How to get Steam to recognise games on drives other than C: after a format

[Fuzzy Bunny]

Hi all, I've just upgraded my computer and am in the process of getting all my programs (including Steam games) reinstalled. Before the formatting of my SSD (which is my C: drive), I saved the Steamapps and User folders to another drive so that I could copy them back after the format. That went without a hitch and Steam now recognises these games as being ready to play.

Unfortunately I also had more games on two other drives (D: and E:) that worked perfectly before I formatted C: drive - Steam recognised them and I had no problems playing them when I wanted. But after the formatting of C:, these other games now appear as 'uninstalled' on my games inventory within Steam.

Is there any method that would enable me to get Steam to look in these other drives to find the installed games? The last thing I want to do is download huge amounts of data to get them back on my Steam inventory.

Many thanks for your help.

[The Giving One]

Try this...

The folder where you add a library using that option in your downloads settings has to be empty when added to that list. You could drag out the Steam files in that folder and make sure it is empty, add the folder to your library list for downloads, then drag back in the Steam files.

Do this with you fully exited and logged out of Steam, of course.

So, while out of Steam, drag out the files and emply the folder. Launch Steam and add the folder to your list for downloads. Log out and exit Steam again, and drag back in the files. Launch Steam again, and now Steam "should" see the games there.

EDIT..You may have to delete the folder while exited out of Steam and then create it all over again. It just has to be empty.

Steam in the top left, then settings, then downloads. Library folders options button is on top there.

[Fuzzy Bunny]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von The Giving One:

Try this...

So, while out of Steam, drag out the files and emply the folder. Launch Steam and add the folder to your list for downloads. Log out and exit Steam again, and drag back in the files. Launch Steam again, and now Steam "should" see the games there.

Sorry, you've lost me here. Are you saying:

1. Empty the complete Steam Folder on my C drive and then delete the folder,
2. Restart Steam,
3. Creat a new folder on C drive called Steam,
4. Exit Steam and then drag back the Steamapps and User folders back into the Steam folder on C drive, and
5. Restart Steam.

Is that correct?

[The Giving One]

No, you said C games work fine so there is no need to do anything to C.

Log out and exit Steam fully.

Go to your D and E drives. Empty the folder where you have the Steam files on those drives. Save the data, of course, and do not lose it. Put it on your desktop for example, and do only one drive at a time just in case.

Now, delete that folder and be sure it is empty before you do. (library folders can only have Steam game files in them anyway)

Now, log into Steam and use the add library folders option to add a new library folder on D and E.

Now log back out of Steam fully and exit the client all the way. Then, go back and add the game files to those new folders that you created, exactly in the way you dragged the files out.

Now, log back into Steam, and now Steam should see the games in those newly added folders.

[Fuzzy Bunny]

Gotcha....thank you for the clarification. I'll give it a go right now and let you know how things went. By the way, I've also been advised that there is a program called Steam Mover - it looks like it can do the same sort of thing but I'll try your method first rather than using a third-party piece of software.

Again, thanks for your help.

[The Giving One]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Fuzzy Bunny:

Gotcha....thank you for the clarification. I'll give it a go right now and let you know how things went. By the way, I've also been advised that there is a program called Steam Mover - it looks like it can do the same sort of thing but I'll try your method first rather than using a third-party piece of software.

Again, thanks for your help.

You are welcome. If anything goes wrong or you have issues, just ask and we will try to help. As long as you save the data (Games) in those old folders, then you cannot really make a major mistake where you would then have to redownload the games.

[Fuzzy Bunny]

Thank you soooo much. It worked a treat and now I have all my games back! You, good Sir, are a God!

[The Giving One]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Fuzzy Bunny:

Thank you soooo much. It worked a treat and now I have all my games back! You, good Sir, are a God!

Hahahaha....very kind of you, and thanks for replying that this helped you, as that may help others in the community that search and see your thread here.

Good luck to you always.

[Ahmira_Zaraelys]

I know this was posted ages ago, but Thank You SO MUCH. I was struggling to get steam to recognize my other 2 drives while after reinstalling Win10. Just made my life easier, Thanks

[kecksilber]

bro, I'm coming here FIVE YEARS after the fact, but this post still saved me from an onsetting frustration.
I don't understand why information like this is not more readily available on the internet. Every guide out there's telling you to simply register your external hdd as storage, none of them mention you gotta let steam create a new, empty library folder in said storage and then copy all your saved games into it. So simple yet so hard to find.
Got you an award (: