Understanding Steam Family Sharing: A Comprehensive Guide

Steam Family Sharing is a fantastic feature that allows you to share your Steam game library with family and close friends, letting them enjoy your games without needing to purchase them individually. However, it’s essential to understand how it works, its limitations, and how to set it up correctly. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about Steam Family Sharing.

How to Know if a Shared Steam Library Is in Use

One of the first things you’ll notice when trying to access a shared Steam library is the visibility of whether the library is currently in use. Steam clearly indicates if the owner of the library is actively playing a game. This prevents conflicts and ensures a smooth experience for both the owner and the borrower.

Primary Account Holder’s Access and Game Priority

The primary account holder always has priority access to their game library. This means they can launch and play any game in their library at any time, even if someone else is currently playing a shared game from that library.

If the primary account holder decides to play a game while someone is borrowing their library, the borrower will receive a notification. This notification gives the borrower a timed warning, typically a few minutes, to either:

• Purchase the game themselves.
• Quit the game they are currently playing.

If no action is taken, Steam will automatically close the game for the borrower, granting access back to the primary account holder. This system ensures that the library owner is never locked out of their own games.

Limitations of Steam Family Sharing: Offline Mode and Concurrent Play

While Steam Family Sharing is incredibly convenient, it comes with a few key limitations:

• No Offline Mode for Shared Games: Games accessed through Family Sharing cannot be played in offline mode. This is a fundamental restriction to prevent abuse and ensure that game access is always validated through Steam’s online servers. This makes sense as offline mode could potentially circumvent the sharing limitations.

• One Borrower at a Time: Only one person can access and play games from a shared library at any given time. While you can authorize multiple accounts to access your library, only one of them can be actively playing at once. If two borrowers try to play simultaneously from the same shared library, the second user will be unable to launch a game.

Workaround for Offline Play (Limited and for Single Borrower)

There’s a limited workaround to allow a borrower to play offline, but it requires coordination and only works if you are sharing with a single person. The primary account holder can initiate a game and then switch Steam to offline mode. This might allow the borrower to continue playing as well, as the initial game launch served as validation. However, this is not officially supported and can be unreliable or cease to function at any time as Steam updates its platform. It’s also only practical for sharing with one other person due to the coordination required.

Setting Up Steam Family Sharing: A Step-by-Step Guide

Setting up Steam Family Sharing involves a few steps, and it can be slightly complicated, especially if you use Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator for enhanced account security (which is highly recommended!).

Here’s a breakdown of the setup process:

1. Physical Access to Each Other’s Computers: You will need physical access to the computer of the person you wish to share with. This is because you need to authorize their computer to access your library from your account settings on their machine.

2. Steam Guard Authentication: If both accounts have Steam Guard enabled (which they ideally should for security), the process will involve entering Steam Guard codes. This is where it can become slightly less straightforward.

3. Temporary Password Change (Optional but Recommended for Initial Setup): For the initial setup, some users find it easier to temporarily change to a simple, easily communicated password. This simplifies the login process on the other person’s computer. You can share this temporary password securely via private messaging or in person.

4. Login to Each Other’s Accounts:

   • On the borrower’s computer, the primary account holder needs to log in to their own Steam account.
   • This is necessary to authorize the borrower’s computer for Family Sharing from the primary account holder’s account settings.

5. Authorize Family Sharing:

   • Once logged in on the borrower’s computer with the primary account, go to: Steam > Settings > Family > Family Library Sharing.
   • Authorize sharing with specific accounts that are logged into that computer. You’ll see a list of accounts that have recently logged in. Select the borrower’s account.
   • Ensure you select both the individual account and authorize sharing on that specific computer.

6. Logout and Re-login:

   • The primary account holder should log out of their account on the borrower’s computer.
   • The borrower should then log back into their own Steam account on their computer.

7. Verify Sharing:

   • Both users should log into their own accounts on their respective computers to confirm that Family Sharing is correctly set up. The borrower should now see games from the shared library in their Steam library (they will be listed separately and indicated as shared).

8. Change Passwords Back (If Temporary Passwords Were Used): If you opted for temporary passwords, both account holders should immediately change their passwords back to strong, unique passwords after successfully setting up Family Sharing.

Image: Steam Family Sharing settings interface, showing where to authorize devices and accounts for library sharing.

Security Considerations: Steam Guard and Password Management

Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator is crucial for account security and is highly recommended for all Steam users. While it adds a step to the Family Sharing setup, it significantly enhances account protection. Be cautious when sharing passwords, even temporary ones. Using secure communication methods for temporary passwords and changing them back immediately after setup is vital for maintaining account security.

Conclusion: Enjoying Games Together Responsibly

Steam Family Sharing is a valuable feature for sharing your game library within a household or among close friends. By understanding its functionalities, limitations, and setup process, you can effectively utilize it to share your games and enjoy gaming together responsibly. Just remember to respect the primary account holder’s access and be mindful of the limitations regarding concurrent play and offline mode.