I have been in offline mode for 6 days - Got "Update downloaded" suddenly

[Zazaaji]

I have been offline for 6 days due to a massive bandwidth issue on my ISP. Yet still, steam apparently downloaded an update in full WITHOUT TELLING ME, and with all AUTO DOWNLOADS DISABLED.

This is 100% unacceptable. There is now a 0% chance I will need to pay the extra $50 to my ISP this month because steam pulled this crap out of nowhere.

[mimizukari]

Steam is a DRM which needs to verify your connection every now and then; you can't perpetually run offline mode without going online at some point. There's no way to disable all 'auto downloads' on Steam. if you mean Steam updated, then of course it did, you can't use Steam unless it's fully updated.

If you have data caps like that, using DRM based game services may not be for you, look into GOG or other DRM-free options.

[Pigeon Pecking Keyboard]

How can Steam be able to download anything when you have no access to Internet?

https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=3160-agcb-2555
According to this support article, Steam client does not update itself when you are in Offline mode.

The Auto Downloads option is for games only, not the Steam client. There is no official support to stop Client updates as far as I know.

[Zekiran]

Steam is not responsible for anything but giving their customers - that is you and me- the content that publishers of the games you've purposefully bought from them.

They are not in any way responsible for your end of anything. That includes your craptastic ISP, from being down or having caps. That's up to you and them to figure out. Nothing to do with Steam.

[Pigeon Pecking Keyboard]

Originally posted by Red Bean Soup:

How can Steam be able to download anything when you have no access to Internet?

https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=3160-agcb-2555
According to this support article, Steam client does not update itself when you are in Offline mode.

The Auto Downloads option is for games only, not the Steam client. There is no official support to stop Client updates as far as I know.

What I meant to say, in a clumsy way, is explain what you did in detail, then maybe someone familiar with the Offline mode can help you figure out where things go wrong. So this won't happen again to you. I am sorry to hear that you tried to stay offline and it didn't work out. But when I stayed Offline in the old days while waiting for the data cap rollover, Steam worked as intended, ergo, no updates.

*edit: grammar

[Junior]

Originally posted by Kurumi Tokisaki:

Steam is a DRM which needs to verify your connection every now and then; you can't perpetually run offline mode without going online at some point. There's no way to disable all 'auto downloads' on Steam. if you mean Steam updated, then of course it did, you can't use Steam unless it's fully updated.

If you have data caps like that, using DRM based game services may not be for you, look into GOG or other DRM-free options.

that may be true, but I use steam on a laptop sometimes and it was able to run offline for over 3 months when I traveled so maybe op had some sort of bug? Or steam just changed the time u can be offline since I traveled? It was like two years ago....

[mimizukari]

if you're connected to the internet, then Steam WILL update when you try to start the client/boot up PC with Steam on auto-open if it has an update available.

[fodder]

is he talking about steam updating its client or the games?

i have set all my games to only update when the game is launched, but sometimes some of them just update themselves anyway when they haven't been launched for months, if not longer.

eg.. american truck sim just d/led as 3 gig update despite the setting. last played almost a year ago.

[Henchman 21]

That is the issue to me really. If I am not playing a game, I turn the updates for it off... but a few games are downloading massive updates despite this instruction and it irritates me to no end.

[Zekiran]

Yeah it really shouldn't - I suspect that the OP's account/client was actually online, but since their ISP was faulty didn't even realize it, until that connection came back and Steam did what it normally does when online: updates.

OP without actual honest and detailed information about the process here, no one can help you. Also, as stated before: this is something you'll just need to hash out with your provider, as if they had already been offline for a week, they owe YOU.

[Eagle_of_Fire]

This is why I set all my games to "download only when starting the game". This way games which require en update don't ♥♥♥♥ me over when I play MP on the net or otherwise try to download pointless game updates all the time, especially when I don't want it to.

I got used to go thru the properties of every single game I add to my library for such tweaks. Simply because Steam defaults always been uber obnoxious.

[Henchman 21]

Problem these days is, some games will continue to update even if you set them to only update if you are starting it.

Like literally, for these games I've toggled that multiple times... it shows that updates are disabled... but it is still forcing me to take them.

[Eagle_of_Fire]

Which game in particular?

If what you say is right I'm WAY more likely to simply UNINSTALL THEM rather than keep them on my computer. Really depend if the game is actually good and if I'm already done with it...

Edit: I just counted and I still have 82 games which "require" or "are waiting" for an update in my download queue. They will always remain that way until such a time I actually try to run the game again is what my understanding of everything is and was up to now.

I can't say that I noticed anything or any game bypassing me so far...

[Mad Scientist]

I don't think people realize how much bandwidth they use browsing Facebook and YouTube all the time.

But, should steam ever do an update when someones settings are bad or a loaded download resumes when a connection is detected on launch...

If you're worried about something consuming the last of your bandwidth, then unplug the modem until your next billing cycle or learn how to use firewalls to stop things that usually sick up bandwidth until you are no longer in said billing period