Dealing with Games on Different Drives

[happycheater]

Hello. I'm not at all learned in the mechanics of file directory (or whatever it would be called), but I'd appreciate any simple advice I can get.

 

I get the feeling I may be making things harder for myself, but... Well, I was told when I got my custom PC that putting bigger/more demanding games in the C Drive would allow them to run just a little bit better, so I have two different install locations for my Steam games, one in C, the other in D. But I've had some issues getting Vortex mods to work with games, and I'm wondering if I should just give up and have only one install location.

But even then, where? Vortex is installed in C, as standard, and so is Steam. But while my C Drive is a decent size, it's not big enough to hold ALL the games I might install, so D would be best in that respect. Should I uninstall Vortex and/or Steam and reinstall them both on D, or what?

 

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I really want to get back into modding, as I had tons of fun with it years ago. But I've had so much trouble recently (I had a several year period with no computer) that I've backed away from it altogether, and I don't want that.

[showler]

Vortex shouldn't have problems with games on different drives. You should just need to make sure that the mods for each game are on the same drive as that game. You can set the location of the mods for each game in the settings for each game.

 

Other than that, you just don't want to have games installed in the Program Files directory of the C drive.

[happycheater]

Vortex shouldn't have problems with games on different drives. You should just need to make sure that the mods for each game are on the same drive as that game. You can set the location of the mods for each game in the settings for each game.

 

Other than that, you just don't want to have games installed in the Program Files directory of the C drive.

Huh. So they can just be anywhere (other than in the Vortex installation folder or the C drive thing I ask for clarification on below), as long as they're on the same drive? They don't have to be in the same folder as the game, just the same drive?

 

Um, Steam is installed in the Program Files (x86) directory of the C drive, which is also one of the install locations for my Steam games... Is THAT okay? Vortex is in the other (non-x86) Program Files directory of the C drive.

[showler]

Where Vortex is installed doesn't matter.

 

Ideally, you'd want Steam installed outside of Program Files, but only because it defaults to putting your Steam Library in the same location.

 

So, you'd want to have a "c:/Steam/Steamapps/common/name of game" folder with the game install and a "c:/Vortexmods/name of game" folder for your mod deployment folder.

 

Then a "d:/SteamLibrary/common/name of other game" and a "d:/Vortexmods/name of other game" folder for the games and mods on your second drive.

[happycheater]

Where Vortex is installed doesn't matter.

 

Ideally, you'd want Steam installed outside of Program Files, but only because it defaults to putting your Steam Library in the same location.

 

So, you'd want to have a "c:/Steam/Steamapps/common/name of game" folder with the game install and a "c:/Vortexmods/name of game" folder for your mod deployment folder.

 

Then a "d:/SteamLibrary/common/name of other game" and a "d:/Vortexmods/name of other game" folder for the games and mods on your second drive.

Okay.

 

Again, is it equally bad for Steam to be installed in "Program Files (x86)" as you're saying it's bad for it to be installed "Program Files"? Because my Steam is currently installed in "Program Files (x86)". Should I uninstall Steam and reinstall it in a completely new location, outside of EITHER of those two similarly-named folders?

 

Ah, okay. Is the "mod deployment folder" you mentioned the same thing as the "Downloads Folder" (currently in "C:\Users\Own er\AppData\Roaming\Vortex\downloads") in the Downloads tab of the Settings section of Vortex? Because I don't see an option to create a second one.

 

 

Sorry if I'm quibbling or being unclear. I've always had the impression that even the tiniest mistake/misunderstanding can ruin everything when it comes to computer stuff, so I'm trying not to screw anything up.

[showler]

Putting Steam in a directory outside Program Files ("Program Files" and "Program Files (x86)" are basically the same thing, with the former being for 64-bit applications and the latter for 32-bit applications) simply removes the games in the Steam Library on C from being affected by Windows file protection.

 

If you don't have any modded games on C it wouldn't matter, but if you are modding games on C then putting it in its own directory ("C:\Steam") is a good idea.

 

For the "mod deployment folder", if you are managing a game and go to the Vortex settings there will be a "mods" tab (at the top). The first entry should be the "mod staging folder" for the current game being managed. It's possible some games don't have a mod staging folder; I mostly mod Bethesda games and they all do. Next to the text box for the mod staging folder is a "suggest" button. Usually, the directory that Vortex suggests is a good one.

 

The "downloads" folder is universal, with Vortex automatically sorting mods to the correct game folder within the downloads folder. Since the download folder is only used during installation, not while the game is running, it's best put on your largest/slowest drive. Save your fast drives for the games themselves.