Steam Family Sharing allows you to share your game library with family and close friends, letting them enjoy games from your collection. Here’s a breakdown of how it works and what to keep in mind.
When someone is borrowing your game library, Steam indicates if your account is currently in-use. As the primary account holder, you have priority access. This means you can launch any game at any time. If you start playing a game while someone else is using your shared library, they will receive a notification. This warning gives them a few minutes to either purchase the game themselves or quit playing. If they don’t take action, the game will be automatically closed.
It’s important to note that shared games cannot be played in offline mode directly through the shared library. This is a measure to prevent conflicts and ensure game access is managed properly. However, there is a workaround. If timed correctly, the primary account holder can switch Steam to offline mode after launching a game. This can potentially allow both the owner and the borrower to play simultaneously or offline, especially useful if sharing between just two people.
Setting up Family Sharing requires a bit of initial configuration, especially if you use Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator, which is highly recommended for account security. To enable sharing, you need to log into the primary Steam account on the computer of the person you wish to share with.
Many users find it easiest to temporarily change to a simple password for this setup process. You’ll need to share these temporary credentials securely, perhaps through private messaging. Once logged in on the designated computer, authorize Family Sharing for that specific computer and the chosen account. Ensure you select to share with specific accounts and computers during the setup. After completing the authorization on both accounts, it’s crucial to sign out of each other’s accounts and sign back into your own to verify that sharing is correctly enabled. Finally, remember to change your passwords back to strong, unique ones for security.
