Fix: Steam Disk Write Error | How to Guide that Explains 10 Methods

So you are a regular steam user, and it occurs to you that all of a sudden, Steam is displaying disk write error. Don’t worry because I am here to resolve your issue, and we together are going to fix this particular error. Before we proceed to confirm the error you are getting in the steam client:

• An error has occurred while installing [game name].
• An error has occurred while updating [game name]

This error commonly occurs when Steam is not able to complete the installation or updating process. There may be many different reasons behind this, depending on the problem your PC encountered. The most commonly suggested solution is to delete Steam and download the entire content (including games) again. Although this method should work just fine, it is quite a hard measure and takes a lot of time. There is no need to resort to this solution if a simpler one works for you. If you are facing Route Error on Discord our guide to fixing that will surely help you resolve your problem.

The reason behind this problem is the incomplete installation of the game or updating process issues, and there could be other reasons as well, so its a guesswork. A common method to fix the disk write error in Steam is deleting steam client and downloading all of your games again, but that’s a lot of hassle. In this guide, I am going to list solutions that can potentially save your time, and you don’t have to download all of your games again.

Fix 1: Try Changing Steam Region

Before advancing to advanced troubleshooting, we will change Steam’s settings to see if the problem gets fixed. One of the basic things you can do is change the download region.

It’s a common fix by changing a few settings of the Steam client. You might be able to get your problem fixed. Steam has multiple regions, and for every region, there are particular changes and settings, they detect users region and provide content according to that. It occurs to me that if the Steam server is overloaded or has technical fault user can face problems like disk write failed error. In such a case, changing the downloading region is an excellent option to go for.

1. Open Steam then clicks on “Settings.”
2. Once in Settings, click on “Downloads” and navigate to the “Download Region.”
3. Select any other regions than yours and restart Steam.

Fix 4: Check for Corrupt Files and Fix Them

If these two methods don’t work for you, we can troubleshoot which file went corrupt/missing and try to re-download the entire file again.

If the above four methods didn’t somehow work, you could always try checking for Corrupt Files. Here’s how you can find the missing or corrupt files of Steam:

1. Close Steam and then navigate to your Steam directory.
2. Open the “logs” folder and then open the “workshop_log.txt” file.
3. At the bottom of the workshop_log.txt file search for recent errors.

An example of an error is this:

[2020-02-25 12:47:31] [AppID 346110] Update canceled: File commit failed: failed to move unchanged file “C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\workshop\content\346110\570371714\LinuxNoEditor\NPC\Female\Assets\Nude\Nude_Human_Female_Body_D.uasset.z.uncompressed_size” (Disk write failure)

The first number written in the URL is the APPID, in this case, the AppID (346110) for ARK Survival Evolved.

4. Navigate to the root folder of the mod, in this case, and it is 570371714. It has no specific file size as the root folders of different games may vary and delete that file noted above.
5. Restart Steam and move to Downloads. Here you will notice that Steam will be asking for an update for the game. Update the necessary files, and you’ll be good to go.

Fix 5: Check Directory Permissions

It is always worth checking your Folder or Directory Permission. Here’s how you can do it.

1. Exit steam client then opens your Steam directory by default it is:

   C:/Program Files (x86)/Steam

   If you have chosen a custom location during Client installation, open that specific directory.

2. Once the directory is open Confirm it is not “Read-only” by checking its properties.
3. If the directory is “Read-only” Right-click on the Steam launcher and clicks on “Run as administrator.”

Doing This will ensure that the steam directory is not marked as Read-only because of steam issues. Running the application as administrator will give it privileges to write to the disk again, ultimately resolving the problem.

Fix 6: Remove Write Protection of The Steam Folder/Drive

If you have enabled or any of the applications you have installed has write-protection, then Steam will give you the disk write error. Write protection is very common in a lot of different games/applications for enhanced security. In that case, removing write protection of the Steam folder/drive may solve the problem.

If you have enabled applications you have installed write-protection, it might cause the write error of Steam. Write protection is common if many games and applications to enhance their security. By Removing write protection of the steam folder, you’ll increase the possibility of fixing your problem.

1. First, remove the write protection.
2. Now Launch Steam to check if all of its functions are working normally.

Fix 7: Temporarily Disable Antivirus/Firewall

Fix 8: Change Game Installation Folder

It is a good idea to move your game folder to an alternate folder location or hard drive. If any local files are present in the location of the game that is causing conflict, the issue will be resolved as the entire application will have local space. Do move your game folder here is what you will have to do:

1. Open Steam, then click on Settings.
2. Now click on Downloads, then Steam Library Folders, and then click on Add new Library folder.
   
3. Now choose the new location where you want to store the games.
4. Once the above process is complete, check if Steam is working correctly.

I hope this process has resolved your disk write error in Steam.