Reinstall OS, Partially dloaded games..

[PARTY GOD!]

Hi, Im quite new to steam, like 4 weeks or so.. But already have bought 47 games which adds up to 250+ GB! ..

Ive got windows 8, and hate it, and have finally figured out how to install windows 7 on my lappy (needed drivers @ boot for intel RST)..

I have read about backing up by copying SteamApps folder to external n copying back once reinstall done, that works fine, right? .. and have used GamesSave Manager to backup all my game saves, thats ok too, right?

Sorry to ask these questions again, i know they would have been a million times, jus some the posts are dated so im verifying this is still the correct way to do it..!!

I cant be bothered using the steam backup as ive heard it can take a LONG time.. But i guess i might as well ask a couple quick questions about that while im here - Once youve chosen all the games youve backed up does it create one backup file or multiple (one for each game?), and when restoring does it give you the option which games u want to reinstall? Just ask cos it wont let me backup str8 to external, which means id have to make local backup then copy that to external, then copy backup from external to new install then finally restore, which seems a pain in the a$$?!! ..

And the main question finally, which is a lot more simple - If ive backed up just by copying the steamapps folder to my external, and back again after reinstall, do all my partially downloaded games recognise how much has been downloaded and start from where they were when i left them? (just that i live in NZ and am RURAL so our broadband is SLOW, as in 250-300KB/S down.. And we pay $110/month for 100GB so dont want to waste anything!!! .. And im bout halfway through dloading 10 games..) ...

Oh, one more thing - when i reinstall steam on the new install, do i install steam, copy SteamApps folder over then login, or does it not matter which order..?

Thanks heaps for answers,

N|X6S|X

[Bad 💀 Motha]

First off, do not partially download games, finish the ones u want to have.
If they are only partial downloads, delete them and then redo them fresh once you wipe the system clean and install Win7. As having a partially downloaded game backup can just be a problem later on.

Since u seem to have slow ISP, there is not a whole lot u can do about it. Pick and choose your games that u much rather have installed now. Once their downloads have fully completed, then back them up.

You will want to save these files and folders to your external.
Make a folder on external drive called Steam. Then on your C drive, navigate to the Steam Clients' root folder and copy the following to the Steam folder on the external...
> Steam.exe (application)
> SteamApps (folder)
> UserData (folder)

Once your C drive has been redone fresh again, leave the Steam contents on the external if u can, for backup purposes. To get them back onto C drive, simply copy that entire Steam folder from external drive, over to the root of C drive, so you end up with C:\Steam

Then simply right click the Steam.exe that resides in C:\Steam and click Run As Admin. This will download the needed Client App files and then you should have whatever games were located in Steam\Steamapps\Common, already present. While they might say Install instead of Play, u still click Install to get started and it will verify the game and continue on from there.

Since u have an external, I would go and download all the latest device drivers for your hardware and Win7 OS so that you have those already once u redo your OS Drive.

[PARTY GOD!]

Cheers heaps for fast reply, was gonna do the Moving A Steam Installation & Games method - https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=7418-YUBN-8129 - but just to be sure, Thats pretty much what youre describing here isnt it? .. Would that not recognise the partially downloaded games in the downloading folder under SteamApps and just continue? Id say it would, but thats a totally uneducated guess (when it comes to steam) just going by my computer knowledge..

I am a qualified tech, so the OS install is no problem for me, i jus havent downgraded an OS install on anything with SSD caching, before i could install the OS, just couldnt get it to boot as the documentation/driver files werent on the intel site the first couple times i tried the reinstall, but are now so no probz.. .. Was just a tut on how to extract the driver inf. etc from the msi which i couldnt be bothered with at the time i found it n jus been settling with this 8 piece o * for the past few months..

But yea, i want to do this OS reinstall now, so i do as above (Copy steam folder, delete all files/folders except Steam.exe - SteamApps folder - UserData folder) then reinstall OS and copy back to root of C (or wherever i want it) .. Then run Steam.exe and it should replace/update and be all go again?

[PARTY GOD!]

.. And yes il be keeping the backup on the external, i have 3xExternal's and 2xNAS to restore other games if i ever delete em, but ive got 2x1TB drives and 32GB SSD for caching in ma lappy, so most will stay on anyway!

[Bad 💀 Motha]

TBO, the Steam Backup part of the client can be quite buggy and many people have had failed backups/restores with it. The reason the Steam Backup takes so long is it will compress the game during the backup process and turn it into a file that the Steam Client Backup can recognize (for Restore purposes). But overall if u have the space, just copy your games manually. And yes GameSaveManager is probably one of the best apps for helping to ensure proper backup of local saved game files. As various games can store them in uncommon folders across your C drive. So if u do not know exactly where, then this sort of app is very useful.

Best bet is whatever games u currently have installed, go to them one by one and in their properties, verify game cache. This will only use a very small amount of download/upload data, so don't worry about it using very much for this process. However u need to do this at a convenient time because whenever u start a verify game cache process, u can not interrupt it.

And again, if u have games that have started to download, and are not finished, I highly suggest just stopping them and deleting them. Unless they are nearing their completion, then go through and continue to download until finished. Which ever way seems best. But I would not suggest that u backup a partial download, as it will properly act up when u copy that over.


And be careful when u redo the system; if u are installing OS to the SSD, then I would suggest disconnecting any other internal HDDs until the OS install has completed. Just to further help ensure u do not erase the wrong drive upon wiping it out during OS install options screen. And since u are changing OS and want a fresh install, then u will want to ensure any data from C drive is backed up, such as downloads, music, pictures, documents, etc...

Then during OS install, u should delete the partitions from the old OS drive first (again this is why u backup data first!). Once the partitions from the old OS are deleted, then u simply continue on and Win7 will recreate the needed partitions.

[PARTY GOD!]

Haha, cheers, but as stated, i do know what im doing as far as the OS install goes.. Ive been fixing PC's for nearly 10 years, Im VERY computer literate (Have A+ 801-802, MCITP and jus finished CCNA, moving to CCNP beginning of year and through to CCSP n beyond in future..!) so no dummy help needed, much appreciated tho, and good to see I wouldnt be left askin a million more questions! .. The only problem was having the Intel RST drivers at the first part of the install so once the OS is loaded onto the mech hdd, it can actually boot from the Intel Raid Controller with RST, the SSD is just a 32GB cache for my 1st (OS) mechanical drive..

Anyway, got the entire steam folder straight copying to one my NAS now, il come back n let ya know if the partially downloaded files resume ok... Although i never have done it, and only just heard of it, il just do a Verify game before rusuming if thats possible..

Oh, and wait, i see what u mean - im not using the backup/restore utility, im just copying the entire folder straight over, so partially downloaded games should just resume, id presume (haha that rhymed nicely..) And if anything has corrupted when fully down, il jus verify files n itl replace anything corrupt, which it shouldnt as ive closed all games, steam then then steam processes before i started to copy..

[Bad 💀 Motha]

Well even after u copy all your games back over, once u load up the client you will first want to see if a game that is already there says Install or Play. If it says Install, do that. Once it says Play. Then go to its Properties and Verify Game Cache.

If you happen to copy over partial downloads, well u can't verify them til they actually are able to continue and complete the download. But yea for any game you copy over, once it is ready to play, verify game cache first, just to ensure its actually all intact and ready to play.