Can't install any game on Windows 8.1

[Chuck Bartowski°]

Can't install any game on Windows 8.1

Each install stops on 1% with steam error code 2!

Clear steam install, files veryfied, all updates, current drivers.

Help

[Balderick]

Servers are to busy!? Reboot system, update Steam client then retry installing game/s.

[Chuck Bartowski°]

Already done,
Steam clear install.
Instalation from DVD
Instalation from Internet
all fail

Manual instalation of redist/* files also tried

Instalation on c:\ ; d:\

[Balderick]

Have you reviewed log files for indication to what is problem? ie eventvwr
Have you had any other DRM type issues after updating to 8.1? ie DVD movie/video playback, music playback etc
Is Windows behaving as expected? ie do other apps install and behave as expected?
Was Windows upgraded or clean install 8.1?
Has Windows updated successfully since installing 8.1?

I have not had any obvious problems accessing my games but there are a few recent Steam Client errors in Event Viewer.

It is always a safer bet to do a clean install over an upgrade when upgrading any operating system.

EDIT: Have you tried running dskchk and fsck to help verify windows health?
Did you need to "activate" windows after upgrading?

The error codes you refer to are not new to Steam users; here is a link that will help you to methodically approach troubleshooting http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2820463. Hope that helps. 8)


Please spend time either providing more information regarding what you have done and what you are observing or spend time searching web...

[Balderick]

Practicing what i preach heheh found this thread with the possible solution; http://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/1/810938082602977049/#p3 where a few posters confirm installing .NET framework 3.5 got their Steam working again after upgrading to 8.1. Post #29 by FlavorFlav gives download links so all credit to them and thanks to shadow for posting q : )

[Chuck Bartowski°]

No problem whatsoever, with other applications.
Windows logs console shows no errors for steam/games

BO2 works fine after upgrade from 8.0 to 8.1,
but mw3 not.

After steam clean reinstallation(to fix mw3) BO2 wont start ( the same 1% install, then error code 2 )

Clean install 8.1 is not posible for me ( computer used for work )

sfc / chkdks - all no errors.

i have try other solutions (AV off; Firewall off; UAC off; many vcredist / directx/versions );

Instalation .Net 3.5 for windows 8.1 from .exe is imposible. But system shows that 3.5 is present http://i.msdn.microsoft.com/dynimg/IC644075.png C:/Windows/Microsoft.NET/Framework/v3.5

I have submit support ticket to STEAM, but they forward me to game dev support; but problem hit all my games :(

[Balderick]

Have you tried activating beta Steam Client?

[Chuck Bartowski°]

Beta, Stable. 3 accounts ( each game on other account )
I have access to family share, runing shared games also return error code 2

I have backup Steam directory from windows 8.0 i even try restore full steam directory, but still error code 2

Clean install from DVD - error

[Balderick]

How did you update Windows?

[Chuck Bartowski°]

There is only 1 way to install (final) Windows 8.1, use Windows Store. And after that install all patch via windows update.

Now im searching how Steam tell that game is "intalled", mayby there is some way to do it manualy.

[Balderick]

There is always more than one way to skin a cat. :)
Instaed of using Store app to update to 8.1 it is possible to use http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-product-key-only
It is also possible to have created an iso when you updated which then leaves the downloading unnnecessary if you wanted to reinstall the 8.1 update again in the future; see: http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39-57608376-285/how-to-download-the-official-microsoft-windows-8.1-iso/

Regardless of which method used is your 8.1 install fully activated?

Are you making sure to reboot after Steam uninstall? (before reinstalling)

I had held back upgrading to 8.1 but can now confirm my games and Steam are working as expected after upgrading to 8.1. It was not necessary for me to reinstall anything to get Steam working allthough have had to reinstall PunkBuster and manually sign in to GFW for games that use these after launching them first time after the 8.1 upgrade.

[Chuck Bartowski°]

On the time there was only Windows Store option :) Still this page says "If you already have the latest version of Windows 8 installed on your PC, you can update to Windows 8.1 in the Windows Store for free."

I have Win8x64 Pro key, and upgrade to 8.1 was free. Win Activated and updated.
BO2 works fine until i try to reinstall steam. But mw3 was not working after 8.1 ( first game already runing, then this install error code 2 )

Reboot done after uninstalation of Steam, Drivers, Antivirus.

[Balderick]

so what you got is !? :

After updating to 8.1 Steam would only run BO2 but Steam crashes trying to launch any other game. ie MW3

[Chuck Bartowski°]

I playd Black Ops 2 recently, but mw3 was also installed.
BO2 runs ok on 8 and after upgrade ti 8.1, but when i try run mw3 first time on 8.1 errors starts to show.

Nothing help, so i uninstall steam, and then try install all games from scratch. And here i am. None of my games ( Grid, Bo2, mw3, mw2 ) wont install/run. All ends with error code 2.

Now i have Windows 8.1 and no games works :/

[Balderick]

Do you have a steam.exe and SteamApps back up from 8.0?; if so what if you,
Exit Steam,
Delete everything in 8.1 Steam folder,
Copy your steam.exe and SteamApps files from your 8.0 backup,
Paste your steam.exe and SteamApps folder into 8.1 Steam folder,

What you got after double clicking on steam.exe in 8.1 Steam folder?

[Chuck Bartowski°]

Already tried to restore backup of Steam and SteamApps from 8.0
Still the same effect, after click on "play" in library installation starts.

Steam.exe when runing from backup updates to lastest version.

For now i can say that game records in register are missing ( records that's are in installscript.vdf ). I try manualy insert them, but game still dont start/install...

No keys that installer shoud add:
hkey_local_machine\\software\\activision\\black ops ii
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\Software\\Valve\\Steam\\Apps\\202970

Some more restrict UAC in 8.1? But with UAC disabled problem still exists.
Or installer fails before register records are processed?

ps. Realy thx for help, but in my opinion without "VALVE" intervention im stuck... Maybe full System reinstall would help but work stuff is more important then few games...