launcher.
Clear the Steam download cache. If the Steam download cache is corrupted, it can cause disk write errors. To fix this problem, open Steam and navigate to Steam > Settings > Downloads > Clear Download Cache.
Move Steam to a different drive. In some cases, there may be a problem with the drive that prevents Steam from writing to it. If you have multiple drives or partitions, move the Steam installation folder to a different drive.
If this step resolves the Steam disk write error, check the original drive for errors.
Check the drive for errors. In some cases, this process can identify bad sectors and tell Windows to ignore those sectors in the future. If the problem persists or gets worse, you may need to replace the hard drive.
Turn off the antivirus program or add exceptions. In rare instances, antivirus programs can incorrectly identify Steam as a threat and prevent it from downloading and saving game data. If the Steam disk write error goes away with the antivirus turned off, add an exception for Steam in the antivirus scans.
Turn off the firewall or add exceptions. If temporarily turning off the firewall fixes the problem, add an exception to the Windows firewall.
Contact Steam for help. Steam's technical support team can walk you through potential solutions for your specific problem. You can also find help in the Steam Community forum.
It's always a good first step to make sure that you restart your computer. Restarting the computer flushes all kinds of system states and caches, while resetting other programs and releasing locks on files and other resources. And will trigger hidden updates that are not shown in your que!
Restarting Steam can often help resolve problems with Internet connectivity when trying to load or play games. You can restart Steam by closing and reopening the client, or refresh your Steam files in the event you feel that Steam's files may be modified, corrupted, missing, or mis-configured on your operating system. If none of these solutions work, try contacting Steam.
1. Click on “Steam” in the toolbar at the top left corner of your Steam session. 2. Select “Exit” or “Exit Steam.” Your current session of Steam will close. Alternately, right-click on the Steam icon in the notification tray on your desktop, and select “Exit.” In Windows, the notification tray is located at the bottom right corner of the desktop; in Mac OS X, the notification tray is located at the top right corner of the desktop. 3. Double-click on the Steam icon on your desktop to relaunch Steam. If the Steam shortcut icon is not located on your desktop, search for Steam in the “Start” menu in Windows, or in the Applications folder on Mac OS X.
The Steam installer can be downloaded here: (http://store.steampowered.com/about/) and reinstalled to the same location where it is already installed. This may fix potential issues with Steam client and service files. By Installing into the same location will preserve all installed games. WARNING! Uninstalling Steam will delete all game content.
If Steam does not recognize your games after completing the instructions that are listed above, it is recommended that you completely reinstall the games in question.
1. Unsubscribe from all mods. 2. Shut down Steam 3. Remove mod and .mod in question from your Mods folder. (Default Locations below) 4. Clear mod cache (Delete the contents of the folder titled (YOUR GAMES ID Number) 5. Restart Steam 6. Re-subscribe to your mods. 7. Start YOUR GAME and VERIFY your game files.(Instructions above) 8. Wait for mods to finish installing before joining any server or private game. (This is very Important) Mod file default locations C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\ARK\ShooterGame\Content\Mods C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\workshop\content\ 346110 is ARK 440900 is CONAN 529180 is DARK AND LIGHT 834910 is ATLAS
Clearing the Steam download cache will cause the Steam client to flush locally cached configuration data and acquire it from the Steam servers again.
From your Steam Client, open the Settings panel by selecting “Steam > Settings” from the top left client menu.
In the Settings panel, select the Downloads tab and you’ll find the “Clear Download Cache” button at the bottom. Then select “OK” to confirm and acknowledge that you’ll need to login to Steam again.
Follow the file path below, and delete the whole file of "insert GAME file here", and make sure you empty your trashcan after it is done. After you have cleaned the trashcan. Log back into steam and then your GAME and run a re-verify. Where to find the cache: "Your storage disc":\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\workshop\content\GAME NUMBER HERE 346110 is ARK 440900 is CONAN 529180 is DARK AND LIGHT
To resolve this issue you must access the game’s hidden !Workshop folder and delete all broken mods from there. After doing so and forcing steam to scan for file integrity, most users have reported that the issue has been resolved.
Make sure that the steam client is completely closed.
Open-File Explorer and go to the ribbon bar at the top of the screen. Then, click on the View tab and ensure that the box associated with Hidden items is checked.
Once you are able to see hidden items, use File Explorer to navigate to the following location: "Your Storage Drive"\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\*Game Name*\!Workshop Note: Keep in mind that *Game Name* is simply a placeholder. Replace it with the name of the game you’re having mod issues with.
Once you get there, double-click on each mod individually and see which one is triggering the “Location is not available” issue. You will get a "Location not available" error popup.
If one or more mods are triggering the “Location is not available” error or a different error message, it’s clear that the issue is caused by corruption. In this case, you can proceed to delete every broken mod until you ensure that you only leave healthy ones.
Next, open Steam and go to the Library tab. Then, right-click on the game that uses the mods and choose Properties. Then, go to the Local Files tab and click on Verify Integrity of Game Files.
Once the process is complete, attempt to download a new mod and see if the procedure completes successfully.
Sometimes files on hard-disks and other storage devices become corrupted because of bad hardware, software crashes, power surges etc. Steam can verify the correctness over installed game files and fix them if necessary.
Navigate to your Steam page.
Right click the Game Title.
In the box that opens: Click on the tabs on the top (Local Files).
In the last box in the list: Verify integrity of Game Files… : Click this.
When the process finishes, DO NOT restart the Game to re-acquire any lost files.
You will repeat the Step 4. until the count of files found to replace is 0.
Wait for the process to complete. (May be lengthy). And require several times of running a verify.
Start your game back up and after all files are re-acquired and DOWNLOADED(shown in the lower left corner of the games lobby page).
Try the Game again.
For any steam game, Using the Desktop ICON bypasses the auto updates for the game, when you unsub and resub it will allow you to connect to the server IF you have the same version as the server. The Server in some cases will receive an updated mod before the Clients do. (ARK Updates for example) and create some issues in version matches. Please go the listed mod packaged for your platform and unsub to the mods pac. and then re sub to them one by one. This will trigger a new download of the mods and instead of fully downloading they will repair the files.
If you can't connect to Steam, restart your Steam connection, check the Steam server status, update the Steam client, and try running Steam as an admin. If you still have problems, restart your device, close background apps, and troubleshoot your internet connection.
To fix Steam.dll not found or missing errors, copy steam.dll from the main installation directory and paste it into the folder of the game the error message says it's missing from. If you still have trouble, you may need to reinstall Steam.
If you encounter the Steam Cloud error, your game files need to be synchronized. Restart Steam and select Retry Sync next to the Play button to force sync your Steam files.
Games may appear uninstalled when Steam no longer recognizes the installation files. As long as the game folders are still in the proper location, attempting to launch a game will prompt a download. This will allow Steam to recognize the installation files during the download process. You can ensure that the game folders are in the proper location by navigating to your default Steam installation: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\Steamapps\Common Now start a VERIFY. (Instructions Below)
If you had previously installed the games to an alternate location outside of your main Steam folder please try the following:
Launch Steam and go to Steam > Settings > Downloads and click the Steam Library Folders button. This will open a window with all your current Steam Library folders.
Click the "Add Library Folder" button and select the folder with your installed games.
Once you have added the new Library folder your installed games should appear in your Steam Library.
The Steam library folder contains all of your installed games on disk. These folders need to be writable by all users in order to update properly. Sometimes these user permissions break and need to be refreshed. Navigate to your Steam -> Settings -> Downloads -> Steam Library Folders -> Right click on folder -> Repair Folder.
When you can not join a server through a game lobby page. This is called Empty Session List. There are a couple Solutions. Game History if you have been on the server before, and if its New IP Adding a server to your Favorites.
How to find your Server History in Steam
Select YOUR GAME in the Steam Game Library
Go to View top menu
Select Servers option
Click on the internet tab
You will see all GAME servers listed in the Steam window.
Just choose any one you like by double-clicking it.
How to Add a Server To Steam Favorites.
Select YOUR GAME in the Steam Game Library
Go to View top menu
Select Servers option C
lick on the FAVORITES tab
You will see all GAME servers listed in the Steam window.
In the box that opens, ENTER THE IP ADDRESS ONLY
Now click the ADD THIS ADDRESS TO FAVORITES button and your done.
Lastly, if neither of the two methods helped you, then you need to reset your network settings:
Go to Start menu in Windows 10
Type CMD in Search
Right-click Command Prompt
Select Run as Administrator
In the CMD window type: netsh winsock reset
Press Enter
Restart your PC
Some Steam users that are trying to download mods from Steam’s Workshop are having problems with updating mods. In most cases, the mod update is not getting registered for download or does not appear inside the download queue. For some users, the issue only occurs with a couple of mods while other reports that the issue is happening to an extent where they can’t download and use any new mods.
How to fix this Error
Unsubscribe from the mod via the workshop page
Close and completely exit Steam (Right Click Steams Icon, and click "Exit Steam")
Open Windows Explorer
Navigate to -> \steamapps\workshop\content\GameID#(Mod Id Number.)
346110 is ARK
440900 is CONAN
529180 is DARK AND LIGHT
If found, delete this folder. If not found, continue to the next step.
Start Steam again
Subscribe to the mod
In order to fix this issue, all that needs to be done is to reset the bcedit value causing this problem back to false. In order to do so, you need to follow steps as stated below.
Right-click on the Start Menu button to open the WinX Menu.
Click on Command Prompt (Admin).
Type the following into the elevated Command Prompt and then press Enter:
bcdedit /set useplatformclock false
Restart your computer, and try downloading something from Steam once it boots up. You should no longer experience any lagging/hanging or high CPU usage when downloading content from Steam or any other application on your computer.
Also, it is recommended to disable the Antivirus or add an exception for the folder in which the game is being downloaded. For that:
Click on the Antivirus’ icon in the system tray.
Click on the settings option and then select Scan.
Click on “Add an Exception” and add the folder where the game is being downloaded.
Check to see if the issue persists.
If you encounter a "Missing Download Files Error" with one or more of your mods, follow the instructions below.
Open Windows Explorer
Navigate to ----> \SteamLibrary\steamapps\workshop\downloads
Delete anything found in here.
If necessary, re-download the mod(s) from there, though your issue should be resolved now. If that doesn't solve the issue, this is from Valve support directly. Not directly quoted but summarized below.
"If this issue continues to occur, the user must re-install Steam. This means they will have to uninstall the game completely, deleting all data files associated with the Steam GAME, and re-install Steam.
It is a sync issue that has happened between Steam and the game." It is highly advisable you backup any single-player save game data before proceeding with this step! Conan Exiles does not have any cloud saving.
If you are seeing one of the following problems, it might be due to the BattlEye service:
Game hangs at launch or fails to load
BattlEye failed to initialize
Kicked from the game
Stuttering/freezing when launching
You can troubleshoot those errors using the BattlEye FAQ here: http://www.battleye.com/support/faq/
Additionally, you can try deleting the BattlEye folder by following the following:
Please close the game all the way out.
Then, go to C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\H1Z1 and delete the BattlEye folder.
Then, verify the integrity of the game cache through Steam.
If none of these fixes work for you, please visit H1Z1 website and the following troubleshooting guide. https://help.daybreakgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/218088717
DeviceD3D errors typically occur if you are running the game at settings which your machine does not adequately support or if you are running outdated video drivers. Other potential causes include outdated Windows installs or larger video card issues. Reduce your video resolutionIf you have recently increased or changed your game's video resolution, a good first step is to revert your resolution to a setting that previously worked and re-test the issue. If you are able to play at a lower resolution we recommend using that going forward. Use the -autoconfig launch option, if you would like the game to automatically choose appropriate settings for your machine, please use the -autoconfig launch option. Update your video drivers. Before updating your drivers, please visit the Windows Update FAQ and make sure you have all of the critical updates and the .NET Framework installed. To update your video drivers, please follow the instructions below for your current operating system:
None of these solutions worked. What can I do now?If you have reduced your video resolution, are running the game using settings your machine can adequately support, and have the latest drivers for your video card and are still receiving D3D errors it's possible that your system has gotten into an unusual state. Please restart your machine and re-test the issue. If the issue persists, please set the following launch option for the affected game: -dxlevel 81
This is a common error message that users experience when they’re playing games like ARK: You see the error DX11 feature level 10.0 is required to run the engine when your computer doesn’t have the required Direct3D hardware feature level. This means that your game is unable to use Direct3D feature level 10.0.
Another reason why you might see this error is an issue with the graphics card driver, so you should make sure that your graphics card driver is working properly.
Since many technical problems can be resolved by restarting, it never hurts to restart your computer and your game. Often this will be enough to fix the error.
Game developers always keep releasing patches to improve their games and fix any issues, so you should check for updates of your game in Steam or from the official website. Then install the latest patch to keep it up to date.
A missing or outdated graphic card driver can cause the error. So you should update your graphics card driver or reinstall it to fix the DX11 error.
As the error message suggested: DX11 is required to run the engine, you should install the latest DirectX in your Windows to support the game, if you don’t know how to check the DirectX version, you can try this:
1) On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key and R at the same time, to start the Run box. 2) Type dxdiag and click OK. 3) You can see the DirectX Version under the System tab.
4) You can check the feature levels by clicking Display. 5) While you’re in the Display tab, make sure DirectDraw Acceleration, Direct3D Acceleration, and AGP Texture Acceleration are enabled.
DirectX version
Generally speaking, for Windows 10, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1, you can directly update your Windows to the latest version to install the latest DirectX on your computer. However, for Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP, you may need to install an update package to install the latest DirectX in your computer. You can go to the Microsoft website for more information about how to install the latest version of DirectX for different versions of Windows. After installing the latest Windows update or update package, restart your computer and try the game again to see if the error disappears.
Feature Levels
You should make sure that you see the Feature Level your graphics card driver requires. If the Feature Levels displayed in the DirectX Diagnostic Tool don’t meet the requirement, or they’re blank, there are two possible reasons: 1) Your graphics card doesn’t support the required Feature Level. In that case, you should double check that with the manufacturer, or buy another graphics card that supports Feature Level 10.0; or 2) Your graphics card driver has an issue, or may be missing or outdated. In that case, you should update your graphics card driver as mentioned in Fix 2.
A lot of the time, updating Windows will resolve this issue. You should check for Windows updates on your computer, and install the latest available updates. After updating Windows, restart your computer and launch your game to see if the problem is resolved. These are the best solutions to fix DX11 feature errors.
1. SOMETIMES this is only resolved by back to back multiple reverifying of the integrity of your game files by right clicking the game in the steam library and going to the tab for that. 2. Verify once, let it redo any files. Then verify again(don't go in game), if more files have to be redone then you to a third verify. Etc. etc. etc. rinse and repeat until you have 0 files to be redone then try again. 3. Again don't attempt to get in the game before you get 0 files needing to be redone. This can make you have to start all over again.
Modded Client Side Fix.
1. Unsubscribe from all mods, or just the suspected mod if you know which one is causing the issue. 2. Shut down Steam 3. Remove mod and .mod in question from your Mods folder. (Default Locations below) 4. Clear mod cache (Delete the contents of the folder titled (YOUR GAMES ID Number) 5. Restart Steam 6. Re-subscribe to your mods. 7. Start YOUR GAME and VERIFY your game files.(Instructions above) 8. Wait for mods to finish installing before joining any server or private game. (This is very Important) Mod file default locations C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\ARK\ShooterGame\Content\Mods C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\workshop\content\ 346110 is ARK 440900 is CONAN 529180 is DARK AND LIGHT 834910 is ATLAS
Click image to enlarge.
Click image to enlarge.
If you are launching the game directly from the GeForce NOW application (clicking on the game image), then the game will boot up before the mods will have a chance to download.
I think you will find more success by opening those specific games in the 'Manage Steam' mode.
To do this, open the GeForce NOW application and click on your username in the upper right hand corner. From there you will see a drop down menu, and select 'Manage Steam.'
Once you have started a session and have an instance of Steam launched, make sure you install the game you want to play. Once installed, the mods should start downloading.
Do note that you will need to GO to 'Manage Steam' each and every time you want to launch a game with Steam Workshop mods.
