Quick Summary
The "Disk Write Error" on Windows generally indicates that Steam is unable to write data to your hard drive, preventing game installations, updates, or saves. This issue often points to problems with disk permissions, drive errors, or conflicting software.
Common Causes
- Insufficient Disk Permissions: Steam may lack the necessary permissions to write data to the designated installation folder or the drive itself. This is a common issue if Steam was not installed with administrator privileges or if user account control settings are restrictive.
- Disk Errors or Bad Sectors: Physical problems on the hard drive, such as bad sectors or general disk errors, can prevent Steam from writing data correctly to those specific areas.
- Antivirus Interference: Antivirus software can sometimes falsely flag Steam files as threats, blocking Steam's attempts to write to the disk. This is especially common after updates to the antivirus program or Steam itself.
- Full or Nearly Full Hard Drive: When the hard drive is full or very close to being full, Steam cannot write the required data. This is because there is no space remaining to perform the requested operations.
- Steam Library Folder Issues: If the Steam library folder is corrupted or located on a drive with issues, it can cause write errors.
Step-by-Step Fixes
Method 1: Run Steam as Administrator
Step 1: Close Steam completely. Make sure it's not running in the system tray.
Step 2: Right-click the Steam icon on your desktop (or in the Start menu) and select "Run as administrator".
Step 3: Try the installation or update again to see if the error is resolved.
Method 2: Verify Game Files Integrity
Step 1: Right-click the game in your Steam library where you encountered this problem, and select "Properties...".
Step 2: Click the "Local Files" tab.
Step 3: Click on "Verify integrity of game files...". Steam will then check the game, and if there are differences, re-download them.
Step 4: Once complete, try launching it again.
Method 3: Check Disk for Errors
Step 1: Open File Explorer (Windows Explorer).
Step 2: Right-click the drive where Steam is installed and select "Properties".
Step 3: Go to the "Tools" tab.
Step 4: Under "Error checking", click "Check".
Step 5: Follow the prompts to scan and repair any disk errors. You may need to restart your computer.
Method 4: Temporarily Disable Antivirus Software
Step 1: Temporarily disable your antivirus software.
Step 2: Try running Steam and performing the action that caused the error (installing, updating, or saving).
Step 3: If the error is resolved, add Steam and the game installation folder to your antivirus exclusions or whitelist. Remember to re-enable your antivirus afterward.
Method 5: Clear Download Cache
Step 1: Open Steam.
Step 2: Go to Steam -> Settings -> Downloads.
Step 3: Click "Clear Download Cache".
Step 4: Restart Steam and try again.
Method 6: Move the Steam Library Folder
Step 1: In Steam, go to Steam -> Settings -> Downloads -> Steam Library Folders.
Step 2: Click "Add Library Folder" to create a new folder on a different drive (if available), or a different location on the existing drive.
Step 3: Once the new folder is created, try moving the game files to the new location by right-clicking game -> Properties -> Local Files -> Move Install Folder.
Method 7: Check Hard Drive Space
Step 1: Open File Explorer (Windows Explorer).
Step 2: Check the hard drive where Steam is installed to make sure you have enough free space to install or update the game. At least 10GB is usually necessary.
Step 3: If the hard drive is full, free up space by deleting unnecessary files or moving them to another drive.