Steam is a huge platform for sharing games and game items, as well as the largest service and social network for gamers around the world. Today, you can’t find a single gamer’s computer that doesn’t have the Steam client installed. Let's figure out why Steam lags and how we can fix this problem. Use the service without delays or problems!
Possible reasons
First, let's identify a list of possible reasons why Steam lags. And then we will start eliminating them. So, Steam may slow down due to:
Let's look at each fault in more detail and find out why Steam lags and whether it can be fixed.
System requirements
Steam is just a program for launching and downloading games, as well as exchanging information between players. Because of this, the system requirements for the application on a PC are very low - it can even handle running the program, so this reason is unlikely. Just in case, check your configuration against the following system requirements:
- processor with a frequency of 1 GHz or higher;
- at least 512 MB of RAM;
- operating system Windows XP or later;
- To install the program you will need from 500 MB (not taking into account downloaded games).
Internet connection
Steam is fully synchronized with its servers, so it is impossible to fully connect to the system if network access is poor or absent. If this is the reason, then the Steam main screen will display a corresponding error upon loading. Also, all pages of the store, inventory, etc. will take a long time to load. In this case, the problem needs to be solved on the side of connecting the PC to the Internet or troubleshooting with the provider. Try rebooting your router and logging into Steam again.
Server problems
The next reason why Steam lags is the load on the servers. Active users often encounter this problem. In this case, you will not be able to fix this issue yourself - you will have to wait until Steam employees can restore the service to functionality. There may also be lags during prevention. For example, if you are playing online with other players, and at this time the connection to the server is interrupted, you cannot open your friends list, etc. This indicates maintenance work on the server. They usually last no more than an hour. So just wait.
Problems with the client himself
Now let's figure out why Steam is not responding or is slow. This often happens due to the built-in browser if you use it often. To solve this problem you need to clear the cache. To do this, open "Settings" and go to the Web Browser tab. In the tab that opens, click "Delete web browser cache". After this, restart Steam and check the functionality of the browser.
Additionally, you may need to close the process in the task manager. To do this, press CTRL+ALT+Del and in the “Processes” tab close steamwebhelper.exe. Now you know what to do if Steam lags. Use our tips and play without slowdowns or lags!
Unfortunately, games have flaws: stutters, low FPS, crashes, freezes, bugs and other minor and not so minor errors. Often problems begin even before the game starts, when it does not install, does not load, or does not even download. And the computer itself sometimes acts strangely, and then on Steam there is a black screen instead of a picture, the controls don’t work, you can’t hear the sound or anything else.
What to do first
- Download and run the world famous CCleaner(download via direct link) - this is a program that will clean your computer of unnecessary garbage, as a result of which the system will work faster after the first reboot;
- Update all drivers on the system using the program Driver Updater(download via direct link) - it will scan your computer and update all drivers to the latest version in 5 minutes;
- Install the program WinOptimizer(download via direct link) and enable game mode in it, which will end useless background processes while launching games and improve performance in the game.
The second thing to do if you have any problems with Steam is to check the system requirements. In a good way, you need to do this before purchasing, so as not to regret the money spent.
Every gamer should have at least a little understanding of components, know why a video card, processor and other things are needed in the system unit.
Files, drivers and libraries
Almost every device in a computer requires a set of special software. These are drivers, libraries and other files that ensure the correct operation of the computer.
You should start with the drivers for your video card. Modern graphics cards are manufactured by only two large companies - Nvidia and AMD. Having found out which product drives the coolers in the system unit, we go to the official website and download the latest driver package:
A prerequisite for the successful functioning of Steam is the availability of the latest drivers for all devices in the system. Download the utility Driver Updater to easily and quickly download the latest drivers and install them with one click:
If Steam does not start, we recommend that you try to disable your antivirus or put the game in the antivirus exceptions, and also check again for compliance with the system requirements and if something from your build does not comply, then, if possible, improve your PC by purchasing more powerful components.
On Steam, black screen, white screen, color screen. Solution
Problems with screens of different colors can be divided into 2 categories.
Firstly, they often involve using two video cards at once. For example, if your motherboard has a built-in video card, but you play on a discrete one, then Steam may launch for the first time on the built-in one, but you will not see the game itself, because the monitor is connected to a discrete video card.
Secondly, color screens occur when there are problems with displaying images on the screen. This can happen for various reasons. For example, Steam cannot work through an outdated driver or does not support the video card. Also, a black/white screen may appear when working at resolutions that are not supported by the game.
Steam crashes. At a specific or random moment. Solution
You play for yourself, play and then - bam! - everything goes out, and now in front of you is a desktop without any hint of a game. Why is this happening? To solve the problem, you should try to figure out what the nature of the problem is.
If a crash occurs at a random moment in time without any pattern, then with a 99% probability we can say that this is a bug of the game itself. In this case, it is very difficult to fix something, and the best thing to do is just put Steam aside and wait for the patch.
However, if you know exactly at what moments the crash occurs, then you can continue the game, avoiding situations that provoke a crash.
However, if you know exactly at what moments the crash occurs, then you can continue the game, avoiding situations that provoke a crash. In addition, you can download a Steam save and bypass the crash location.
Steam freezes. The picture freezes. Solution
The situation is approximately the same as with crashes: many freezes are directly related to the game itself, or rather to the developer’s mistake when creating it. However, often a frozen picture can become a starting point for investigating the deplorable state of a video card or processor.
So if the picture on Steam freezes, then use programs to display statistics on component loading. Perhaps your video card has long exhausted its working life or the processor is heating up to dangerous temperatures?
The easiest way to check the load and temperatures for the video card and processors is in the MSI Afterburner program. If you wish, you can even display these and many other parameters on top of the Steam image.
What temperatures are dangerous? Processors and video cards have different operating temperatures. For video cards they are usually 60-80 degrees Celsius. For processors it is slightly lower - 40-70 degrees. If the processor temperature is higher, then you should check the condition of the thermal paste. It may have already dried out and needs to be replaced.
If the video card is heating up, then you should use a driver or an official utility from the manufacturer. It is necessary to increase the number of revolutions of the coolers and check whether the operating temperature decreases.
Steam is slow. Low FPS. Frame rate drops. Solution
If there are slowdowns and low frame rates on Steam, the first thing to do is lower the graphics settings. Of course, there are many of them, so before reducing everything, it’s worth finding out exactly how certain settings affect performance.
Screen resolution. In short, this is the number of points that make up the game picture. The higher the resolution, the higher the load on the video card. However, the increase in load is insignificant, so you should reduce the screen resolution only as a last resort, when everything else no longer helps.
Texture quality. Typically, this setting determines the resolution of texture files. The texture quality should be reduced if the video card has a small amount of video memory (less than 4 GB) or if you are using a very old hard drive with a spindle speed of less than 7200.
Model quality(sometimes just detailing). This setting determines which set of 3D models will be used in the game. The higher the quality, the more polygons. Accordingly, high-poly models require more processing power from the video card (not to be confused with the amount of video memory!), which means this parameter should be reduced on video cards with low core or memory frequencies.
Shadows. They are implemented in different ways. In some games, shadows are created dynamically, that is, they are calculated in real time at every second of the game. Such dynamic shadows load both the processor and the video card. For optimization purposes, developers often abandon full rendering and add pre-rendered shadows to the game. They are static, because essentially they are just textures overlaid on top of the main textures, which means they load memory, and not the video card core.
Often developers add additional settings related to shadows:
- Shadow Resolution - Determines how detailed the shadow cast by an object will be. If the game has dynamic shadows, it loads the video card core, and if a pre-created render is used, then it “eats” the video memory.
- Soft shadows - smoothing out unevenness in the shadows themselves, usually this option is given along with dynamic shadows. Regardless of the type of shadows, it loads the video card in real time.
Smoothing. Allows you to get rid of ugly corners on the edges of objects through the use of a special algorithm, the essence of which usually comes down to generating several images at once and comparing them, calculating the most “smooth” picture. There are many different anti-aliasing algorithms that differ in their level of impact on Steam performance.
For example, MSAA works head-on, creating 2, 4 or 8 renders at once, so the frame rate is reduced by 2, 4 or 8 times, respectively. Algorithms like FXAA and TAA work a little differently, achieving a smooth image by calculating only the edges and using some other tricks. Thanks to this, they do not reduce performance as much.
Lighting. As with anti-aliasing, there are different algorithms for lighting effects: SSAO, HBAO, HDAO. They all use video card resources, but they do it differently depending on the video card itself. The fact is that the HBAO algorithm was promoted mainly on video cards from Nvidia (GeForce line), so it works best on “green” ones. HDAO, on the contrary, is optimized for video cards from AMD. SSAO is the simplest type of lighting; it consumes the least resources, so if Steam is slow, you should switch to it.
What to reduce first? Shadows, anti-aliasing and lighting effects tend to take the most work, so these are the best places to start.
Gamers often have to handle Steam optimization themselves. Almost all major releases have various related forums where users share their ways to improve productivity.
One of them is a special program called WinOptimizer. It is made specifically for those who do not want to manually clean their computer of various temporary files, delete unnecessary registry entries and edit the startup list. WinOptimizer will do this itself and also analyze your computer to identify ways to improve performance in applications and games.
Steam is lagging. Large delay when playing. Solution
Many people confuse “brakes” with “lags,” but these problems have completely different causes. Steam slows down when the frame rate at which the image is displayed on the monitor decreases, and lags when the delay when accessing the server or any other host is too high.
This is why lags can only occur in online games. The reasons are different: bad network code, physical distance from servers, network congestion, incorrectly configured router, low Internet connection speed.
However, the latter happens least often. In online games, communication between client and server occurs through the exchange of relatively short messages, so even 10 MB per second should be enough.
There is no sound on Steam. Can not hear anything. Solution
Steam works, but for some reason does not sound - this is another problem that gamers face. Of course, you can play like this, but it’s still better to figure out what’s going on.
First you need to determine the scale of the problem. Where exactly is there no sound - only in the game or even on the computer? If only in a game, then perhaps this is due to the fact that the sound card is very old and does not support DirectX.
If there is no sound at all, then the problem is definitely in the computer settings. Perhaps the sound card drivers are installed incorrectly, or maybe there is no sound due to some specific error in our beloved Windows OS.
Steam controls don't work. Steam doesn't recognize my mouse, keyboard or gamepad. Solution
How to play if it is impossible to control the process? Problems with supporting specific devices are inappropriate here, because we are talking about familiar devices - a keyboard, mouse and controller.
Thus, errors in the game itself are practically excluded; the problem is almost always on the user's side. You can solve it in different ways, but, one way or another, you will have to contact the driver. Usually, when you connect a new device, the operating system immediately tries to use one of the standard drivers, but some models of keyboards, mice and gamepads are incompatible with them.
Thus, you need to find out the exact model of the device and try to find its driver. Devices from well-known gaming brands often come with their own software packages, since the standard Windows driver simply cannot ensure the correct operation of all functions of a particular device.
If you don’t want to search for drivers for all devices separately, you can use the program Driver Updater. It is designed to automatically search for drivers, so you only need to wait for the scan results and download the necessary drivers in the program interface.
Steam slowdowns can often be caused by viruses. In this case, it makes no difference how powerful the video card is in the system unit. You can scan your computer and clean it of viruses and other unwanted software using special programs. For example NOD32. The antivirus has proven itself to be the best and has been approved by millions of users around the world.
ZoneAlarm is suitable for both personal use and small businesses, capable of protecting a computer running Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP from any attacks: phishing, viruses, malware, spyware and other cyber threats . New users are given a 30-day free trial.
Nod32 is an antivirus from ESET, which has received many awards for its contribution to security development. Versions of anti-virus programs are available on the developer’s website for both PCs and mobile devices; a 30-day trial version is provided. There are special conditions for business.
Steam downloaded from a torrent does not work. Solution
If the game distribution was downloaded via torrent, then in principle there can be no guarantees of operation. Torrents and repacks are almost never updated through official applications and do not work over the network, because in the process of hacking, hackers cut out all network functions from games, which are often used to verify the license.Using such versions of games is not only inconvenient, but even dangerous, because very often many files in them have been changed. For example, to bypass protection, pirates modify the EXE file. At the same time, no one knows what else they do with it. Perhaps they embed self-executing software. For example, when the game is first launched, it will integrate into the system and use its resources to ensure the well-being of hackers. Or, giving access to the computer to third parties. There are no guarantees here and cannot be.
In addition, the use of pirated versions is, in the opinion of our publication, theft. The developers spent a lot of time creating the game, investing their own money in the hope that their brainchild would pay off. And every work must be paid.
Therefore, if any problems arise with games downloaded from torrents or hacked using one or another means, you should immediately remove the pirated version, clean your computer with an antivirus and a licensed copy of the game. This will not only protect you from dubious software, but will also allow you to download updates for the game and receive official support from its creators.
Steam gives an error about a missing DLL file. Solution
As a rule, problems associated with missing DLLs arise when launching Steam, but sometimes the game can access certain DLLs during the process and, not finding them, crash in the most blatant manner.
To fix this error, you need to find the required DLL and install it on the system. The easiest way to do this is using the program DLL-fixer, which scans the system and helps quickly find missing libraries.
If your problem turns out to be more specific or the method outlined in this article did not help, then you can ask other users in our “” section. They will help you quickly!
Thank you for your attention!
Steam is a huge platform for sharing games and game items, as well as the largest service and social network for gamers around the world. Today, you can’t find a single gamer’s computer that doesn’t have the Steam client installed. Let's figure out why Steam lags and how we can fix this problem. Use the service without delays or problems!
Possible reasons
First, let's identify a list of possible reasons why Steam lags. And then we will start eliminating them. So, Steam may slow down due to:
Let's look at each fault in more detail and find out why Steam lags and whether it can be fixed.
System requirements
Steam is just a program for launching and downloading games, as well as exchanging information between players. Because of this, the system requirements for the application on a PC are very low - even an old computer can run the program, so this reason is unlikely. Just in case, check your configuration against the following system requirements:
- processor with a frequency of 1 GHz or higher;
- at least 512 MB of RAM;
- operating system Windows XP or later;
- To install the program you will need from 500 MB (not taking into account downloaded games).
Internet connection
Steam is fully synchronized with its servers, so it is impossible to fully connect to the system if network access is poor or absent. If this is the reason, then the Steam main screen will display a corresponding error upon loading. Also, all pages of the store, inventory, etc. will take a long time to load. In this case, the problem needs to be solved on the side of connecting the PC to the Internet or troubleshooting with the provider. Try rebooting your router and logging into Steam again.
Server problems
The next reason why Steam lags is the load on the servers. Active users often encounter this problem. In this case, you will not be able to fix this issue yourself - you will have to wait until Steam employees can restore the service to functionality. There may also be lags during prevention. For example, if you are playing online with other players, and at this time the connection to the server is interrupted, you cannot open your friends list, etc. This indicates maintenance work on the server. They usually last no more than an hour. So just wait.
Problems with the client himself
Now let's figure out why Steam is not responding or is slow. This often happens due to the built-in browser if you use it often. To solve this problem you need to clear the cache. To do this, open "Settings" and go to the Web Browser tab. In the tab that opens, click "Delete web browser cache". After this, restart Steam and check the functionality of the browser.
Additionally, you may need to close the process in the task manager. To do this, press CTRL+ALT+Del and in the “Processes” tab close steamwebhelper.exe. Now you know what to do if Steam lags. Use our tips and play without slowdowns or lags!
