Saturday, May 9, 2015

Putting your Ubuntu Linux Steam library outside the home directory

I use Ubuntu. My "../home" directory is mounted on a separate disk. The advantage of this is that my data can be accessed independently of my applications and operating system, which is a performance boost under some tasks. By default, Steam puts its library in your "../home" directory under ".steam." That is fine for most people, but not for my use case. The solution is to create a new directory under "/opt." I called mine "/opt/steamlibrary." The important part is establishing proper read/write permissions. First, you'll need gksu to make it a little easier. Open a terminal.
sudo apt-get install gksu
gksu nautilus
This opens a nautilus window with root privileges. Go to "/opt." Create a new folder and call it "steamlibrary." Open the folder properties and make sure that your personal user has full read/write permissions.

Now, in Steam, go under "settings," then "downloads," then click "steam library folders" and add your new "/opt/steamlibrary." The next time you download a game, make sure you specify this new directory.

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