Fix 100% HDD Usage when downloading/updating Games on Steam

[Cloud5trike]

Usually, you have Windows installed on the C drive, which uses an SSD, and store your games library on another drive (HDD). When you download or update games, the HDD often reaches 100% usage and freezes.

I believe I have found a solution to fix 100% HDD usage when downloading/updating games on Steam. The solution involves moving the downloading and temp folders to the SSD and creating a symlink to the steamapps folder.

1. Close Steam.

2. Create a temp folder on the SSD, for example: C:\temp\Steam\linktod

3. Your Steam library is located in D:\SteamLibrary\steamapps. MOVE the two folders, downloading and tempfrom the steamapps folder to the temp folder created above. Now you have two folders:

C:\temp\Steam\linktod\downloading
C:\temp\Steam\linktod\temp

4. Create symlinks to these folders. Run Command Prompt as an Administrator and type these commands:b
mklink /D "D:\SteamLibrary\steamapps\downloading" "C:\temp\Steam\linktod\downloading"
mklink /D "D:\SteamLibrary\steamapps\temp" "C:\temp\Steam\linktod\temp"

5. Reopen Steam.

Now, when you download games, the data will be downloaded to the downloading folder on the SSD, reducing high usage. After the download is complete, the game data will automatically move to the HDD at a high transfer speed.

[Carlos100]

My set up has always been ssd for os and hard drive for games
No problems with 100% usage and problems like you
I suggest its a you problem with your pc

[Supafly]

Solution is to set the DL location on the SSD and then you can MOVE it to the HDD using the Library in built function.

It happens because Steam downloads in compressed chunks, once a chunk is down it gets decompressed and installed. Sounds like your HDD can't keep up decompressing and installing each chunk while you download at the same time thus slowing speeds. Faster the DL speeds the more likely a HDD will struggle

[Satoru]

There is no 'solution' to this because steam is using 100% of the disk because, it needs 100% of the disk.

Also symlinking is a terrible terrible idea because even Microsoft doesn't officially support this feature

[Supafly]

Publicado originalmente por Satoru:

There is no 'solution' to this because steam is using 100% of the disk because, it needs 100% of the disk.

Also symlinking is a terrible terrible idea because even Microsoft doesn't officially support this feature

And the files will still be going to the HDD, Steam will just 'Think' it is going to the SSD.

[Elucidator]

Since you have a drive specific for games, I wonder why you didn't just install Steam on the HDD. Then you only have 1 library location to worry about.

Yes, Steam for whatever reason sometimes suddenly starts using the Install Location /.default library location to download games to instead of immediately going to the correct location. I recommend people to report this as a bug to Steam Support or on the Steam beta hub, so that it gets fixed hopefully.

but at any rate, if you only have one location that steam can use, then you avoid this issue.

When you use SymLinks, make sure you update it when you need to download to a third location instead.

[Cloud5trike]

Publicado originalmente por Satoru:

There is no 'solution' to this because steam is using 100% of the disk because, it needs 100% of the disk.

Also symlinking is a terrible terrible idea because even Microsoft doesn't officially support this feature

Steam still not support to seprate the downloading folder and installation folder. If you put steamapps on HDD, the hard part is downloading, processing, extracting... Or smt... And installing on the same HDD and that make slow things down.

[Cloud5trike]

Publicado originalmente por Supafly:

Solution is to set the DL location on the SSD and then you can MOVE it to the HDD using the Library in built function.

It happens because Steam downloads in compressed chunks, once a chunk is down it gets decompressed and installed. Sounds like your HDD can't keep up decompressing and installing each chunk while you download at the same time thus slowing speeds. Faster the DL speeds the more likely a HDD will struggle

So true.
Normally HDD speed is about 120-200 MBps.
My internet speeds can reach 30-40 MBps. And HDD can not keep up that download speed.