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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchSteam Cloud is Valve’s remote file storage and sync feature for Steam games. A game stores selected files, such as save data or settings, on Valve’s servers, and the Steam client keeps those files matched across the computers you use. It is a per-game feature, not a blanket guarantee: whether a particular title uses it, and which files it covers, is decided by the developer.
How Steam Cloud works
Steam Cloud gives game developers remote storage that is tied to a player’s Steam account. The Steam client handles the transfer. As Valve’s Steamworks documentation puts it: “The Steam Client does the work of ensuring that the files are kept synchronized across all computers the user may be accessing.” The key point for players is that the game, not Steam alone, decides what gets stored.
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Auto-Cloud: file paths configured by the developer
The simpler method is Steam Auto-Cloud. The developer defines the folders or file paths in Steamworks that the game writes to. Steam then watches those paths and replicates matching files when the game session ends. The player does not need to do anything beyond having the game installed and Cloud sync enabled.
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Cloud API: direct control from game code
Developers who need more precision use the Steam Cloud API. Through calls to ISteamRemoteStorage, game code can enumerate, read, write, and delete cloud files itself. This lets a game decide exactly what is saved remotely, for example keeping a progress file in the cloud while leaving temporary cache files local.
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When files sync
Steamworks describes synchronization around game sessions rather than constant background copying:
- Before launch on a new computer: eligible files are downloaded before the game starts, so the save is in place when you first open the game there.
- After a session: changed files are uploaded once the game exits.
- During a session (limited case): Steamworks documents a capability called Dynamic Cloud Sync, which can let changes arriving in the cloud download while an application is running. Not every game uses it, so do not assume a game does.
Turning Steam Cloud on or off
Players have two controls. The global Cloud setting in Steam Settings applies to everything in your library, and a per-game control lives in that game’s properties. Disabling sync stops Steam from exchanging files for that scope. It does not, by itself, describe deleting what is already stored in the cloud, so treat it as a sync switch rather than a cleanup tool.
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File size limits
Steamworks lists two technical thresholds in its current documentation (accessed in 2026):
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| 100 MB | Maximum size for a single call to ISteamRemoteStorage::FileWrite or ISteamRemoteStorage::FileWriteStreamWriteChunk. |
Valve / Steamworks documentation, accessed 2026. This is an operation limit, not a per-account quota. |
| 256 MB | A file this size may be assigned a less optimal storage endpoint for the user’s location, which can slow uploads and downloads. | Valve / Steamworks documentation, accessed 2026. Performance effect, not a hard cap. |
Steamworks also warns that absolute file-size limits can change over time, so developers should check current values rather than rely on older figures. Large files, or large numbers of small files, can slow bandwidth use and delay both shutdown and relaunch. Splitting frequently changed state from rarely changed state, and keeping files small, are the documented ways to reduce that cost.
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Cross-platform saves
Whether a save moves between Windows, macOS, Linux, or another supported platform depends on how the developer configured it, not on Steam Cloud as a single switch. Steamworks lets developers specify which platforms sync a given file. Auto-Cloud also uses a root for each file location, and this is where cross-platform sync most often breaks: if each operating system gets its own root, the files are partitioned and a save made on one platform will not appear on another. The documented route to sharing matching files is a single root with platform-specific overrides.
This means a game can work well on Windows and Steam Deck yet not share saves with a Mac or Linux build. If a save does not travel, the cause is usually the game’s configuration, and a player cannot fix that setting directly.
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Conflicts and what to check
When the same save changes on two computers before either has synced, Steam may show a conflict prompt. Steam Web API documentation advises that file modifications be grouped into a batch to reduce conflicts, which is guidance for developers. For a player, the prompt typically offers the local and cloud versions with their timestamps. Choosing between them is a decision about your progress, and the documentation does not establish one safe default for every title, so check the game’s own support pages before discarding either copy.
If a save is not syncing as expected, work through these checks in order:
- Confirm that the game supports Steam Cloud. Its Steam store page or properties may indicate this, and if the game has no Cloud support, nothing will sync.
- Check the global Cloud setting in Steam Settings, then the per-game setting in the game’s properties. Both must allow sync.
- Close the game fully and leave Steam running until it finishes synchronizing before shutting down or switching computers.
- If you play on more than one operating system, check whether the game is known to share saves across those platforms.
- If a conflict prompt appears, compare the timestamps and consult the game’s support resources before choosing a version.
What Steam Cloud is not
Steam Cloud is a sync service for files a game designates. It is not a general backup tool. The documentation does not promise that every previous version of a save is kept, and it does not describe Steam Cloud as a separate backup guarantee. If you need a copy you can restore from, keep your own backup of important save folders on an external drive or other storage.
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