Steam Cloud Error: What It Means and How to Fix It

Are you getting a Steam Cloud error when trying to play a game? This is a frustrating issue to encounter, especially since this error can lead to losing progress in your game. A Steam Cloud error means that the Steam Cloud cannot synchronize your local saves with the cloud. While this error sometimes goes away on its own, it can also persist. In this article, we've gathered eight tried-and-true methods for fixing this error. Keep reading to learn more.

Ways to Fix Steam Cloud Errors

Toggle cloud saves for the game in question, or for Steam in general.
Repair your Steam Library.
Delete your saves folder while in game, then restore them with a backup.
Change your default drive to the drive that has the game with the error.
Clear your downloads cache.
Disable IPv6.
Turn off your VPN.

Method 1

Method 1 of 8:

Enable Cloud Saves

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It's possible that cloud saves have been disabled for your game. To fix the issue, you'll need to enable them.
Alternatively, you can click the gear icon in the upper-right corner of the game's page.

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Find the "Steam Cloud" header in the "General" tab. The General tab is the default tab when you open a game's settings. Under the "Steam Cloud" header, you'll see an option that says "Keep game's saves in the Steam Cloud for [game name]."^{[1]
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- If this option is toggled off, toggle it on now.
- If this option is toggled on, try toggling it off and then immediately back on.
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.

Method 2

Method 2 of 8:

Toggle Steam Cloud

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This will open a drop-down menu. Some users have found that toggling Steam Cloud on and off fixed this error.^{[2]
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It's near the bottom of the dropdown menu.
It's in the second grouping of options, and it has an icon of a cloud with an up and down arrow.
If Steam Cloud was already turned off, you can skip this step.
This should force Steam Cloud to resynchronize with your games that use Steam Cloud.
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.

Method 3

Method 3 of 8:

Repair Steam Library

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This will open a drop-down menu. Some users have found that repairing their Steam library fixed any Steam Cloud errors they were getting.^{[3]
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It's near the bottom of the dropdown menu.
It's in the second grouping of options, and it has an icon of a hard drive.
It's to the right of the storage bar that shows you how much space is taken up on your drive.
This might take a little time, depending on how many games you have installed and how big those games are.
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.

Method 4

Method 4 of 8:

Delete Saves While In Game

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Make a backup of your saves before continuing. This method involves deleting old saves, so it's important to make a backup of your local save data to avoid losing progress. If you don't want to risk losing old save data or you can't find your game's save data, try a different method in this article instead of this one.
- Unfortunately, every Steam game keeps its save data in a different location. Here are some spots you can check to find your save data:
  - The "userdata" folder, which is located in the main Steam folder in Program Files (Windows), Library (Mac), or .local (Linux)^{[4]
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  - Your documents folder
  - The OneDrive version of the "My Documents" folder (Windows)
  - The hidden "AppData" folder (Windows)
If you get the option to load from a local save, choose it. Otherwise, the game will load the most recent save it has in the Steam Cloud.
If this save is your actual most recent save, you can proceed with the rest of the steps in this article. If the most recent save available in the game is an older save, you might lose data if you continue.
This is the folder that you just made a backup of. Deleting the game's saves folder will cause the game to create a new save data folder when you save the open save file.
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Save your game. Once the game is saved, check to see if the Steam Cloud error has resolved. If it has, you can move your save data backup back into the new save data folder to restore your old saves.^{[5]
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- If this doesn't resolve the issue, try the other methods in this article to fix the error.

Method 5

Method 5 of 8:

Change Default Drive in Steam

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This will open a drop-down menu. Some users have found that the Steam Cloud error was occurring because the game they were playing was installed on the non-default Steam drive.^{[6]
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It's near the bottom of the dropdown menu.
It's in the second grouping of options, and it has an icon of a hard drive.
In this menu, choose the drive where the game that has the error is installed.
It's to the right of the storage bar that shows you how much space is taken up on your drive.
This will change your default drive to the drive you have selected.
This might take a little time, depending on how many games you have installed and how big those games are.
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.

Method 6

Method 6 of 8:

Clear Download Cache

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This will open a drop-down menu. Some users have found that clearing their Steam download cache fixed the Steam Cloud error.^{[7]
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It's near the bottom of the dropdown menu.
It's in the second grouping of options, and it has an icon of a downward arrow.
It's next to the header that says "Clear Download Cache."
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.

Method 7

Method 7 of 8:

Disable VPN

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Some users have found that playing games with a VPN was the source of their Steam Cloud error.^{[8]
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Research source} How you disable your VPN varies depending on which VPN you use, but you can usually open the VPN's app on your computer and press a button in that program to turn it off.
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.

Method 8

Method 8 of 8:

Switch From IPv6 to IPv4

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Disable IPv6. Some users have found that disabling IPv6 connectivity fixed their Steam Cloud error, since Steam doesn't seem to work well with IPv6 and prefers IPv4.^{[9]
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Research source} Note that your internet may flicker when you disable IPv6. Here's how to do it:
- Windows:
  - Open the Control Panel.
  - Click Network and Internet.
  - Click Network and Sharing Center.
  - Click your connection next to "Connections" in the upper-right part of the window.
  - Click Properties.
  - Uncheck the box next to "Internet Protocol Version 6."
  - Save your settings and exit Control Panel.
- Mac:
  - Open System Settings.
  - Click Network.
  - Click the Details… button next to your connection.
  - Click the TCP/IP tab.
  - Next to "Configure IPv6," click the dropdown and choose Link-Local Only.
  - Click OK and exit your settings.
- Linux:
  - Open Terminal.
  - Send the following commands:
    - sudo sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6=1
    - sudo sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6=1
      Note that IPv6 will be enabled when you restart your computer. You'll need to run these commands again to disable it after a reboot.
If the error persists, try some of the other methods in this article. Don't just opt to play the game anyway, as this can cause you to lose progress.