While the phrase "steam cloud" may conjure upwardly images of a boiling kettle or an old-timey train, when it comes to video games it's a killer feature of the largest PC gaming platform. If you game on Steam, yous'll definitely want to know how to use Steam Cloud game saves. When things go wrong, you'll be glad your precious hours of progress are safely stored where no one can delete them.

What Are Steam Cloud Saves?

Games that y'all buy and download through Steam can upload and download salve game files to Steam's servers. In other words, if you lose your figurer'due south data, set a new computer or play your Steam games on multiple computers, you can retrieve your latest save game via the internet.

When you uninstall a game and then reinstall it at a later date, your salvage games will be restored also. In general, Steam Cloud saves let you forget about your save data and just go on with gaming.

Does Every Game Back up Steam Cloud Saves?

Not every game on Steam supports cloud saves. This is something that's left up to the developer. All games don't work the same either. Developers go to choose what data is uploaded and what isn't. If you desire to know if a Steam game supports deject saves, simply go to its store page and check if the Steam Cloud logo is under the list of game features.

Ensuring Cloud Saves Are Agile for Your Game

It'south possible to disable cloud saves for all games on a given Steam figurer. You tin likewise enable or disable the characteristic for individual games also. If your game supports Steam Cloud saves only isn't syncing, you lot can check if the feature is enabled with ease.

To check the global deject save settings:

  1. Open Steam.
  2. Select Steam > Settings.
  3. Switch to the Cloud tab.
  4. Ensure that Enable Steam Cloud synchronization for applications which support information technology is toggled to your preference.
  1. Select OK.

To cheque cloud save condition for private games:

  1. Open up Steam.
  2. Go to your Steam library.

[4 Steam Library 1.jpg]

  1. Right-click on the game in question.
  2. Select Properties.
  1. Switch to the Full general tab.
  2. Bank check that cloud synchronization is toggled co-ordinate to your preference.

Again, not all games accept the Steam Cloud salve feature, so if you lot don't see that option for an individual game, information technology probably doesn't back up information technology. We encourage you to make transmission backups of your salvage game data in that case.

Finding Downloaded Steam Deject Saves on Your PC

Speaking of making manual backups,you tin really access the local copy of your cloud saves on the local machine. As long equally you know the folder locations, of grade:

  • PC: C:\Plan Files (x86)\Steam\userdata
  • Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Steam/userdata
  • Linux: ~/.local/share/Steam/userdata

Only call up that these are the default locations where deject salve data is stored locally. If you lot specified a custom folder when you installed Steam, you need to go to that binder instead.

Inside these folders, you'll find the saves stored according to Steam App ID. This is a unique number that corresponds with a game's catalogue number in the Steam shop. You lot tin can easily observe which ID goes with which game by entering the ID number on SteamDB.

What to Practice with Steam Cloud Salve Conflicts

Sometimes, you'll get an error message from Steam that in that location'southward a conflict between the relieve game stored on your local computer and the one that Steam has on their server. This commonly happens considering you progressed on ii dissimilar versions of the same salve game file.

Near of the time, the right choice is simply to pick the most recently modified version of the file, merely in some cases that may actually non be the save you desire. But to be safe, we recommend choosing to cancel the cloud sync conflict the first fourth dimension you run across it.

At present become make a backup of the local file using the binder locations we but discussed in the previous department. If it turns out that the local files were the ones that y'all should take kept, you can go dorsum and supplant them manually.

Manually Download Your Steam Cloud Saves

Another smashing choice is the ability to view and download your Cloud Sync files using a web browser. But go to the View Steam Cloud and log into your Steam account if you aren't already.

Hither you tin run across every individual game file that'due south stored in your Steam Deject Sync account. All you have to do is select the download button and you lot take a copy for yourself. This is useful for using save files with other versions of a game and to quickly make a backup of the cloud files earlier they are removed in a sync conflict resolution as we simply saw.

Only bear in mind that more than salve game files are stored hither. Developers may cull to store other data, such as game configuration files, right alongside your saves. And then make sure you're downloading the correct matter!

How to Set the "Steam Was Unable to Sync" and Other Issues

The concluding bit of crucial data you demand to get along well with Steam Cloud saves is what to do when things go wrong. Here are some full general tips:

  • Check the Steam home folio to come across if their servers are down.
  • Restart your modems, routers and reckoner.
  • Connect to a unlike network.
  • Check your firewall and antivirus settings.
  • Disable any software that monitors or modifies network traffic to cheque for conflicts.
  • Disable your VPN, Steam doesn't like them and they can get you banned.

Now you lot're armed with all the knowledge you demand to go the nearly out of the Steam Cloud salve characteristic. Which ways yous tin go back to the all-important task of enjoying your video games.