I wish there was a way to synchronize all Steam game files between two computers

[CurseTheSky]

Steam has been such a Godsend for me. Not having to keep track of multiple disks, swap out the disk in the drive (not a fan of cracks, even if harmless), not having to lug disks around if I go mobile, etc.

With that said, my one regret is not being able to easily synchronize save files and settings for games between more than one computer. For example, I have a few Titan Quest characters on my desktop, and I would like to be able to play the same characters from my laptop from time to time. Sure, I can plug in an external hard drive (since Steam is installed on it for my laptop anyway) and manually copy over the files, but what a pain.

Not to mention certain games like to install save files in the most obscure places.

 

[Tristicus]

Steam Cloud saves some things...that has to do with the individual games....why not just move the save files?

 

[Nebor]

Steam Cloud saves some things...that has to do with the individual games....why not just move the save files?

Because we're already using a system that requires a connection to the internet, allows you to play on multiple machines, and has a cloud system. So make our characters upload! I'm in the exact same situation as the OP. I was halfway through Titan Quest when I came to Afghanistan, but when I came I only dropped my "steam apps" folder onto my external HD. So I don't have my character and I don't want to start over.

 

[TheKub]

Why don't you try something like MS Live Sync (or Mesh, or Foldershare, or whatever they are calling it this week). I believe it will let you pick folders on different machines and will sync them up for you.

 

[fatpat268]

What i did for titan quest (to share the save with my desktop and laptop) was to copy the save folder to my dropbox account (if you don't have one... you should get it, it's free) and created a symbolic link in the original location.

So now, whenever I make a save, it automatically uploads the newest save to dropbox's server.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

totally agree. steam cloud is awesome though, when it is supported. all games should use it

 

[Elcs]

Because we're already using a system that requires a connection to the internet.

Steam does not require a connection to the internet to play a game (unless the game is internet only in the instance of MMO's)

You can work in an offline-only mode to play almost any game.

What should really be asked is: 'why has Steam not introduced more games into it's cloud system?'

Is that down to Steam, the Publisher, the developers, the community? From a user standpoint it would be a very handy thing to have and I cannot see my configuration files and saved game files being prohibitively large for upload/download/storage.

If Steam cloud saves configuration data for a game, how does it handle the in-game resolution if say I played it at 1080p on a 1080p capable screen then went to play it on a 720p max capable screen for sake of arguement?

 

[skace]

robocopy.exe


robocopy "\\machine1\c$\steam" "\\machine2\c$\steam" /e /copyall /mir /r:1 /w:1 /log:"\\machine1\c$\logs\robocopy.log"

You can also do the same thing for your "My documents"

 

[xCxStylex]

I HIGHLY recommend this method. Dropbox is perfect for synching something like save files.

TY for the tip btw, although I tried TQ for about 5 hrs 3 years ago, I never touched it since I bought it during the xmas sale. This is perfect!

What i did for titan quest (to share the save with my desktop and laptop) was to copy the save folder to my dropbox account (if you don't have one... you should get it, it's free) and created a symbolic link in the original location.

So now, whenever I make a save, it automatically uploads the newest save to dropbox's server.

 

[xCxStylex]

I also agree and wish that steam cloud would be supported for more games



I'm going to take a stab that it's probably up to the developer and publisher of the game more so than steam.

What should really be asked is: 'why has Steam not introduced more games into it's cloud system?'

Is that down to Steam, the Publisher, the developers, the community? From a user standpoint it would be a very handy thing to have and I cannot see my configuration files and saved game files being prohibitively large for upload/download/storage.

If Steam cloud saves configuration data for a game, how does it handle the in-game resolution if say I played it at 1080p on a 1080p capable screen then went to play it on a 720p max capable screen for sake of arguement?

 

[KeypoX]

microsofts sync? I havnt tried it but seems to be better for that type than dropbox would be. Love dropbox though, but dont think you can specify different folders like sync can

 

[fatpat268]

microsofts sync? I havnt tried it but seems to be better for that type than dropbox would be. Love dropbox though, but dont think you can specify different folders like sync can

No, you can't sync certain folders with dropbox, but you can trick it to.

It involves moving the ACTUAL folder to the dropbox folder, and then creating a symbolic link back to the location of the original folder. It's basically a shortcut to your folder inside the dropbox. Programs and games see this as a normal folder.

I've used symbolic links for steam games as well, and it can help people with SSDs. Say for example, you have an ssd and have steam installed on a different drive... but you want a particular game to be on the ssd instead. You can copy the entire game folder on the ssd, and then create a symbolic link to the ssd, and steam wouldn't know any better. Likewise, if you're just plain running out of space in steam, you can copy game folders to a larger hard drive with more space and do the same thing.

Check this link out for more info:

http://www.ideaexcursion.com/2009/02/26/howto-synchronize-dropbox-and-zumodrive-on-windows/

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2086396

Asked the same thing a few days ago, DropBox seems like the answer

 

[Liet]

What i did for titan quest (to share the save with my desktop and laptop) was to copy the save folder to my dropbox account (if you don't have one... you should get it, it's free) and created a symbolic link in the original location.

So now, whenever I make a save, it automatically uploads the newest save to dropbox's server.

I was just about to recommend Dropbox. Choose your folders and it'll automatically sync them, so your Steam games are good to go!

My bet is that Valve doesn't want to handle such a big bandwidth project like synching gigs and gigs of game files, but they do make Steam apps work easily with other Steam installs so long as the files are there.

 

[andytizer]

I do this all the time using Live Sync Beta (the new MS replacement of Live Sync and Live Mesh). It's better than Dropbox because you don't have to create symlinks, and there is also a wiki of Steam savegames

There is also a detailed guide on how to use Live Sync Beta for savegames here.

 

[kamikazekyle]

I prefer Dropbox with links/junctions over Live Mesh. When I used Mesh, it often didn't respond very well to frequent updates. For example, I used it to sync up Oblivion saves. I would save the game, exit right after, only to find out Mesh decided to revert the save back to the "cloud" version or delete the save game. There were a few times where a file wouldn't sync between the computers because the computers were reported offline while logged in and running fine.

Granted, this was a while ago, but I found it too unreliable to rapid changes in files or proper file versioning. Also, if you want specific folder sync, I think the beta of the new dropbox supports selective folders, though I haven't tried it.

I make up a series of batch files that are system agnostic and store them with my saved games in dropbox. Then, when I'm on a new system, I run the batch file, it pulls/prompts for what's needed depending on the game. It will then automatically create the new junction(s) and move/delete/manage files as needed.