How To Fix Steam Workshop Not Downloading

Are you having difficulty downloading mods from Steam? You aren’t the only one. Several users have encountered this problem. Some can’t download or access mods, while others have trouble updating them.

In this post, we’ll look at some of the most common causes of Steam Workshop downloading errors and offer some workarounds to help you get your downloads moving again.

Steam Workshop Not Downloading

The Steam Workshop is a feature of the Steam platform that allows users to create and share content for video games developed by Valve or that run on the Steam platform.

The Workshop was first introduced in 2011 to allow users to share modifications for the game Team Fortress 2. Since then, it has been expanded to include thousands of games, including Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Sid Meier’s Civilization V. The Workshop allows users to upload Steam Workshop Content, which can include everything from 3D models and textures to entire mods and maps.

Users can also browse workshop content created by other users, rate and comment on it, and subscribe to content that they want to be automatically updated. In addition, the Workshop provides a way for developers to directly integrate user-created content into their games.

Sadly, however, the Workshop’s operations haven’t been smooth as of late. There have been multiple reports of downloads abruptly terminating mid-way through completion or not launching at all. In some cases, the problem only appears with a couple of mods, but some users have also reported being unable to download anything at all.

What’s even more compounding is that this problem is not isolated to one or two operating systems. Whether you’re running on Windows 7, 10, or 11, your downloads can freeze without notice.

While identifying the exact cause of the problem isn’t straightforward, it’s generally thought to be one or more of the following:

• Mods status bar only appears in BPM (Big Picture Mode): In recent times, Steam seems to have modified the download page where mods are sometimes downloading silently in the background. If this happens and a mod update downloads silently in the background, the BPM should confirm it.
• The Workshop folder has some corrupted files: There’s a possibility the mod files you’ve attempted to download are corrupted. A corrupted download file is one that has been damaged or altered during the download process. This can be caused by several factors, including network issues, malware, or user error.
• Broken files in the download cache: If the download queue is too long, Windows will not be able to process all of the downloads correctly. This can lead to errors and increased download times.
• Different Download regions: Your files may not download successfully if the download region in the file doesn’t match or is too far away from your true physical location.
• The Account is enlisted to Steam Beta: Data gathered suggests a high correlation between Workshop download errors and the use of Steam Beta programs.
• Corrupted Steam installation: Problems may have occurred while downloading and installing Steam on your device.

If you’re currently struggling with your Steam Workshop downloads, don’t fret. Below we’ve listed several troubleshooting steps that successfully resolved the issue among Steam users.

Delete Corrupted Mods

If some downloads are coming through without problems while others get stuck in the queue, there’s a good chance some of the mods you’ve downloaded previously were corrupted. Steam’s refusal to complete some downloads is its way of asking you to get rid of the corrupted files before downloads can resume without issues.

Here are the steps to delete corrupted mods:

1. Close your Steam client account completely. If you don’t do this, you may not be able to gain access to some folders.
   
2. Open file Explorer and click on the “View” button.
   
3. Select the “View Hidden Files & Folder” option.
   
4. Navigate to the following location using File Explorer:
   C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common*Game Name*!Workshop
   Keep in mind that in the directory above, “Game Name” is merely a placeholder. You’d need to replace it with the game title you’re having issues with.
   
5. At this point, you should see a list of all the mods you’ve downloaded for the game selected. To single out the corrupted mods, double click on each and identify the ones that return a “Location is not available” error. You should delete those immediately.
6. You now need to verify the integrity of all the healthy files you haven’t deleted. To do so, open Steam, head over to the library section, and select the game whose mods you’ve just deleted.
   
7. Right-click on the game and select “Properties.”
   
8. Click on the “Local Files” button and select “Verify Integrity of Game Files.”
   

Once you’ve confirmed that all the mods retained are working, you can now head back to Steam Workshop and redownload a new mod. In most cases, the mod downloads without problems.

Enable Big Picture Mode

Sometimes your downloads may be completed successfully, but you can only view the progress in the Big Picture Mode (BPM).

Here’s how to activate the BPM:

1. Open Steam client.
   
2. Click on “Big Picture Mode” in the upper right corner of your screen.
   

Clear Corrupt Download Cache

When you download something from the internet, your computer stores a copy of the data in a temporary location called the “cache.” The next time you try to access that same data, your computer can load it much faster from the cache instead of having to retrieve it again from the original source.

However, sometimes the data in the cache can become “corrupted,” which means it’s no longer accurate or up-to-date. This can happen for various reasons, such as an interrupted internet connection or an error when writing data to the cache. Corrupted data can impede future download operations and lead to errors.

Here’s how to clear the Steam download cache:

1. Open Steam client and head over to Settings.
   
2. Select the “Download” tab from the Settings menu.
   
3. Click on the “Clear Download Cache” button at the bottom of the screen.
   
4. Click on “OK” to confirm your choice.
   

After this, you can sign in to Steam and try downloading the mod again.

Update the Download Region

This troubleshooting method aims to ensure that the download region selected on Steam matches your physical location as much as possible.

Here’s how to update your download region on Steam:

1. Navigate to your Steam client account and open “Settings.”
   
2. Select “Downloads” from the dropdown menu.
   
3. Select the country you’re gaming from on the right-hand pane.
   
4. Click on “OK.”
   

Withdraw From Steam Beta Programs

Although programs launched under Steam Beta almost always work without problems, some programs may have errors that can bring about a host of issues, including download problems.

Here’s how to opt out of Steam Beta:

1. Open your Steam client and head over to “Settings.”
   
2. Select “Account” from the dropdown menu.
   
3. Click on the “Change” button under “Beta participation.”
   
4. Select “NONE – Opt out of all beta programs” from the dropdown menu.
   
5. Click on “OK.”
   

Reinstall Steam

If all else fails, uninstalling and reinstalling Steam on your device may resolve the issue.

Also important is to delete all of Steam’s “AppData” and ensure there’s no trace of the Steam software on your device.

Here’s how to erase Steam’s AppData:

1. Launch the “Run” dialogue box by pressing the Windows key + R.
   
2. Enter “%appdata%” in the field provided and hit Enter.
   
3. Navigate to the Steam folder and click on “Delete.”
   

Gmod Workshop Not Downloading

Some Steam users prefer the Gmod Workshop to the Steam Workshop because the former doesn’t cap the number of files you can download within a given timeframe. Sadly, however, the Gmod Workshop isn’t immune to download problems. Downloaded mods may not appear in the game, and some can’t even be found on the downloads page.

Luckily, there are several troubleshooting methods, any of which can resolve the issue and get the download button working perfectly again:

1. Remove corrupted files from your PC.
2. Clear the 1 Steam download cache and start afresh with a clean slate.
3. Unsubscribe from all Beta programs.
4. Enable the Big Picture Mode.
   
5. Update your download region on Steam.
6. Uninstall and reinstall the Steam client on your device.
   

Get Your Downloads Moving Again

The Steam Workshop is a great way to find and install mods for your favorite games. Mods can add new content, change gameplay, or fix bugs in the game. Unfortunately, files do not always download successfully, a situation that can be quite frustrating. Perhaps the worst thing about it is that a single solution to the problem has yet to be found.

Luckily, several troubleshooting methods can help you figure out what’s causing the problem and get your downloads moving again.

Have you had problems with the Steam Workshop download button? Let us know in the comments section below.