Fix: Steam Error ‘Missing Downloaded Files’ issue

Want to know how to Fix Steam Error ‘Missing Downloaded Files’ issue? When a game or app is installed or updated on Steam, it is very common for Steam game files to go missing. When you try to install or update a game or app on Steam, you get an error message that says “Download Files Missing.” This is a very common Steam Error that can happen whenever a game or app on your Steam app is updated or installed. If you want to know more information about this Visit Official Steam Support site.

Did you just get the Steam error MISSING DOWNLOADED FILES? Most of the time, installing an app or online game on Steam is the reason why downloaded files go missing. It can also happen when a game or file is updated. There are several things that can cause the MISSING DOWNLOADED FILES error to show up on the Steam app. You can fix the problem in a number of ways, which is a good thing. This article will talk about what caused this Steam error and how to Fix Steam Error ‘Missing Downloaded Files’ issue.

Repair Steam Library Folders

You can try to repair the Steam library folders in order to fix any broken files. It will find corrupted files in the library and fix them, which will fix the “missing downloaded files” error on Steam in the long run. Read and follow the steps below carefully to find out how to get back downloaded files that you lost on Steam.

1. Press the Windows key, type Steam, and then press the Open button.
2. Click the Steam option in the top left corner, as shown below.
3. Go to the menu and click on Settings.
4. In the Settings window, under Content Libraries, click Downloads > STEAM LIBRARY FOLDERS, as shown below.
5. In the Storage Manager window, next to the Steam folder, click the icon with three dots.
6. Click on the option to Repair Folder.
7. A pop-up window called “User Account Control” will appear on your screen. It will ask, “Do you want to let this app change your device?” Choose Yes by clicking on it.
8. After a few seconds, the Steam library folder will be fixed. Click Close to finish.

Verify Integrity of Game File

If the download is interrupted for any reason, the files may become corrupted, and you’ll get a “Steam error: missing downloaded files.” Follow the steps below carefully to make sure that the file you downloaded is correct and that the download worked:

1. Open the Steam app from the Windows Search menu.
2. Click on the option that says LIBRARY, as shown in the image below.
3. Choose the game you want from the list on the left, right-click it, and then click Properties.
4. Now, click the LOCAL FILES option on the left side of the screen.
5. Click on Check the integrity of demo files…, as shown below.
6. After a few seconds, the game files will be validated, which means that the downloaded file is complete and not broken.

Disable Antivirus Temporarily

How to Fix ‘Missing Downloaded Files’ Error on Steam: Some game files could be marked as dangerous by the antivirus, and the system could delete them. To fix Steam missing installed files, you can turn off your antivirus for a while. Here, we take disabling Windows Defender as an example:

1. To open Windows Settings, press Win + I.
2. Scroll down to find Updates & Security.
3. Click Virus & threat protection on the Windows Security tab.
4. Click “Manage settings” in the new window, and then choose “Turn off Real-time protection.”

Clear Download Cache

Sometimes, corrupted games that have already been downloaded leave traces in the download cache folder, which causes updates and downloads to stop working. You can fix the problem by clearing the download cache.

1. Open the Steam app and, as shown in Method 2, go to Settings.
2. Click the CLEAR DOWNLOAD CACHE button in the Downloads section.
3. Click OK on the next pop-up window, as shown below, to finish the process.

Reinstall Game

If you still can’t fix the “missing downloaded files” error on Steam, you might want to reinstall the game that’s missing files. Follow the steps below to use this method:

1. Open the Steam app and go to the LIBRARY.
2. In the left pane, right-click on the game you want to uninstall and click Manage > Uninstall.
3. Click Uninstall again in the pop-up window to confirm.

Run Steam as Administrator

If you run Steam as an administrator, it can download, write, and change the Steam files on your computer. It will give Steam the rights it needs to access files that can only be accessed by an administrator. To do the same, follow the steps below.

1. Right-click on the Steam.exe file.
2. Choose Properties.
3. On the Compatibility tab, check the box next to Run this program as an administrator.
4. Then, click “Apply” and “OK” to save your changes.

What is Steam Missing Downloaded Files Error?

Players all over the world are having fun and buying their favorite multiplayer games at different game stores and on different platforms. For example, Nintendo, PlayStation Store, Epic, Uplay, and Steam. 120 million people will use Steam every month, making it one of the biggest game stores in the world. Over the past year, about 28% more games have been released on Steam.

Steam is a well-made and advanced game store that gives all players a great experience. Still, players’ problems don’t always go away. Most of the time, this error is caused by a problem with the file or with the internet. We could have this kind of problem not only because of this problem, but also because of a lot of other problems. Possible reasons why you might see this error message:

1. Your storage space might not be big enough for the game.
2. The Steam program could be having trouble.
3. Problem with the network?
4. The file could not be read.