One Steam Login Per USER, Not COMPUTER

[Queen Vinyl Da.i'gyu-Kazotetsu]

The steam client can be annoying with logins. I would like a feature where each computer user can log in on their own accounts, instead of being logged into one account on one computer.

[ManiacMal]

What would be the reason to login 2 accounts on one PC?

[Τhe Rolling Cheese Wheel]

Originally posted by Hashbrick:

What would be the reason to login 2 accounts on one PC?

I would like to know this as well.

[Curtis@HeroesofTalon]

Perhaps its a family PC or shared with housemates? I don't really know of any other reason.

Originally posted by The Rolling Cheese:

Originally posted by Hashbrick:

What would be the reason to login 2 accounts on one PC?

I would like to know this as well.

[the_frapster]

I have 5 desktop PC's in my house and with my three kids sometimes they login to different computers. If they login to their account, they should have the Steam client auto start but with their ID that was saved into their profile, instead of say my ID come up.

From a programming sense of things, it doesn't sound like a hard thing to do, just scan the local use profiler for a saved ID and login with that instead.

[Τhe Rolling Cheese Wheel]

Originally posted by the_frapster:

I have 5 desktop PC's in my house and with my three kids sometimes they login to different computers. If they login to their account, they should have the Steam client auto start but with their ID that was saved into their profile, instead of say my ID come up.

From a programming sense of things, it doesn't sound like a hard thing to do, just scan the local use profiler for a saved ID and login with that instead.

ah I see now, fair enough.

[ManiacMal]

Well this makes sense from your standpoint. To Steam though they would have to create an API to hookup to the windows profile to figure out what it should launch. I get the hassle on your side but it's one of those rare cases that wouldn't deem worth while to Steam to create.

[Satoru]

You could do this

1) Disable auto-login of steam
2) Disable 'run at startup'
3) Create a batch file for each 'user'
4) Launch steam via the command line
steam.exe -login %u

https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Command_Line_Options#Steam_.28Windows.29

5) Link this batch file to the HKCU/software/microsoft/windows/run key

Steam will then launch for each 'user' when they log into the PC

[Queen Vinyl Da.i'gyu-Kazotetsu]

Originally posted by Curtis@HeroesofTalon:

Perhaps its a family PC or shared with housemates? I don't really know of any other reason.

Originally posted by The Rolling Cheese:

Originally posted by Hashbrick:

What would be the reason to login 2 accounts on one PC?

I would like to know this as well.

Yes, Curtis@HeroesofTalon. It is a shared computer in my family.

[Queen Vinyl Da.i'gyu-Kazotetsu]

Originally posted by Satoru:

You could do this

1) Disable auto-login of steam
2) Disable 'run at startup'
3) Create a batch file for each 'user'
4) Launch steam via the command line
steam.exe -login %u

https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Command_Line_Options#Steam_.28Windows.29

5) Link this batch file to the HKCU/software/microsoft/windows/run key

Steam will then launch for each 'user' when they log into the PC

Thanks for the idea, Satoru. I'll try doing that when I get the chance.

[Damgard]

Originally posted by the_frapster:

I have 5 desktop PC's in my house and with my three kids sometimes they login to different computers. If they login to their account, they should have the Steam client auto start but with their ID that was saved into their profile, instead of say my ID come up.

From a programming sense of things, it doesn't sound like a hard thing to do, just scan the local use profiler for a saved ID and login with that instead.

I have almost exactly same "configuration" here (just running only 2 PCs so far ;-) ). The login solution above seems at least unconvenient (letting security issues away), as
it requires Steam auto-logon on Windows logon, what I would not like to teach my children as a good praxis.

Being data security professional I did 60 minutes "hacking survey" and found other solution:
There is the file "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\config\SteamAppData.vdf" file in Steam configuration folder, which is responsible for remembering last user logged in (updated on logout). The content is plain text, like :

"SteamAppData"
{
"RememberPassword" "1"
"AutoLoginUser" "<last_logged_in_user_name>"}

It is not sensitive to tampering with, so not even you can copy-replace it with any version you wish, but you can edit it in Windows notepad as well (at least tested changing "RememberPassword" from "0" to "1" and works OK). Seems like passwords are remembered in different place(s) of Steam, so you just need to provide usename and clue about password remembering.

So you can simply make multiple copies of this file ready (one for each user account) and by any auto-runned batch simply copy the proper one to Steam config location on Windows user login. I tested, that this works perfectly even if Steam login is (later) activated by the steam game run link, what is my intended use for children (and off-course it works for runing Steam alone as well).

I intend to create My Documents\Steam folder containing the SteamAppData.vdf file for each Windows user and make All users auto-run batch for copying them on logon. Just to offer idea of some consistent arrangement.

Should Steam maintainers adopt this solution (or any derived one) I hereby grant them free licnse to use my original work. E-mail notifying me about fact that this happened would be heartly welcome as I like the feeling of helping to the community.
However hope it will not encourage them to close this possibility some way ;-).

[I'm migles]

i like the 2 ideias above this post but i don't find i want my password in a plain txt\batch file.. it may sounds a little idiot, but the steam gives some encryption if i am not wrong.. it may be easy to other software to decrypt it but its better than nothing.. sometimes i leave my computer and my sister comes and starts to play, if she play in my account for mistake its not a big big problem, but i preefer to don't have my password in a way she can easly find it..

[mendel]

The password isn't in that file, just the user name.

[Satoru]

You can also try a few other things

1) Manually copy the staem.exe to another folder. Then have each user launch a different steam.exe. You'll need to test this however

2) You can try to use Sandboxee to sandbox one user's information. Unless you have a Brady Bunch sized brood the free version should suffice at least for testing purposes.

[Damgard]

UPDATE on my previous post. I finished and tested final arangement to my full satistfaction. Trying to arrange it as "native Windows 7" as possible, I have changed some file locations and autorun launch mechanism. So I post step-by-step howto here:

1) Login for each intended user to Steam and logout again (not sure, if this logout is necessary, but did not tested variants). After each one copy the file %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Steam\config\SteamAppData.vdf into respective %LocalAppData%\Steam folder afterwards (on the path for the RESPECTIVE USER (!); you have to create Steam folder under %LocalAppData% yourself).
See http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc766489.aspx for more details on file locations and environment variables names. Also look to what command line command SET (no parameters) outputs to get an idea.

2) Create batch file copying the proper configuration back on logon in the recommended location %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Steam\ConfigPerUserPatch

copy /Y /B "%LocalAppData%\Steam\SteamAppData.vdf" "%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Steam\config\SteamAppData.vdf"

(It should contain just ONE line, so if it get line-wrapped on forums, please put no newlines into it.)

The Steam folder should exist (unles you changed the default upon installation), you just create the ConfigPerUserPatch folder and the batch file under it. It is safe regarding to Steam operation.

3) Create the run key in Windows registry to activate batch on user login. First run regedit command (use google if you never did registry editing before to understand the process and risks). Then find the proper path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

.Create new Expandable string value here. It is important to use "Expandable" one, otherwise environment variables substitution will not occure and program will not work. Name of new key is arbitrary, I do sugest "SteamConfigPerUserPatch". Then rightclick new key and choose Modify... to place text content to it:

"%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Steam\ConfigPerUserPatch\SteamConfigPerUserPatch.bat"

Voila, you should be good to go. Enjoy.

[Steve Harvey]

This whole discussion is crazy!!! Why should users have to repair Steam's buggy and poorly written software? Why shouldn't we demand that the developers at Steam write a modern application? People have been using PC's with multiple user profiles for over 10 years!!! And Valve / Steam cannot be bothered to update their application to support this extremely common scenario? They such lazy and incompetent developers that the user community must find the answer and work-around the limitations of their poorly written and buggy software?

To me these solutions might work, but they are completely unacceptable. Valve / Steam need to re-write their application so that it complies to modern computing standards.