SSDs have the benefit of being tenfold times faster than traditional disk drives. This makes games from your steam library load in an instant.
But with newer game installs coming at over a hundred gigs, is it ideal for installing Steam to your SSD?
Read on to clear all your dilemma about where to install steam in this article.
Check out the easiest way to disable Shader Pre-Caching in Steam.
Should I Install Steam on SSD or HDD?
Yes, you should install Steam on your SSD. This will make the program load up faster every time you open it. Since a web browser is also included, an SSD will make navigating the Steam app smoother.
But what about the game files? Where would they reside?
Most PC has an SSD that is used to store the Windows and all applications that you use. For storing larger files, an HDD is typically used. The same approach is ideal for a Steam Library too. That means all the big games go to your HDD, where you have all the space to accommodate them.
But this makes the games load slowly. So how can we inject the SSD’s magic into the games too?
You can do this in two ways. Move the games that you currently play into the SSD. Yes, that will take a big chunk of your storage space, so do not move more than 2 games if the install size is big enough.
Secondly, buy an SSD that is big enough to accommodate your game library. Nowadays, you can get a terabyte of SATA SSD for under a hundred dollars(even NVMe ones are dropping in price). Or you can opt for an external SSD that is not only fast but will carry all your game library with you.
Before running the games off an external drive, you need to move the games to it. The next section will explain that to you.
It is not uncommon for Steam to get stuck. The cursor turns into a loading wheel, and pressing any keys does nothing. If that’s the case, take a moment to read about how to fix Steam when it takes forever to open.
How do I Transfer Steam Library to Another Drive
Steam makes it very easy when moving libraries from one drive to another. When you install a game, you can choose the directory where the games are installed. This is when you can select an external HDD, SSD or even a different drive from your computer.
If a game is already installed on your internal drive, you can move the installed files to a different location. This saves countless hours spent on downloading and installing the game from the Steam store.
Wondering how to do that? Let’s go through the process.
These are the steps to transfer your steam library to a different drive:
Create a New Steam Library
A Steam library is a folder with all the game files. To create a new library, just create a new folder and point Steam to use it as the game file location.
If you are creating a library on an external drive (SSD or HDD), connect it to your computer before proceeding with the steps below.
Follow these steps to create a new library on Steam:
- Create a new folder on the external drive and give it a name.
- Go to Settings from the top left menu.
- Click Downloads from the left pane and go to Steam Library Folders.
- Now Press the + icon in the Storage Manager window.
- Select the folder you created on the external drive and click Add.
You have successfully created a new library on Steam. The new directory will appear next to your existing library in the storage manager.
Is Steam not playing nice with your WiFi? Read on how to make them the best of friends by fixing WiFi issues with Steam.
But it does not have any games on it. Let’s transfer them from our existing library.
These are the steps to transfer your games to a different library in Steam:
- Open Steam.
- Click Steam from the top left navigation menu and go to Settings.
- Now navigate to Downloads > Steam Library Folders.
- Select the games by placing a tick next to them and clicking on the Move button.
- In the next window, ensure the external drive is selected and press Move.
Wait for the process to complete. Depending on your internal drive’s speeds and the games’ size, it can take over an hour.
Always connect the external drive to the fastest USB port when copying the Steam library. These are the blue ones on your computer. It will bring down the time to copy the files considerably.
Steam works with Windows 11 too. That is not an announcement I’m making here. This article explains how to get Steam up and running with Windows 11.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Steam run better on SSD?
Steam runs faster and loads any game quicker when installed on an SSD. It is due to SSD’s fast access times that speed up any installed applications.
Which drive should I install Steam on?
Install Steam on your primary drive, which is the C drive. Move only the games that you play to this drive from your library. If the C drive runs on an SSD, the games will benefit from faster loading times.
Does SSD give more fps?
No, your games only load faster with an SSD. The fps depends on your computer’s processor, memory and graphics cards.
In Conclusion
You can make Steam faster by employing an SSD, be it internal or external. And thus eliminating the wait times as your game loads from your computer.
Just do not fill your boot drive with games. That will make the Windows feel slow, which no one wants.
This wraps up today’s article. Hope you had a good time reading it.
Until next time, it’s goodbye from us here.
