Steam playing games wile downloading disk write error

​A guide on handling and troubleshooting disk write errors while playing games on Steam while downloading can be highly useful, as this issue often affects gamers’ experiences and can cause significant disruptions. Disk write errors usually occur when Steam has trouble writing game data to your hard drive, either during the installation or updating process. This could be due to various reasons such as insufficient storage, permission issues, or corrupted game files. Understanding these errors and how to resolve them is crucial for uninterrupted gaming sessions.

Steam’s disk write errors typically happen when there’s a failure in writing the necessary game data to your storage device. This issue can arise under a variety of circumstances, whether you’re downloading a game, updating it, or simply playing a game while a new update is being downloaded in the background. The error can cause games to crash or fail to load, making it incredibly frustrating for players.

Common Causes of Disk Write Errors

The root cause of disk write errors while playing games on Steam can often be traced to a few key factors. These include:

Insufficient Disk Space

If your hard drive or SSD doesn’t have enough free space for the game’s files or updates, Steam will be unable to write the necessary data, resulting in a disk write error. If your storage is almost full, consider deleting unnecessary files or moving other data to an external device.

Corrupted Game Files

Sometimes, game files can become corrupted, preventing Steam from updating or writing them to your disk. Corrupt files can cause a variety of problems, including crashes and errors during downloads and installations.

Permissions Issues

Another possible cause of disk write errors is that Steam doesn’t have the necessary permissions to write to the directory or folder where the game is being installed. If your Steam client doesn’t have administrator rights or if the folder where Steam installs the games has restricted permissions, it can cause problems.

Antivirus Software Interference

Some antivirus or security programs can interfere with Steam’s ability to download and install games properly. They may incorrectly identify Steam’s installation process as suspicious activity and block it, leading to disk write errors.

Faulty or Overloaded Hard Drive

A malfunctioning hard drive or SSD could also be a culprit. If your disk is beginning to fail, it may not be able to handle writing new data, which can trigger disk write errors. An overloaded disk, with many files stored in fragmented clusters, can also slow down the writing process, causing the disk to time out and throw errors.

Steam Settings Misconfiguration

Improper settings within the Steam client can also contribute to disk write errors. For example, selecting the wrong download location or setting the client to download to a read-only or non-existent folder can cause issues.

Solutions to Fix Disk Write Errors in Steam

To resolve the issue of disk write errors on Steam while playing games and downloading, consider the following troubleshooting steps:

1. Check for Sufficient Disk Space

Step 1: Open “This PC” or “My Computer.”

Step 2: Look for the drive where Steam is installed and check how much free space is left. Steam games typically require large amounts of space for both installation and updates, so ensure that you have enough room on your hard drive.

Step 3: If space is low, delete unnecessary files, move documents or videos to an external drive, or uninstall old games that you no longer play.

Step 4: Restart Steam and check if the disk write error persists.

2. Verify the Integrity of Game Files

Corrupted game files are often the cause of disk write errors. Steam offers a built-in tool to verify the integrity of game files, ensuring they are up to date and not corrupted.

Step 1: Open Steam and go to your Library.

Step 2: Right-click on the game that is giving you trouble and select “Properties.”

Step 3: In the “Local Files” tab, click on “Verify Integrity of Game Files.”

Step 4: Wait for the process to complete. Steam will compare the files with its server and replace any missing or corrupted files.

Step 5: Once finished, restart Steam and try launching the game again to check if the disk write error is resolved.

3. Run Steam as Administrator

Sometimes Steam may not have the necessary permissions to write to your hard drive. Running Steam with administrator privileges can solve this issue.

Step 1: Close Steam completely.

Step 2: Right-click the Steam shortcut icon on your desktop or start menu.

Step 3: Select “Run as administrator.”

Step 4: Try downloading or updating the game again to see if the issue is resolved.

4. Disable Antivirus Software Temporarily

If you suspect that your antivirus software is blocking Steam’s installation or download process, temporarily disable it and try again. Ensure that the antivirus software isn’t falsely identifying Steam as malicious.

Step 1: Open your antivirus software.

Step 2: Find the option to temporarily disable real-time protection or disable the antivirus entirely.

Step 3: Restart Steam and try to download or play the game again.

Step 4: Don’t forget to enable your antivirus protection once the problem is resolved.

5. Change the Steam Download Folder

If Steam is set to download games to a folder with restricted permissions or where your disk is failing, this can result in disk write errors.

Step 1: Open Steam and click on “Steam” in the upper left corner.

Step 2: Select “Settings.”

Step 3: In the “Downloads” tab, click on “Steam Library Folders.”

Step 4: Choose “Add Library Folder” and select a different drive or folder where there’s sufficient space and permissions.

Step 5: Try to download or update the game again.

6. Check the Hard Drive for Errors

If your hard drive is showing signs of failure, it might not be able to write data properly. Running a disk check can help detect and fix issues.

Step 1: Open “This PC” or “My Computer.”

Step 2: Right-click on the drive where Steam is installed.

Step 3: Select “Properties,” then go to the “Tools” tab.

Step 4: Click on “Check” under the “Error Checking” section.

Step 5: If errors are found, the tool will prompt you to fix them. Allow it to complete the process and restart your computer.

Step 6: Once the check is complete, try downloading or updating a game again.

7. Reinstall Steam

If none of the above solutions work, the issue might be related to a corrupted Steam installation. In such cases, reinstalling Steam can help resolve persistent disk write errors.

Step 1: Uninstall Steam by going to Control Panel > Programs > Uninstall a program.

Step 2: Download the latest version of Steam from the official website.

Step 3: Install Steam on a different directory or the same one and try again.

Step 4: After reinstalling, log in to your Steam account and re-download the game.

Preventive Measures for Disk Write Errors

To avoid experiencing disk write errors in the future, you can implement some preventive measures:

Keep your disk space well-managed by regularly cleaning up unnecessary files and keeping enough free space for your games.

Ensure your hard drive is in good health by checking it regularly for errors and defragmenting it if necessary (for HDDs).

Run Steam with administrator rights regularly to ensure it has the necessary permissions to install and update games.

Keep your antivirus software updated and ensure it’s not blocking Steam’s activities.

Periodically verify the integrity of game files to catch corrupted files before they cause problems.