Steam Disk Write Error (7 Ways to Fix)

When you download a game on Steam, it creates a copy of the game’s files on your hard drive. If it’s unable to save those files for some reason, you might get the disk write error from Steam. The error lets you know that you have to fix something before downloading your file.

What Causes Steam Disk Write Errors

Sometimes it’s simply a problem with Steam’s servers, and waiting for a bit can resolve the issue. 

Occasionally, something about your computer’s configuration prevents Steam from saving new data.

Other times, the files you’ve already downloaded are corrupt. This is more common when you’re trying to resume a paused download or update a game since it has to add more to files already present on your disk.

If you’re trying to download a game on a write-protected disk, you’ll get this error because your settings don’t allow programs to add new data to the disk.

You might also get this error if your hard drive is full or corrupt. There are times that the only solution is a new hard drive, unfortunately. 

How To Fix Disk Write Error On Steam

You have to take many steps to determine exactly what the cause of the disk write error might be.

Restart Everything

You should first sign out of Steam, restart your computer, and sign back into Steam. Once everything is loaded up and ready to go, try downloading your files again. steam disk write error

Make sure that Steam is set to run as an administrator. This gives the program more access and can solve problems like the disk write error. 

1. Navigate to your Steam folder.
2. Right-click the Steam executable.
3. Choose Properties.
4. Click on the Compatibility tab.
5. Check the “Run this Program as an Administrator” box.
   
6. Click OK to save your settings.
7. Relaunch Steam. 

Check to make sure that Steam is up and everything is working. Problems with Steams servers might generate unexpected errors on your end.

If Steam is down, wait until the servers are functioning normally before trying your download again.

Check Your Drive

Check your hard drive to ensure that it isn’t full or write-protected. They’re both easy issues to fix but also easy to overlook.

1. Press Windows key + E to launch a file explorer window.
2. Click This PC in the left side panel.
3. Look at the drive where you save Steam files to see whether it’s full.
   

If it’s full, you can go back into Steam and delete some games. Removing games from Steam will delete them from your hard drive and give you more space to install new files.

1. Launch Steam.
2. Click Library.
3. Right-click on an installed game you want to remove.
4. Click Manage.
5. Click Uninstall.
   
6. Click Uninstall on the pop-up.

Games you delete from Steam will still be available for download in the future. You can also delete other files on your hard drive as usual to clear space.

To see whether your hard drive is write-protected, try to run a CHKDSK scan. It’s a good scan to run even if the disk isn’t write protected since it might find errors causing problems with writing to your disk.

1. Press Windows key + X.
2. Choose Windows PowerShell (Admin).
3. Type “chkdsk x: /f” without quotes, replacing X with the letter of the drive you’re trying to use.
   
4. Press Enter.
5. You will get an error message if the drive is write-protected. If it is, you must remove the protection to download games from Steam to the drive.

There are two ways to remove write protection: diskpart and the Registry Editor. It’s good to know how to do both if one of the two isn’t successful when you attempt it.

Removing Write-Protection With diskpart

1. Press Windows key + R.
2. Type “diskpart” without quotes.
3. Press Enter.
4. Type “list disk” without quotes, and then press Enter.
5. Type “select disk x” without quotes, replacing X with the letter of your drive.
6. Press Enter.
7. Type “attributes disk clear readonly” without quotes and press Enter.
   
8. Type “exit” without quotes, and then press Enter.

Removing Write-Protection With the Registry Editor

1. Press Windows key + R.
2. Type “regedit” without quotes, and then press Enter.
3. Unfold the following menus: Computer>HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE>SYSTEM>Control>StorageDevicePolicies
4. Double-click the WriteProtect option.
5. Delete the Value Data and replace it with 0.
   
6. Click OK.

Sometimes there isn’t a StorageDevicePolicies entry in the Control area. If you can’t find it, create one.

1. Right-click on the Control folder entry.
2. Click New.
3. Choose Key.
   
4. Title your entry “StorageDevicePolicies” without quotes.
5. Right-click in the right panel and choose New.
6. Click DWORD (32-bit) Value.
7. Set the Value Name to “Write Protect” without quotes.
   
8. Set the Value Data to 0.
9. Save the entry.

Once you’re done, try to download your game on Steam again. 

If you cannot remove the write protection, your hard drive might be damaged. You also should ensure that the Windows account you’re using has administrator access on the computer you’re using.

Don’t edit the registry if you’re not comfortable with making changes like that to your computer. Editing the registry can create issues for your computer if you aren’t sure what you’re doing.

Check Your Firewall and Antivirus Settings

Sometimes programs designed to protect you are a little too zealous and block things you want to download. While you should never leave your antivirus or firewall off for an extended time, doing so temporarily can let you know that they’re the cause of your issues.

1. Press Windows key.
2. Type Windows Security and click the corresponding app.
3. Click Virus and Threat Protection in the left panel.
   
4. Click Manage Settings.
5. Toggle Real-Time Protection to Off.
   
6. Click Firewall and Network Protection in the left panel.
7. Click Domain Network.
   
8. Toggle Microsoft Defender Firewall to Off.
   
9. Click the back arrow.
10. Click Private Network.
    
11. Toggle the Firewall to Off.
    
12. Try downloading to Steam again.

If the download works when you turn these settings off, add exceptions in the firewall and antivirus to let Steam through the shields. Open Windows Security again to adjust these settings.

1. Under Virus and Threat Protection, click Manage Settings.
   
2. Click Add or Remove Exclusions.
3. Click Add an Exclusion.
4. Choose File.
   
5. Click the Steam executable.
6. Choose Open.
   
7. Click Yes.
8. Click Firewall and Network Protection.
9. Click Allow an App Through the Firewall.
   
10. Click Change Settings.
11. Click Allow Another App.
12. Click Browse.
    
13. Choose the Steam Executable.
14. Click Add.
15. Click OK.

Once you’ve changed these settings, toggle the firewall and antivirus back on. Try to download your files again to see whether it works now. 

The procedure will be slightly different if you aren’t using Windows built-in firewall and antivirus. Change their settings and add exceptions through their dashboards.

Verify Your Files

If the file you’re downloading is an update or an addition to something already downloaded in your Steam library, try verifying it. The verification process checks for corrupted files.

1. Launch Steam.
2. Click Library.
3. Right-click the game you’re trying to download.
4. Choose Properties.
   
5. Choose Local Files.
6. Click Verify Integrity of Game Files.
   
7. Click Close when the process completes. Steam will automatically attempt to download and replace any files.

If you haven’t downloaded any of the files yet, this step won’t work. You have to have a game downloaded to verify it. 

Check for Problems With the Steam Folder

There are two issues you might encounter in the Steam folder itself. First, the folder might be set to read-only. This means that you can use files on the disk but can’t save new data.

It might also have damaged versions of downloaded files that prevent new downloads from saving correctly.

1. Navigate to your Steam folder. If you are using multiple drives to manage your games, go to the hard drive on which you’re trying to download a game.
2. Right-click on the Steam folder.
3. Choose Properties.
4. Uncheck Read Only.
   
5. Click OK.
6. Open the Steam folder.
7. Open the steamapps folder.
8. Open the Common folder.
9. Delete any folders with the name of the game you’re trying to download.
   
10. Sign out of Steam.
11. Restart your computer.
12. Sign into Steam.
13. Try your download again.

Removing corrupted files and ensuring you can save data on your folder can help you fix the disk write error. However, deleting Steam game folders means that you might have to start any previous downloads from scratch. 

You can also try the flushconfig command to clear our problematic files.

1. Close Steam completely.
2. Press Windows key + R.
3. Type “steam://flushconfig” without quotes.
4. Press Enter.
   
5. Navigate to the Steam executable in the main Steam folder.
6. Launch the program by double-clicking the executable.
7. Try your download again.

Using this command shouldn’t delete your games or personal files, but you may have to restore your authorization code and personal settings. 

Another good thing to try is clearing the download cache on Steam.

1. Launch Steam.
2. Click Steam.
3. Choose Settings.
   
4. Select Downloads.
5. Click Clear Download Cache.
   
6. Click OK.

Try to download your files again. 

Check Your Disk and System for Errors

Certain errors can prevent a disk from storing new data. Unfortunately, sometimes this is bad enough that you have to replace your hard drive. 

There are a few different scans you can run.

Start with the System File Checker. It’s a fast and easy-to-use Windows utility that might find problems interfering with your Steam downloads.

1. Press Windows key.
2. Type “cmd” without quotes in the search bar.
3. Hover over the Command Prompt entry.
4. Choose Run as Administrator in the right pane.
5. Click yes.
6. Type “sfc /scannow” without quotes.
   
7. Press Enter.
8. Wait for the scan to finish.

If there are problems that Windows can’t fix, you might need to consider doing a clean installation of your operating system. This will only happen in a small percentage of cases. 

Once the System File Checker is complete, try checking the disk directly.

1. Press Windows key + E.
2. Choose This PC in the left pane.
3. Right-click on the disk that Steam stores games on.
4. Click Properties.
5. Click Tools.
6. Click Check under Error Checking.
   
7. Click Scan Drive.
   
8. Wait for the process to complete.
9. Click Close.

If the process finds no errors and you still can’t download games to your drive, it is probably time to get your hard drive checked by a professional or reach out to Steam support.